How to Read a Book: Advice for Christian Readers

I wrote a book on how to read a book:

Naselli, Andrew David. How to Read a Book: Advice for Christian Readers. Moscow, ID: Canon, 2024.

Last evening my family opened the package with my author copies:

Audiobook

My book is also available as an audiobook (4 hours, 45 min.) on Canon Plus and Audible. To listen to the audiobook on Canon Plus requires a subscription, but Canon Plus is offering a deal: a 21-day free trial. (I highly recommend subscribing to Canon Plus because it includes so much edifying content for the whole family.)

This is my first book that I wrote with the audiobook in mind. I tried to write for the ear and not just for the eye. I wrote headings and transitions with listeners in mind, and I don’t hide the good stuff in footnotes (since audiobooks don’t read the footnotes). And for tables (which I love to include), I verbally describe them instead of saying something like, “See the accompanying PDF file.”

This is also the first of my books that I read aloud myself. I hadn’t recorded one of my books yet; instead, other professional readers have done that. I asked Canon Press for permission to read this one because when I listen to audiobooks I prefer to listen to the author read it, even if the author isn’t as polished as a professional reader. And I say that as someone who has listened to hundreds of audiobooks. I love audiobooks! I hope you enjoy this one.

Who Is This Book For?

Only a certain kind of person would consider reading a book titled How to Read a Book: Advice for Christian Readers. I am guessing that one of the following three descriptions fits the readers of this book:

You already like to read, and you want to pick up tips and inspiration from a fellow reader who shares your love for reading. This short book is for you.
You have a love-hate relationship with reading. You like to read, but it’s intimidating. You feel discouraged that you don’t read enough—or enough of the best stuff. You think you should read more and better somehow and are looking for help. Maybe you are frustrated that you read too slowly or that you have a hard time understanding what you read. Maybe you are gifted at math and science and are already decent at reading for information, but you would like to get better at reading literature. This short book is for you.
You are a student, and your professor is requiring you to read this book. Perhaps you are dutifully planning to slog through it—even though your expectations may be low since it seems strange and boring (and maybe even a waste of time) to read a book on how to read a book. Hang in there. I hope you’ll be pleasantly surprised how the advice in this book enhances your reading.

Sometimes my reading advice may appeal more to one of those three audiences than the other two. But as a whole, the book is relevant for all three. Every reader can get better at reading—including high school students and distinguished scholars.

I also assume that the readers profess to follow Christ since this is a book for Christian readers. Does being a Christian make a difference to how you approach reading? In one sense, not much difference. The basics of reading apply to Christians and non-Christians alike. But in another sense, it makes all the difference. Christ is Lord over everything. That includes reading. When Christ is your King, he transforms how you approach reading—why you read, how you read, what you read, and when you read.

Five Endorsements

1. “In a time when reading has fallen out of favor, Andy Naselli has done the Church (and the world) a great service by not only encouraging us to read, but also showing us how. I have long been a fan of Adler’s work on this topic, and I am grateful to Naselli for expanding on that work. This is a helpful and useful tool for anyone wanting to become a better reader. It is also an invaluable tool for those who, like me, have young people in their lives whom they wish to encourage to become lifelong readers. Please read this book! And when you’re done, you will be better equipped to read others as well.”

—VODDIE BAUCHAM JR., senior lecturer at African Christian University in Lusaka, Zambia, author of Fault Lines: The Social Justice Movement and Evangelicalism’s Looming Catastrophe (Salem, 2021)

2. “Andy Naselli’s How to Read a Book will become a cherished tome in every Christian’s library. Offering salient and comprehensive advice for reclaiming the love and skill of good reading in a world filled with distractions, How to Read a Book is friendly, pastoral, and inspiring. I especially appreciate Andy’s numbered lists, sober counsel about the use of social media, and loving wisdom for avid readers with dyslexia. Andy’s tips about organizing a home library put me to shame—and inspired me to make needed changes. Every Christian will benefit from this book! This book goes straight on my required reading list for my Rhetoric Literature students!”

—ROSARIA BUTTERFIELD, author of Five Lies of Our Anti-Christian Age (Crossway, 2023), pastor’s wife, former professor of English and women’s studies at Syracuse University, high school rhetoric literature teacher in a large homeschool co-op

3. “Is there a more fundamental educational need in the world than instruction on reading? As someone who has already used Naselli’s material in ministry to lay people and seminarians in China, I can testify to the immense value of this book, regardless of one’s culture or background. The flood of information (and books!) in our age is overwhelming. Naselli helps us not only stay afloat but also sail confidently through the ocean of literature before us. Whether or not your mother tongue is English, I highly recommend this book.”

—MARK B., seminary president and pastor in China

4. “I suspect that I’m not the only one who didn’t pay attention in English class. Man, do we need this book. Sure, we know how to read in the sense that we are not illiterate. But do we know how to really read—carefully, perceptively, and enjoyably? Andy’s book is for people like me who need help with an avalanche of words that is a book. Take up and read!”

—C. J. MAHANEY, senior pastor of Sovereign Grace Church of Louisville

5. “This book is more than meets the eye. It is like ‘the Wood between the Worlds,’ filled with pools that lead to many other places. You will learn not only how to micro-read, macro-read, and survey a book, but also how to think, how to cultivate good habits, how to avoid distraction, how to organize your thoughts, how to write, and many other skills to enrich your mind and heart. Filled with practical advice, helpful illustrations, and recommendations for further study, not only will it help you to read well, but it will help you to live well for the glory of God. Take up, and learn how to read.”

—JOE RIGNEY, fellow of theology at New Saint Andrews College in Moscow, Idaho, and author of Leadership and Emotional Sabotage: Resisting the Anxiety That Will Wreck Your Family, Destroy Your Church, and Ruin the World (Canon Press, 2024)

Promotional Video (1 min. 20 sec.)

Imagine the well read man . . . https://t.co/IZIDyk3NEV pic.twitter.com/zshMEPeMZs

— Canon Press (@canonpress) April 18, 2024

Lectures

I shared the gist of the book in an hour in a lecture (with Q&A at the end) on October 19, 2023 (on the occasion of commemorating my promotion to full professor):

I gave the same basic talk (with Q&A at the end) to the Sojourners Fellowship Group of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, on January 14, 2024.

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In order to live, to grow, and to enjoy, Take up and read!