I recently found myself discussing and recommending How to Read
A Book by Mortimer Adler. I keep coming back to that book since
it had a such a large impact on my life. In a nutshell the book
shows you how to read a book and extract the meaning inside of
it. Obviously, this doesn’t have to apply only to books. The
techniques work just as well with all forms of communication.

In our “instant information” society many have lost their
ability to discern. News and information is often rated by how
visually appealing the information is rather than the content of
the information itself. The brevity of most news sources makes
it difficult to apply any constructive thought to the topic.

How To Read A Book was recommended to me during my second year
of college. It changed the way I approached my studies and
viewed information. After reading the book I was angry that
nobody had taught me these things in high school. It would have
made a big difference in how I approached learning and even
reading for enjoyment.

This is one of the books I keep in my “give away” pile. Used
copies I pick up and give to friends who can benefit from it.

If your job or hobby involves research or digesting information
you will benefit from reading this book. If you enjoy keeping up
with politics or other subjects that have lots of rhetoric you
will enjoy this book. If you know someone in high school get
them a copy and encourage them to learn the skills. They will
benefit from them the rest of their life.

Read more about this book at Amazon.com:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0671212095/tnpcnewsletter?tag=tnpcnewsletter

Last issue I recommended How To Read a Book and it was well
received. Some readers said they would be more interested in a
book that talks about the comprehension and pulling meaning from
current documents. I agree that is a valuable skill. One of my
favorite books in this regard is Language in Thought and
Action by S.I. Hayakawa.

This book can change the way you process the information that
you’re bombarded with every day. Hayakawa’s focus is on language
and meaning, with examples from both blatant propaganda and the
more subtle diversions used in advertising. Admittedly much of
today’s advertising has lost its subtlety.

This book packs more than just descriptions of linguistic concepts;
you’ll learn how to decode the information coming at you in casual
conversation, Madison Avenue ads, or for what passes these days as
news reports.

The flip side of this will be improvements in your own
communication skills. Language in Thought and Action deserves
a place next to How to Read a Book as a valuable tool to help you decode the knowledge you need in our information-overloaded world.

I frequently use Hayakawa’s “Ladder of Abstraction” to adjust
the technical help I provide. Read more about Language in
Thought and Action at Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0156482401/tnpcnewsletter?tag=tnpcnewsletter

You can discover more about How to Read a Book here:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0671212095/tnpcnewsletter?tag=tnpcnewsletter