Speed reading help!!!!

[mdragon159]

A good book is like chocolate. It is meant to be savored and enjoyed, not rushed.

Yum, chocolate. My books are pieces of chocolate! Must go eat them now!

Yeah, I agree with that comment. Good books must not be rushed

I pay far more attention to comprehension than speed. Reading at light speed isn't worth it if you miss nuances or subtle details. Everyone has their own comfortable pace. It also depends largely on what I'm reading. Fiction tends to fly by like napkins in a wind tunnel. Philosophy, on the other hand, can crawl by at an agonizing pace. A 150 page philosophy book can take me an entire week to digest and fully comprehend. The equivalent size of fiction may take me an hour or two, or less. So the question has a lot of qualifiers. Not to mention reading in another language...

Lots of more things to agree with...

 

[79dougb]

any speed readers here?

I have been an avid reader of airport novels (ludlum, child, kernick etc) for about 10 years and normally finish a book within 5 days.
I have recently decided to get some classics under my belt but due to the intricacies of these novels my reading speed has halved almost! Can anyone speed read classics (and still maintain sound understanding of the story) or do you prefer to go slow and savour the images as you go?

 

[Stewart]

Go at your own speed, all the time. Speed reading is probably as good as Ludlum and Child novels.

 

[dele]

Like you said, it all depends on the book. Don't feel bad about taking a while to read something, it's usually worth it.

Well put Stewart.

 

[Bookmeister]

I tend to read in fits and starts (yep, I've seen the doctor about it and there's nothing he could do ).

If the book is a quality read, I'll take my time and digest it. If its an "airport paperback", it doesn't get much time at all. My personal record is 22 books in 2 weeks (a very lazy holiday!!!).

 

[-Carlos-]

As I have stated in the past, I am a slow reader (at least in my mind) and even though I don't feel good about it, I have to deal with it. It does really matter at all the speed in which you zoom through the pages of a book because that is not the point of reading. Enjoyment (fiction) and comprehention (non-fiction) are what's important. So don't sweated it. Read at your own pace and relax your mind. Okay?

 

[saliotthomas]

the cheap metaphor of the day !

I never linger in a fast food,so it is with the like of Ludlum,Dick francis,...they are made to be read fast,sort of absentmindedly.You can also stuff youself quickly in a good restaurant but then you'll miss something.

 

[cmbroom]

I'm relieved that speed reading is not favored here. I tried one of those speed reading books, which I'm sure are fine for texts that you detest but must read, manuals, etc. but I think texts (one enjoys) should be tasted and savored and that takes time.

 

[mehdirza]

I have been an avid reader of airport novels (ludlum, child, kernick etc) for about 10 years and normally finish a book within 5 days.
I have recently decided to get some classics under my belt but due to the intricacies of these novels my reading speed has halved almost! Can anyone speed read classics (and still maintain sound understanding of the story) or do you prefer to go slow and savour the images as you go?

I'm a speed reader and I can read 600 words when reading in English but over 2000 words when reading in Persian and I have studiet a year special for speed reading. So I've got an advice to you. You shouldn't read the classics speedy because then you'd probably not understand the hard enough content of the novel or something. Even in Adventures of Oliver Twist, you can miss something if you read it speedy. Because there have probably been some hidden mean in each word, you know, the classics have been written by masters.

 

[nickb]

I'm a horrendously slow reader.. I only wish I could consume more books in less time. How do you learn to speed read? (Do you learn it? or does it just come to you?). I'm a long time reader, so the actual act of reading doesn't seem to improve my speed.

I've seen programs online that say they teach you learn to read quickly, has anyone used one of those?

 

[mehdirza]

A suggestion by me

I suggest you to take some tiny written texts as like in newspapers and start to read it by browsing the text by your eyes and try not to move your tongue. Take your eye on the text as it gets. This way, your reading speed will definitely raise.

 

[nickb]

Wow, that's really interesting - I never realized how often I am moving my tongue as if mouthing the words. Thanks for the tip mehdirza, I'll definitely work on it!

 

[mehdirza]

You're welcome, my brother.

 

[FourTonMantis]

I never linger in a fast food,so it is with the like of Ludlum,Dick francis,...they are made to be read fast,sort of absentmindedly.You can also stuff youself quickly in a good restaurant but then you'll miss something.

Dick as in Philip K. Dick? I try not to race through his stuff...although I find myself not being able to put his books down.

But I'm pretty proud of myself because I started and finished 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke all today.

 

[sparkchaser]

I'm a speed reader and I can read 600 words when reading in English but over 2000 words when reading in Persian and I have studiet a year special for speed reading. So I've got an advice to you. You shouldn't read the classics speedy because then you'd probably not understand the hard enough content of the novel or something. Even in Adventures of Oliver Twist, you can miss something if you read it speedy. Because there have probably been some hidden mean in each word, you know, the classics have been written by masters.

600 wpm in English? Perhaps if you slowed down a bit your posts would become more coherent.

 

[mehdirza]

Yes, you're right. My posts are not coherent but it is a fact that my posts are more coherent than yours.

 

[saliotthomas]

hardly ! listen i though you were a nice guy and all,but now the fun is wearing thin!
why don't you keep to the general chat?

 

[sparkchaser]

Dick as in Philip K. Dick? I try not to race through his stuff...although I find myself not being able to put his books down.

But I'm pretty proud of myself because I started and finished 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke all today.

I can't race through PDK either.

I see you're reading 2010. Are you going to read the whole series in a row?

 

[FourTonMantis]

I can't race through PDK either.

I see you're reading 2010. Are you going to read the whole series in a row?

Yeah I think so. It's alright so far; I'm about 80 pages into 2010. Is it worth it to read 3001?

You're a Clarke fan I'm guessing. Read a lot of his other stuff?

 

[sparkchaser]

Be sure to read 2063 before you it 3001. I had mixed feelings on 3001 but I am glad I read it.