As an avid reader, it can sometimes feel as if my books are passing me by. Many readers have faced this dilemma. They read a book. They forget it. Rinse and repeat. How can one retain the books they are reading? I have a couple of tips to help with retention!
Active Recall
After you have sat down and read a few chapters, close the book, and put it aside. Mentally recall and retell yourself the main events of what you just read. Tell the story back to yourself in your mind. Stick the main events. The nuts and bolts of those chapters. This will prime your brain to seamlessly submerge in the world of the book when you open it up back up the next day to read.
Tell A Friend
After I read book, I love to retell the story to a friend or a loved one. This forces me to recall and actively remember the story as I am reading it. Retelling the story to another also forces me to stick to the main events, main characters, and main plot points. I have noticed a sharp uptick in my retention of books ever since I began retelling the story to another. Not everyone has someone to talk to about books. So use this tip if it applies. If not, there are plenty more tips.
Keep A Reading Journal
This is for the folks who love journaling in general. Set aside a page in your journal for the book you currently read. Briefly summarize it, reflect on it, and jot down what you liked and disliked. You can even jot down how you connected to the story for some deeper self-reflection. It does not have to be a full-blown literary analysis. Just some written ramblings about the book and your thoughts. This practice again forces you to use active recall strategies. Pairing that train of thought with a physical action, such as writing, helps embed the memory of that book better in your brain.
Palette Cleansers
Usually, after I read a book, I take a few days off from reading. This allows me to fully ruminate on the book and sort of "come out" of the book's "world." This way I can go into my next read with a fresh head. This also helps prevent stories from mixing and running together in my mind. During these little breaks, I will consume different types of media content, such as a TV show or a movie. Anything that is obviously different from the act of reading.
Alternate Genres
This tip helps me a lot with retaining the books I read. I stagger my reads in an alternate pattern. For instance, if I read a heavy and deeply introspective literary piece, I will read a more lighthearted book for my next read. If I have just finished reading a fantasy series or a dystopian series, I will read a completely genre for my next book. This again helps categorize the stories away neatly in my mind. When you read many similar books in a row, you risk having them all fade and mix in the back of your mind after you are done.
Take It Slow
I know we all have GoodReads goals to reach. Trust me, I keep those too. But, I keep realistic reading goals. In our busy modern-day lives, simply setting aside time to read for leisure is an admirable feat. Thus, I do not like to rush. I take my time with each book. I read as many chapters as I feel like on a particular day. I do not rush it. This has actually helped me create a more immersive experience with my books while avoiding burnout. This also makes the time between you and the book more intimate.
Relatability
One of the things I love to do is selecting books that are similar to my current situation in life at that given point. For instance, if there is a certain topic I have piqued interest in, a certain problem I am facing, or a certain set of moods I am enduring, I will select a book with some of those elements. Not only has this helped mental health wise, it also creates strong correlations between the specific book and a certain patch of my life. This again deepens ones ties with what they are reading, leading to higher retention.
Wrapping Up!
This are all the different little tips I practice to upkeep reading retention. You are devoting time out of your finite life to read something. Might as well, make the most out of it. Again, you don't have to remember every part of every story you read. Just a general outline of events can be a significant takeaway in the grand scheme of things.
How do you retain what you read?
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