As Douglas Groothuis‘ newly released 752 page casebound Christian Apologetics: A Comprehensive Case for the Biblical Faith (IVP. 2011) spilled out of the box onto the counter in front of my four girls, I felt the press of two book reviews, a stack of material to read for three seminary classes, and various responsibilities at home, church and work. How did I respond?
Thankfully, earlier in the day I had read Hannah’s ESN blog post What I Wish I’d Known About Graduate School: Surviving the Workload (8/23/2011), in which she writes:
I found it depressing to realize this, but graduate school in the humanities is probably going to entail some skimming. It’s crucial to decide on a few central priorities for a semester and focus on them. It’s still important to work hard in courses that aren’t central to your interests, but you probably will have to skim some readings.
AND Kevin’s ESN FB Wall comment/recommendation, “There is a great book by Mortimer Adler called ‘How to Read a Book‘– it provides guidance for both effective skimming and deep reading. All grad students should read it BEFORE starting grad school.” Note: Google Books preview available here.
Yes, deep down, I feel an uneasiness about not picking up a good book when it sits in front of me AND furthermore, the pangs of guilt when intentionally skimming a good book. As time, energy, finances, blog attention spans are limited, “Why should I (and you) bother with Groothuis‘ Christian Apologetics (IVP. 2011)?” [Read more…] about To skim or not to skim: A ‘case’ study of “Christian Apologetics”