Customer Reviews

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Speed Reading

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I've bought speed reading software (Speed Reader X: Speed Reading Made Easy) in the past and found it quite disappointing. Yes, you DO learn how to read faster with comprehension, but you are limited on what you learn.

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Speed Reading is extremely helpful in learning MANY new methods to speed reading. It's up to date to include speed reading on-screen, and offers many tips on increasing your comprehension as well. You'll learn to try out many methods to keep pace (single-finger, multiple-finger, card), and, with experimentation, can figure out which method works best for you. You also learn about picking out key words to get the main idea, while skipping the smaller, less-important words (filler). Or, if that method doesn't work well for you, there's always "though-chunking," reading words as groups. This method works best for me, and increased my reading speed because my eyes stop on 3 or 4 points per line instead of stopping to read each word in a 13-word line. In a sense, you're stretching your peripheral vision to read more than one word at a time. And the book offers many exercises on improving that.

There are a number of sample readings for you to practice on, along with space to keep track of your progress. This is very helpful to boost motivation and confidence, which the book points out is very helpful in making progress. If you feel and know you can speed read, then you will. The book offers a number of tips and strategies on how to remain focused while you read, where the best (and worst) places to read are, and how to give your eyes a rest.

I've just finished reading this book and continue to practice, practice, practice everyday. That is ESSENTIAL in learning a new method. With the tips I've learned in this book I was able to increase my reading speed from 235 WPM (words per minute, an average reader), to 390 WPM with about 80% comprehension, the same as I would get with my normal speed. I was able to read Johnny Got His Gun, a 320 page novel, in 2 days, something that might have taken me over a week with my normal reading. And I understood it all. A great book.

Bottom line:
Get this book if you really want to learn how to speed read. It DOES take practice, but you WILL get results.

I've tried a number of different speed reading materials lately in hopes of improving my reading rate and comprehension. I had high hopes for this book based on the number of positive reviews, but it turned out to be the least useful for me.

This book is not a structured course but more like a collection of tips and techniques. For example: Most speed reading resources instruct you to use a pacer as you read. In this book, the author gives 13 different variations of using your hand or a card as a pacer and tells you, "it's your job to figure out which ones work best." Surely as an expert in speed reading the author could offer better direction as to which method is most effective.

I did not find the material to be well organized. The topic on evaluating your current reading habits doesn't appear until Chapter 6 (shouldn't that be in Chapter 1?), and the section covering common bad reading habits doesn't appear until Chapter 13. "Calculating Your Reading Speed" is the last appendix in the book.

There is too much superfluous information vs. actual speed-reading techniques. There are sections on "Calming the Body and Mind," "Better Blogging," and two full chapters on "Overload Management" with advice like weeding magazines out of your collection you don't plan to read and clipping newspaper articles you want to read again. However, the section on subvocalization (sounding out words in your head while reading--a problem covered in every speed reading resource I've seen) is less than 2 pages long and offers no real advice on how to eliminate it.

There is about 40 pages of practice material in the back of the book consisting of several non-fiction articles. At the beginning of each article is the average number of words per line. I don't know why they couldn't simply put a running word count in the margin to keep you from tediously having to count each line when you're done with a timed test.

One other thing I want to point out: One of the pacer variations involves pointing your index and pinkie fingers out and holding your two middle fingers back towards your palm with your thumb. The author dubs this "The Vulcan" because she saw it used on Star Trek. At the risk of sounding too picky (or too geeky), this is NOT the "live long and prosper" hand gesture used on Star Trek. It makes me wonder if the author's own comprehension and memory skills are all that keen.

In the end I felt this book had too much non-essential material, and the actual techniques for increasing your reading speed and comprehension were not covered well enough. A better book is Speed Reading for Professionals (Barron's Business Success Guides); it's probably about 1/4 the size of The Complete Idiot's Guide but much more effective in my opinion.

I bought 3 extra copies and gave to teachers who teach reading. I also tutor Adult literacy and am using it to help with teaching my student. As a reading teacher myself, I enjoyed the tips throughout the book and got many ideas to incorporate in the classroom. I manage mechanics on a full time basis have bought 2 extra to have for use at their leisure. As for helping me, the chapter on electronic mail and organizing that was very helpful. I now spend less time and energy through techniques in the chapter.THIS BOOK IS WORTH EVERY PENNY! Thank you Abby!

I recently had the opportunity to read Abby Marks Beale "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Speed Reading". Like many people, I feel overwhelmed with stuff I have to read to be up-to-date. There is the pile of reading I have-to-read, but not to be outdone is my want-to-read pile too. I am thinking about going back to school, again, so I looked at this as an opportunity to learn how to read not only better, but smarter.

I have gotten into the habit of using a blank index card not only as my bookmark, but also as my pacer card. I have found that this keeps me focused on what I want to read, and not what I have already read. It really does help me to keep a quicker pace while I'm reading. I tend to use this for my want-to-read pile.

For my have-to-read pile I find that I use my index finger as my pacer. I can get into a steady rhythm and that helps me to keep moving along with what I'm reading. That combined with sitting up straight and a quite place, has increased my speed and comprehension.

What I liked best about the book, aside from the tidbits of info contained in the speed tips, speed secrets and speed bumps, is that there is not just one method to read faster, but several. The book presents many options and lets you decide what works best for you. And "Speed Reading" gives you a variety of articles to use to test you effectiveness with the different methods. It has everything you need to track your speed reading progress.

"The Complete Idiot's Guide to Speed Reading" is destined to a classic, much like "Elements of Style" by Strunk & White. It is something that everyone can benefit from, young and old alike. It would make a great gift for someone going off to school, going back to school or graduating from school. And anyone who likes to read for that matter. If you can read this book and master the techniques, just imagine what you can read...

As CEO of a non-profit foundation and web site related to atrial fibrillation, I read lots of medical articles, studies, and books. Thus I read The Complete Idiot's Guide to Speed Reading, by Abby Marks Beale, to help me work through my backlog of technical reading.

I was surprised to discover from the timed reading tests that I was already pretty fast. Come to think of it, that's because of what I learned from one of Abby's presentations several years ago! ;-)

But I was shocked by how quickly the book and exercises helped me increase my speed and comprehension further. I now look forward to digesting complex medical literature more quickly. As a result, I've found myself devouring multiple books each evening, making amazing progress on that backlog.

Abby Marks Beale used her extensive experience as a business productivity specialist to create a highly effective program. You'll learn tools and techniques to double, even triple, your reading speed and comprehension immediately. With time and practice, you'll increase them even more.

For me, the sections on "Speed Reading On Screen" and "Overload Management" were life-savers. The book is worth reading just for that. The extra speed you'll gain is a bonus.

Get it, read it, and you'll be so glad you did!

Mellanie True Hills
CEO, American Foundation for Women's Health and [...]
Author, A Woman's Guide to Saving Her Own Life

Professionals wading through infinite field-related literature, students preparing for exams, or anyone with a list of "must-read" best sellers piling up will benefit greatly from this book.

Abby offers an extensive range of practical strategies to read, remember, and understand more in less time. While my favorite pacer for reading most hard copy turned out to be the "Short-Smooth Underline," I tried several others that worked well for different media, for example, the scrolling pacer for reading on screen. After a few One-Minute Timings, my reading speed more than doubled, and I remembered more of the key concepts--my goal of improved comprehension accomplished.

The wealth of tools and techniques provide options for all kinds of documents and reading preferences. The speed strategies for organizing and prioritizing reading piles, identifying and kicking bad reading habits, and knowing when and for what types of reading to apply the strategies themselves were especially useful. I can't wait to sort through all the articles I've been keeping for much too long!

Beale's book is well written and practical. She shares a variety of techniques and encourages the reader to try them and pick the ones that work for him or her. Included are seven practice readings and a chart to track your progress. The author's approach is upbeat, flexible and enjoyable. I look forward to continuing to use the techniques Beale suggests, improve my speed and comprehension, and enjoy my reading.

I have always looked for books on speed reading and have many books on the subject. I have read one of the author's previous speed reading books, and I think this is the best by far. When using your hands as a guide to reading, it does help read faster. She has many great tips on how to read, what not to speed read through, and so on. I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to learning to read at a faster rate.

The book has some great techniques. I took speed reading as a child and had forgotten a lot. This book reawakened my skills. I bought the kindle edition and it skews the words per line counts, the images are difficult to see and I wouldn't use the card or finger techniques on the kindle screen.

This book has its ups and downs. Though it has some actual speed reading tips and tricks, most of the book consists of what the author calls "Cheat reading," which, basically, is reading titles and skipping everything else.
It does not go into much detail about how to use your hands in the section there of, making it difficult to grasp.