Speed Reading: Learn to Read a 200+ Page Book in 1 Hour (Mental Performance)

Last spring I started nursing school and about the same time the role at my job changed noticably which meant I had a whole new role to learn and not only did the role require a lot of reading to learn but it required a lot of reading to perform. I've never been a reader liked reading or was ever good at it and now I was up against the wall with so much textbooks, manuals, reports, and lots of books, books after books. As much as I wanted to my brain just couldn't take it. One afternoon a colleague saw me in the break room way in over my head and he told me something that knocked my socks off. He told me he was a straight A student throughout school and he said it wasn't because he was smart, worked harder or had special genes. He said his uncle taught him some reading, memory, and organization strategies that helped him do better than 90% of the students and a light bulb clicked in my head that I just needed to find better ways to read, for as long as reading and school has existed someone had to have figured out a better way. I started looking for better ways starting my search online. I went through pages of search results reading articles from guys like Tim Ferris but none of them had anything substantial, like nothing!. Just basic common sense tips like track your reading speed, use a pointer, skim and scan. Literally headlines of articles would say "How to Read Faster" or "Read 300% Faster..." and this is the advice they gave. Do an online search and this is what you'll find. Majority of the advice aren't even related to reading but stuff like "make it relatable" or "take notes." So I jumped on YouTube thinking there would be student focused channels that would talk about these topics and of the dozens of channels I found, it was more of the same talking about strategies like SQ3R or 4P's which are more comprehension strategies and not really strategeis for reading faster. I wanted ways to read faster, not just reading more intently which actually took more time, but to read faster like more words in a shorter amount of time faster. Eventually I came across some courses but they were like hundreds of dollars. They were better but the ideas took a lot of time and practice. Your reading might improve if you stuck to them, but they weren't intuitive or natural but felt awkward and all my efforts went to waste as I never used'em. Ultimately I ended up dropping out of nursing school. I couldn't keep up with both school and work and something had to give so I gave in to the option that was bringing me income in the moment. Several months go by and this book shows up as a recommendation in the search for something random and it turns out to be a freakin gold mine! I was like why did it take so long to show up in my life!!! 1. The tips actually increase reading speed, it teaches you to read more words in a shorter time. 2. The results are immediate, no need to practice for weeks or months to see improvements, some of them worked in minutes. 3. Process is intuitive, it's easy on the brain so easy to use and you'll enjoy using it. 4. Writing is clear, it's easier to follow than any other matter I read on the subject. 5. Instructions are idiot proof, you know exactly waht to do, how to do it, in the right way with the right materials. 6. Comprehension will soar, you'll understand more and better than you were reading at a slower pace. 7. Everything is in one place, no need to sift through endless articles, books and videos to find anything meaningful. 8. Material goes beyond the book with links to additional practice resources and they're all free. Best part it doesn't waste time on any of the stuff found online like skimming, scanning, SQ3R, 4P's, using pointers none of that garbage you already know is even mentioned! After reading it, I was confident about managing the school load so I re-enrolled to nursing school and I'm KILLIN IT! School is so much easier now, it's much more fun when I read something because I have complete understanding of the author's intention. I know what he/she is communicating and not getting lost in what I think is being communicated so 70% of what I would normally miss I pick up on the first read. It's a beautiful thang! I'm telling you it's a beautiful thang!! Sorry for my sob story but to cut this short if you don't like reading or reading is hard for you, you'll like reading this book, it's fun, engaging, enlightening and by the end you will like reading and be reading faster.

It's very clear most people posting negative comments here have not actually read the book or tried the techniques. All they're saying is why it wouldn't or couldn't work or making assumptions that speed reading is about skimming, scanning, or skipping words. That's what most speed reading books I've read teach but not this one. This actually teaches you to read every word faster without skimming, scanning or skipping anything. But more than that it teaches you to understand better and remember longer. In fact the author even says numerous times throughout the book that speed reading isn't reading without comprehension. His techniques are super easy which don't take much time or effort, just shifting how you look at words. I found myself reading faster almost right away and yes I was understanding better too. If you follow the advice in the later chapters you can speed up even more. Again not sacrifice to understanding but enhances it too. The chapter on remembering what you read is the icing on the top. The human brain forgets a lot sometimes within hours or even minutes. That includes the stuff you read. Just because you read something doesn't mean it'll stay, so if you're going to spend time reading or learning don't you want to make sure it stays long enough for you to use don't you? This is the only book that offers an easy way to do that. I'm confident you will like all of it. It's not a hard read and he backs everything up with science and studies that show speed reading is possible and for you.

This Speed Reading book is very informative & well-organized with 3 chapters in each of the 5 sections. The first section, "Pre-Reading" discusses what to do before you read and why that is important. Chapter 1, "Purpose" encourages you to state the purpose for reading something before reading it, so you understand what it is you would like to get out of the reading. Chapter 2, "Power of Preview" gives the mind a framework of what will be discussed in the book as well as helps you make more accurate predictions about what you are reading. Chapter 3, "Change Styles" explains why the way you read should suit the style & difficulty of the material. Section 2, "Speed Reading Techniques" helps you read significantly more words in much less time. This is the real meat of the book. Chapter 4, "Space Reading" explains that with enough practice, you can advance to looking at only a few spaces per view of the text to quickly grasp the information you need. Chapter 5, "Chunking" focuses on using our line of sight to explore ways to read more words in a single glance. Chapter 6, "Subvocalization" encourages you to read with your mouth closed and not to hear the sound of the words. Section 3, "Enhancing The Techniques" pushes speed reading even further. Chapter 7, "Fixation" is about the length of the time the eyes view text. Chapter 8, "Regression" involves going back to what you've already read. Chapter 9, "Visual Range" talks about peripheral awareness to what is happening around us. Section 4, "Improving Comprehension" presents strategies to better understand how the material is organized (and how to use that to understand the message better). Chapter 10 "Reading For Ideas or Points" is about paying attention to the main points the author is trying to make and seeing the big picture. Chapter 11, "Topic Sentences" present the paragraph's main idea. Chapter 12, "Strong Vocabulary" is essential to maintaining reading speed. Section 5, "Additional Tips" ties everything together. Chapter 13, "Remembering What You Read" is an important step to improve your memory, learning, and comprehension as well as to recall and review. Chapter 14, "Visualize" is about seeing a picture of what the words are saying as you read. Chapter 15, "Eye Health" are actual eye exercises to strengthen your speed-reading skills. The chapters in this book and the practice drills help readers to integrate and become more accustomed to the instruction. According to the author, the drills are the most important part of the book. This is a great resource for anyone looking to improve their reading speed, reading comprehension, and memory of what they read.

I made a decision to start tapping heavily into books for knowledge. This was the first book I decided on reading before I began. If you're interested in increasing the speed at which you read significantly WITHOUT sacrificing comprehension, read on... Before reading this book, I was reading around 120 words per minute (wpm). For context, that's about as slow as a 3rd grader...Make no mistake, I'm not dumb but it was my bad habits, and technique to thank for my incredibly slow reading. After applying the techniques and tips in the first two sections, that jumped to a consistent 330+ wpm (above national average)! Seriously... And that wasn't even near the end of what he had left to share with aspiring speed readers... He went on to drop a load of more RELEVANT knowledge and practical methods to shift the bad habits that normal readers have and enhance their speed with the techniques he clearly explains in the book. From the author's perspective, this is what speed reading is really about. None of what he goes over is complicated in the slightest. His descriptive writing really makes it easy for you to grasp his lessons and what he physically wants you to do in the exercises. After going through the entire book I AGREE, 100%...Speed reading as a concept is NOT DIFFICULT But let me say this... Even though you'll be able to instantly increase your speed and comprehension while reading, to get closer to your full potential as a reader, you'll need to practice the exercises he gives at the end of all the chapters consistently. They aren't very hard or difficult, they're doable but they take time and effort. Nevertheless, even for someone who is looking for virtually instant results, this book is still worthwhile for you to read. I plan on changing my schedule up a little to practice what Knight suggests in the book, I don't have any doubt it'll help me go even further. That's the thing, after reading the book and improving your speed and comprehension YOU'LL KNOW YOU CAN DO FAR BETTER. It's not surprising to me that I actually want to do these exercises and ingrain his teachings into my brain. It's because I can FEEL that I can push my reading abilities, even more, yielding greater results. To conclude, this book is extremely helpful to anyone trying to improve reading speed and comprehension -- might I add, for any kind of reading material (Fiction, technical, History, Science, Non-Fiction, etc). I'm glad I bought it for sure, now I can go on to start reading properly, obtaining more knowledge quickly and efficiently so that I waste no time on applying the things I learn to my life. If you're serious about this, get this book. it's perfect for beginners like me who have no clue on what it takes to read faster and retain what you read. Enjoy! P.S. - DO THE EXERCISESSSS

The primary advantage of this book is its conciseness, though I believe it could be even more compact. Another significant virtue is its accessibility—the text is written in very clear language, with short, well-structured paragraphs that facilitate easy comprehension. Kam Knight has skillfully condensed information from multiple sources into a single, comprehensive volume. Despite the title "Speed Reading," the book's focus extends beyond mere reading speed. It provides comprehensive guidance on effective reading techniques and memory retention strategies. While these methods ultimately improve reading speed, the core objective is teaching how to read more effectively—precisely what I was seeking. The book will undoubtedly benefit young readers. I wish I had encountered this resource when I first began reading seriously. The advice is valuable, but it's crucial to understand that these techniques will only be effective through consistent practice. Recommended Approach: Revisiting the book every 6-12 months Assessing personal progress Identifying areas for improvement Additional Insights Not Covered in the Book: Reading Session Length: Aim for approximately 50 pages per session. It takes time to: Enter a deep reading flow Overcome initial mental wandering Develop comprehensive understanding Mental Preparation: Ensure adequate rest and sleep. As the author notes, we typically remember only about 20% of what we read. Without proper rest, retention can decrease even further. One improvement would be a single-page reference card summarizing key reading techniques—a quick-reference guide to review before each reading session. This book offers practical, actionable strategies for improving reading skills and comprehension, making it a valuable resource for readers seeking to enhance their learning capabilities.

After reading this book again, I'm updating my review. Truth be told I was looking for faster ways to learn because of how fast artificial intelligence and machine learning is evolving. It's absolutely insane as soon as I hear about a new technology that makes my stomach drop a week later there is something more radical. I know if I don't keep up my job and livelihood are at stake. I can't rely on my current knowledge or my slow pace of learning much longer. In my short search I fumbled on this book early on. The title made a big promise a promise that I didn't think was possible for me, but thought what heck if I can read faster then it would make reading about the other stuff I was trying to learn easier, and I'll be honest it's not a bad book. It is written like someone who has spent a lot of time learning about the subject and put a lot of time and effort to communicate it in the best way possible. I am a terrible and slow reader and for me it was one of the easiest books I've read, and it's very specific and stays on topic without wandering it kept my attention the whole time. I liked that it starts from the basics and moves up to advanced strategies slowly. So each chapter builds on the previous making everything flow logically. I also liked that it is designed to give immediate results, after the first several chapters I was reading about 2 times faster with actually less effort. There are a lot more tips, some teach you what to do before reading some teach you what to do while reading and some what to do after you stop reading. This strategy makes sense to me because the before steps prepare my brain to understand the material better, the during steps help me read the material faster and the after steps make sure I remember everything longer. I found it very effective and not getting confused by what I'm reading anymore. Although the book teaches how to apply the tips to different types of reading materials like novels, stories, textbooks, manuals, articles, and technical documents, i will say the focus is really on non-fiction. I mean you can apply the information to fiction books and it would probably work better on them because they don't require a lot of logical processing but I see his target audience students and professionals. Also it lacks instructions on timing or tracking speed. Timing is important so you can gauge your current reading speed and measure your progress. If you are reading 250 wpm right now and after using the tips are reading 350 wpm it motivates you to keep using the tips and not fall back on old habits. It also provides structure to the practice sessions especially when reading passages multiple times. I'm surprised there is no mention of that. Another thing not mentioned is a concept I learned from another reading book called cumulative knowledge, which means the more subjects you know the easier it is to read other subjects. Reading more will help you learn more, and that additional knowledge will help you read other subjects and topics faster. I think his intention is to get you up to speed quickly (no pun intended) but this is something important to know because as I'm reading more books now, the information I've learned from them makes it easier to understand information in other books so I can read them faster. Like I said not a bad book, has lot of tips which do work and some very quickly and with his framework its not difficult to read faster.

Genuinely learned to double my reading speed with a few simple tricks and got some helpful tips on how to further increase my reading speed with practice going forward. Reading used to be a slog but now I can fly through a book and retain what I’ve read - I’m looking forward to being able to enjoy many more books now after unlocking these abilities!

Very helpful. Kam explains speed reading principles slightly different than other authors but he is clear and to the point. I liked it enough to buy the other books in the performance series. Two points: 1) Surprised he didn't mention following a finger for changing / adapting reading speed for linear/vocal reading. 2) If you have progressive lenses in your glasses, adapting visual range can be challenging. Usually lenses come in 1 of 3 widths: narrow (normal reading width), medium and wide. The medium and wide center width costs more. OR you can get a single lens reflex specifically for the distance of reading or working on a computer which maximizes your preferential vision.

I have tried other books and techniques but none worked for me until the Space Reading chapter, then it was like a light switch and my speed went up immediately. Also has a lot of other great tips like the review to retain chapter. This was a great book that helped me a lot.

Aun no lo termino, sin embargo, las técnicas que me ha enseñado ya estan rindiendo frutos. La manera en la que explica es muy sencilla de entender, ademas de que incluye ejercicios bastante practicos y efectivo. 100% recomendado si tu intención es leer con comprensión y velocidad.

The great differential of this book is the practical advises and facilities of the techniques presented compared to other works on speed reading.

Such a great book! Includes all the basics yet it’s a such a great refresher of basics that will enable us to read books at a better speed!

Some of the techniques described in book are great for Speed reading learners. !!!!!!.. . . . . .. .