How to Read a Book
The Art of Getting a Liberal Education
by Mortimer J. Adler, Charles Lincoln Van Doren · first published 1940
67% recommend30% neutral3% critical
Why HN recommends it
Teaches active, analytical reading of hard nonfiction: previewing a book, asking what it says and whether it's true, annotating, and rereading. Suits readers who want to retain and get more from serious books.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
Related books
2016–2019Red Dragon
Thomas Harris
0 recommend · 2 mentioned0 recommend · 2 mention0 recommend · 20 recommend
2011–2026Thinking, fast and slow
Daniel Kahneman
Recommended by 373 · mentioned by 879373 recommend · 879 mention373 recommend · 879373 recommend
Of studies
Francis Bacon
Recommended by 2 · mentioned by 32 recommend · 3 mention2 recommend · 32 recommend
Farnsworth's classical English rhetoric
Ward Farnsworth
Recommended by 1 · mentioned by 21 recommend · 2 mention1 recommend · 21 recommend
2014–2026Plain Words
Rebecca Gowers, Sir Ernest Gowers
Recommended by 3 · mentioned by 33 recommend · 3 mention3 recommend · 33 recommend
English country life, 1780-1830
E. W. Bovill
Recommended by 1 · mentioned by 21 recommend · 2 mention1 recommend · 21 recommend
2007–2026Gödel, Escher, Bach
Douglas R. Hofstadter
Recommended by 505 · mentioned by 1,055505 recommend · 1,055 mention505 recommend · 1,055505 recommend
2009–2013Reading rate
Ronald P. Carver
Recommended by 1 · mentioned by 21 recommend · 2 mention1 recommend · 21 recommend
Great question! In my fourth decade of life I’m finally figuring out the optimal way to do this myself. I’ve forgotten so so many books over the years that I supposedly read. Read How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading by Mortimer Adler. (https://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Book-Classic-Intelligent/dp/...) I’ve given this book to a bunch of people on my teams as it also helps with…
on “Ask HN: How Do You Read?” ↗…are very welcome. Mindset, by Carol Dweck. As one HN reader commented, "It'll change the way you think about the way you think." Highly recommended. Language in Thought and Action by S. I. Hayakawa. How to Read a Book by Mortimer Adler. Envisioning Information by Edward Tufte. Fooled By Randomness by Nassim Taleb. E. W. Bovill's English Country Life 1780-1830 was recommended by pg a while ago. My favorite so far…
on “Ask HN: Books That Gratify One's Intellectual Curiosity?” ↗I strongly suggest “How to Read a Book” by Adler. It’s an excellent discussion of types and levels of reading. When faced with a large, imposing text, my method is: 1. Read the title page, table of contents, index, and introduction several…
on “How to read research paper, textbook, long text content?” ↗For anyone reading to acquire knowledge, or to learn new things, may I recommend How To Read A Book by Charles Van Doren, Mortimer Adler.
on “How I Read Programming Books” ↗…the table of contents and dip into the chapters that catch your attention. Skim first and read closely only if convinced. Use the index for cross referencing. Take notes for extra points. Oh, and read How To Read A Book, by Mortimer J. Adler.
on “The art of reading non-fiction non-linearly” ↗How to Read a Book by Mortimer J. Adler - I come back to this book constantly and I absolutely love it. Highly recommended. 5/5. Deep Work by Cal Newport - Could be summed up in a blog post. 3/5 (for the message; lower…
on “Ask HN: Books you read in 2018?” ↗…the 1980s. I've come to feel that there's a general hierarchy of informational quality by medium. From highest to lowest: - Books. Particularly Great Books. The list at the end of Mortimer Adler's How to Read a Book is an excellent start.[2] Your library, Project Gutenberg, and the Internet Archive offer lawful access to a tremendous set of titles. Library Genesis and ZLibrary extend that but thumb noses at copyright.…
on “Ask HN: How do I expand my worldview and meet smart people online?” ↗I suggest reading the classic "How to Read a Book" by Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren http://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Book-Touchstone-book/dp/06712...
on “How to read a book” ↗Go read How to Read a Book. The second level of reading is about skimming, picking up the general point of something, then deciding if it's worth a careful, analytical (and perhaps synoptic) reading. I don't think this article…
on “You can increase your intelligence” ↗The game changer for me was actually learning how to read a book. I no longer approach books the same way after having read How to Read a Book by Mortimer Adler [1]. Once you have a method down, you can go through books rather quickly and retain knowledge. My biggest…
on “Ways to Read More Books” ↗Check these books: - Ultralearning by Scott Young - Deep Work by Cal Newport - Atomic Habits by James Clear - How to Read a Book by Mortimer Adler - Mindfulness Meditation (many books by Jon Kabat-Zinn „Ultralearning“ has lots of valuable ideas. For instance: Directly attacking the skill you want to learn. If you want to learn…
on “Ask HN: How do you manage self-study?” ↗Good article. He mentions the book "How to Read a Book". I've read Mortimer Adler's version several times. It really changed how I read and learn from books. It's well worth the investment. I haven't read the Mortimer & Van Doren version. I've found that…
on “Surgical Reading: How to Read 12 Books at Once” ↗…the first chapters and jump to a more substantial chapter where the key concepts are already established… Feel free to start reading at the very end; this is also a good strategy for prose, see Adler’s “How To Read a Book.” Actually I think Adler’s framework would be very interesting to apply to programs. Literature isn’t just novels, it’s also monographs and anthologies and textbooks.
on “Literate programming: Knuth is doing it wrong (2014)” ↗Few of these books are “great works” in their field, but all changed my understanding of their topic. - How to Read a Book by Adler and Van Doren. I was in academia when I read this and it had a huge impact on how I read and thought about academic papers. - Intuitive Biostatistics by Motulsky. First stats book that I enjoyed.…
on “Ask HN: Which books do you consider real gems in your field of work/study?” ↗How to Read a Book by Mortimer Adler is a great resource.
on “How to Read Books When You Have ADHD” ↗