How to read a book...

Alan Jacobs made this interesting comment about how to read a book.  And since he has recently completed a book about reading, and is Clyde S. Kilby Chair Professor of English at Wheaton, he might actually have something worth listening to here:

"The other day a homeschooling parent, whose child is in the ninth grade, wrote to me to ask what books I thought are essential for a young person to have read before coming to college. My reply:

"For what it's worth, I don't think what a young person reads is nearly as important as how he or she reads. Young people who learn to read with patience and care and long-term concentration, with pencil in hand to make notes (including questions and disagreements), will be better prepared for college than students who read all the "right" books but read them carelessly or passively."

Citation:
Jacobs, Alan.  "Answers to Important Questions". Text Patterns Blog on "The New Atlantis" website. <http://text-patterns.thenewatlantis.com/2011/03/answers-to-important-questions.html>. Accessed 4 March 2011.