Mortimer J. Adler是芝加哥大學教授,曾擔任大英百科全書的編修顧問,也是本書首版的作者。自1940年出版後,即成為最成功也最受歡迎的閱讀指導手冊。
書中有到多種增進閱讀的技巧及各種文章閱讀的重點:
With half a million copies in print, How to Read a Book is the best and most successful guide to reading comprehension for the general reader, completely rewritten and updated with new material.
A CNN Book of the Week: "Explains not just why we should read books, but how we should read them. It’s masterfully done." -Farheed ZakariaOriginally published in 1940, this book is a rare phenomenon, a living classic that introduces and elucidates the various levels of reading and how to achieve them--from elementary reading, through systematic skimming and inspectional reading, to speed reading. Readers will learn when and how to "judge a book by its cover," and also how to X-ray it, read critically, and extract the author’s message from the text. Also included is instruction in the different techniques that work best for reading particular genres, such as practical books, imaginative literature, plays, poetry, history, science and mathematics, philosophy and social science works. Finally, the authors offer a recommended reading list and supply reading tests you can use measure your own progress in reading skills, comprehension, and speed.