I would like to read more books rather than spend time on the Internet. But each time I pick up a book I think I can probably do a little bit of work or practice some interviewing skills like leetcode rather than reading which is not going to give any benefit. Secondly, books are overly verbose so I tend to read 10 min summaries which obviously don't convey the material as nicely as the real book. Anyone find this familiar? How do you commit yourself to a healthy reading habit? (I prefer physical books than another digital device like Kindle).
Ask HN: How to Read More Books?
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Re: Ask HN: How to Read More Books?
#2Why do you think leetcode is more useful than books?
Re: Ask HN: How to Read More Books?
#3Why do you think leetcode is more useful than books?
Keeping your coding skills sharp always helps with interviewing when changing jobs.
Re: Ask HN: How to Read More Books?
#4What I've done and has worked for me:
1. Take the book, leave the phone and laptop at home. Go to a coffee shop, park, bar (a chill kind of bar, not a sports bar or a dive bar) and read. 2. Declare a space in the home to be tech-free. 3. Read after doing some other activity and make that the habit. After I go for runs or mow the lawn, I sit on the back deck and read. <-- this one seems to be the most consistent, but is a spring/summer/early fall thing here, not a year-round approach. In more temperate climates you could do this year round.
Re: Ask HN: How to Read More Books?
#5Audiobooks have been a lifesaver in my otherwise busy life. I listen when I drive and when I do chores primarily. Try to alternate fiction and non-fiction, been doing it for probably 15 years now. Last couple of years I've started increasing the playback speed very slowly, training myself to get comfortable with it. Currently at around 1.75x for non-fiction, 2x speed for fiction. More literature covered with minimal loss of comprehension (won't say it's zero, but small enough of an issue given the benefit).
Re: Ask HN: How to Read More Books?
#6Overly verbose? Indeed for the modern non fiction book. Most are really just 10 page articles expanded to fit in what people perceive as the standard book length.
Honestly as much as this sounds like a joke, make your next book “How to read a Book” by Adler. It changed the way I read books and now I don’t feel bad skimming a book and deciding that it’s not worth my time
Re: Ask HN: How to Read More Books?
#7Overly verbose? Indeed for the modern non fiction book. Most are really just 10 page articles expanded to fit in what people perceive as the standard book length. Honestly as much as this sounds like a joke, make your next book “How to read a Book” by Adler. It changed the way I read books and now I don’t feel bad skimming a book and deciding that it’s not worth my time
Actually, before you even read that book take a look at the Wikipedia page for it https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_to_Read_a_Book
Re: Ask HN: How to Read More Books?
#8Audiobooks have been a lifesaver in my otherwise busy life. I listen when I drive and when I do chores primarily. Try to alternate fiction and non-fiction, been doing it for probably 15 years now. Last couple of years I've started increasing the playback speed very slowly, training myself to get comfortable with it. Currently at around 1.75x for non-fiction, 2x speed for fiction. More literature covered with minimal…
I wish that audiobooks worked for me, but I just can't pay attention to them. I tried listening to one on a long car trip and I couldn't pay attention for more than a few minutes.
Re: Ask HN: How to Read More Books?
#9I use an ebook reader and a notebook. It has a browser, but the touch interface has enough friction to make it hard to get absorbed into distractions. The notebook helps me take notes and eliminate the "gotta look it up right now" feeling. Also, blocking social media and news sites with host files or at the router (router is preferable, as DoH in Firefox and Chrome bypass hostfile blocking).
Re: Ask HN: How to Read More Books?
#10I might be the wrong person to answer because I'm obsessed with books and sometimes have been told by my therapist, my wife, my son, etc. to lay off the reading.
Two things I like are: (1) reading on public transit (often physical books) and (2) reading a tablet when doing cardio at the gym.
Also I think there's the matter of finding the right books. Some books really do invite you into a world that takes a lot of effort to get into, say
https://www.lacan.com/beingandevent.html
I find this is a good analogy
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1105469/
It is like going somewhere on vacation or playing a video game or experiencing virtual reality. You get out what you put in.