Gaining knowledge is not the only reason to read, of course. Reading for pleasure or entertainment can be a wonderful use of time, but this article is about retaining books you read. With that in mind, I’d like to share some of the best reading comprehension strategies I’ve found.
Here are 10 Proven Ways for Retaining Books You Read;
1. Read and Listen Simultaneously
A LOT of studies show that reading while listening to an audio version of the material helps with comprehension, speed, and retention. This is probably why Amazon combined Audible and Kindle to make their immersion reading.
It’s so easy to read and listen to something at the same time. I don’t know why this method isn’t used by more people but Those Are The Proven Ways for retaining books you read. I have noticed right away that listening to and reading at the same time has…
This made me enjoy a story a lot more. I was able to read faster and for longer periods of time. I added more words to my active vocabulary and fixed how I said words in my passive vocabulary. In the long run, I just remember more of what I’ve read.
I remember big parts of the story. I remember quotes. I remember parts of the plot, characters (even small ones), and details that I would have missed otherwise. I also remember what I thought, felt, and said at different points in the story, which helps me better describe it to others and retaining books you read.
Here are some books that I think would be great to listen to while reading:
- George Saunders wrote the book Lincoln in the Bardo.
- Andy Weir wrote The Martian.
- Stephen King’s The Stand
At first, this way of reading might seem strange, but soon you won’t want to do it any other way. It is a sublime experience to relax at the end of the day in a comfortable chair with a good book in your lap and a skilled narrator in your ear, That’s Why It is considered as one of the Proven Ways to for retaining books you read.
2. Write Book Reviews
One of the best Proven Ways for retaining books you read, is to remember what you’ve just read is to write a review of the book.
Reviewing a book forces you to actively think about what you’ve read. When you write, your thoughts become more clear. Think you don’t have any ideas about what you just read? Well, you have to think when you write a book review. You’ll see right away that you do have thoughts. They were just sleeping and waiting for the fire to go out.
The books I have written reviews for are the ones I remember most clearly helps me for retaining books you read:
- Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl: 7 Lessons We Can Learn From It (Book Review) Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami has a lot to teach writers. Here are ten of them.
- Writing book reviews is the best way to get a memory that is almost as good as a camera.
- Because it’s so bad, I forget a lot of funny things. But I can talk about Norwegian Wood or Man’s Search for Meaning as if I were reading them right now. That’s why writing book reviews is so important.
Not sure how to write a review of a book?
Don’t be afraid. No way is right or wrong. It doesn’t need to be a 20-page long story. It can be just a few sentences or bullet points. Ask yourself a few questions if you’re stuck which helps you to Retain Every Book You Read:
- What stood out to you about the people?
- Did you notice any themes that kept coming up?
- Was there a time you really liked or disliked? Why?
Those are great places to start. But really, give yourself the task of writing down 10 things you noticed in the book you just finished. This question doesn’t have a right or wrong answer. Write it down, even if it seems obvious. It could lead to most Proven Ways for retaining books you read.
3. Take classes or lectures on the same topic
Lessons and classes don’t have to be dull. The ones made by The Great Courses are so much fun that you will want to watch them all at once. No matter what you’re reading, you can find related information online that will make it better and helps you retaining books you read.
Did you just finish Crime and Punishment? Take a class on Russian literature and find out where Dostoyevsky fits in.
Did you just finish Pride and Prejudice? Find out how Jane Austen’s writing fits into the history of the novel.
Just read about Norse myths? Take a class on myths from around the world.
You see what I mean. You can better understand what you just read by drawing on the knowledge of experts from around the world. This also makes sure that when you put the book down, it doesn’t end. Your reading of it adds to a conversation that is already going on. This ongoing talk helps you remember the book better as it becomes a part of your life.
4. Share what you know with other people
Knowledge that is kept to itself will eventually be lost. But information that links to other information is very sticky.
You should read a bunch of different things at once. And as you read something, think about how it fits with what you’ve read before that helps you in retaining books you read.
- Visit galleries of art
- Visit the theater
- Check out new places
- Watch new films
Try to make connections between what you’re reading and what you see around you which will help you retaining books you read. I’ll show you how this works with an example. I’m reading a book about Theodore Roosevelt right now. It is a wonderful book. Very well written. I think that the writer won a Pulitzer Prize. And Roosevelt is an outstanding man.
When I went for a walk in nature, I learned more about Roosevelt. I was looking at all the birds and insects in the air and thinking about how interested Roosevelt was in biology. He would learn about animals and write down what he thought about them. So I began to wonder what kind of mind it takes to be interested in that kind of thing. How did Roosevelt’s strong need to organize and learn help him in politics? How could I use that kind of motivation in my own life?
When you think about what you’ve read this way, it becomes a part of your life, which makes it much easier to remember.
5. Make marks on your books
I used to hate giving my books to other people because they would always come back with broken spines and pages that had been ripped out. When I went to Oxford, the teachers told us to write all over our books. I remember tentatively writing in my copy of Wuthering Heights and feeling so bad about it that I swore I would never write in a book again and would only write my thoughts in a notebook.
But now I know that the right way to read a book is to make it look like a mess.
Use stickers, book flags, and ink to cover the book. Make your copy a beautiful mess by underlining your favorite parts, circling themes that keep coming up, scribbling half-thoughts in the margins, making an index in the front and back, and so on.
If you write in your books, don’t feel bad about it. Every author who has ever lived would be flattered to know that their words are being studied so carefully and that their work is so important that the pages are covered with notes about them.
Writing all over your books makes you feel like you’re having a conversation, which makes you remember a lot more. You’re becoming a more engaged reader who pays attention to what’s going on instead of letting the story just happen and pass you by and is one of the retaining books you read about the books you like.
Talking about what you just read helps you understand and appreciate what you just read even more.
If you can talk about what you read, you’re more likely to remember it. Talk about the books you are reading with everyone you meet. Friends, enemies, people you love and people you hate. Even small talk with random strangers can become a mini-book club.
When you take a taxi the next time, try to talk about something you just read. People have a completely false idea that taxi drivers are not educated. Maybe the so-called “elite” don’t think anyone with a working-class accent could have an opinion on art because of their class. But I’ve had better conversations about books, movies, and music with cab drivers, construction workers, hairdressers, and cleaners than with many of my peers at Oxford.
People also don’t talk openly about books and art with strangers because they’re afraid of being seen as “nerdy” or not normal. But I’ve found that if you talk to people as if they are smart, they will show you that they are smart and have great ideas. Many people are glad to be able to talk about something other than the usual stuff.
Join a book club is another good idea. Find one near you or sign up for one online. There is a great book club on Reddit which is Proven Ways to retaining books you read. It’s not too busy, but there’s a community of book lovers there who can help you connect with what you’re reading.
7. Teach what you’ve read
One of the best ways to learn and remember something is to teach it to someone else, This Is Considered as one of the Proven Ways to retaining books you read.
We did this all the time in college. I didn’t always fully understand something until I tried to teach it to someone else. Then I would have a “aha!” moment, and I would remember what I had learned.
People can learn from what you’re reading in your daily life. Start by talking about what you’re reading. If people are interested but don’t understand, use that to your advantage and try to teach them.
You could offer to help your younger family members with their homework if you have any.
You could record a series of lessons and sell them if you want a new side job or want to get better at public speaking. What’s stopping you from turning what you just read into a YouTube video or podcast?
8. Doing aerobics, reading, and listening
I just got one of those Fit Bits, and it keeps reminding me to exercise and take more steps which is proved as the most Proven Ways to retaining books you read.
I couldn’t believe how long it takes to walk 10,000 steps a day. You have to do something while your blood is pumping, so I often listen to an audiobook. My favorite way to start the day is to get on the stationary bike, put on an audiobook, and use the Kindle app to read along.
I’m so into the story that I don’t even know how much time has passed.
I get rid of two problems at once. I work out my body and my mind, and then I’m ready for a great day.
9. Disagree with the writer
Pretend the author is trying to teach you something and you want to learn more by asking questions. It was kind of like a Socratic conversation.
Write down your answers in the margins of your books.
You can’t ask the author a question. Obviously. But as soon as you ask the question, your mind will start trying to figure out what it means and come up with an answer and helps to retaining books you read.
A book is an exchange of ideas. It’s not a speech (though it looks like one). The experience of reading shouldn’t be that the author hits you over the head with a wall of text and you just take it all in. Ask questions about everything you read, and you’ll get a lot more out of what you read.
10. Go over your books again
If you’ve been writing in your books and you want to write reviews, you’ll have to read them again. You’ll reread the most interesting parts, which will help your brain remember what you’ve read and considered as one of the Proven Ways to retaining books you read.
If you really liked a book, you should at least look at it again after you’ve finished it.
You should also think about putting it on your list of books to read again in the future.
For example, I like to read Heart of Darkness every couple of years. I do the same thing with a lot of Shakespeare’s plays (particularly King Lear). This lets the book’s message grow, and every time you read it again, you’ll find something new, maybe even something that goes against what you learned the first time.
Bottom Line:
Reading a book is one of the easiest ways to learn and travel into a different world without traveling. There are hundreds of benefits of reading a book. However, it is important to retain every book you read so that it will be useful for you in the long run. We hope you have enjoyed reading techniques to retain every book you read.
