_How to Read a Book_ is excellent. I don't apply Adler's method precisely in my reading, but many of his notions are simply now part of my mental toolkit, part

_How to Read a Book_ is excellent. I don't apply Adler's method precisely in my reading, but many of his notions are simply now part of my mental toolkit, particularly his notion of "coming to terms", AKA "make sure you understand how the author is using the words he's using, and what precisely he means by them." This is especially important when reading philosophical or technical material, especially material from another era.