{"id":45123,"date":"2021-08-15T19:07:35","date_gmt":"2021-08-15T23:07:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=45123"},"modified":"2021-08-15T19:09:45","modified_gmt":"2021-08-15T23:09:45","slug":"how-to-read-a-book-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Read a Book: Review and Background"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Are you thinking of reading How to Read a Book <\/em>but want to know more about it first? In what context was it written and how was it received?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to Read a Book <\/em>was written by Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren in 1940. It was one of the first books to teach the art of reading for comprehension rather than speed, and so it became an immediate bestseller. However, it may not still live up to its name in the modern day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Continue reading for our How to Read a Book <\/em>review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

How to Read a Book<\/em><\/strong>: Book Review<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How to Read a Book<\/em> is the classic guide to reading effectively<\/a>. It teaches how to understand<\/a> the crux of a book within 15 minutes, how to analyze a book intelligently, and how to synthesize ideas from multiple books. Reading is an active activity, not a passive one\u2014so if you read a lot of books, it makes sense to learn how to read better<\/em> and increase the value of your reading. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is our How to Read a Book <\/em>review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About the Authors<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Mortimer J. Adler <\/strong>was a philosopher, Columbia professor, Chairman of the Encyclopedia Britannica, and prolific author of more than 50 books (imagine how many he must have read!<\/em>). Adler wrote on a range of subjects including Aristotelian philosophy, liberal arts education<\/a>, capitalism<\/a>, religion, and morality. As Chairman, he oversaw the publishing of Encyclopedia Britannica’s Great Books of the Western World <\/em>series and went on to found the Great Books Foundation<\/a>, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting literacy and critical thinking.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Charles Van Doren <\/strong>was a writer, editor, educator, and eventual vice president of Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc. He is the author of six books and the editor of five (many of which were co-edited by Adler). Van Doren came from a literary family\u2014his mother was a novelist and both his father and uncle were Pulitzer Prize-winning authors\u2014and was a polymath, holding advanced degrees in both astrophysics and English. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the late 1950s, Van Doren was a contestant on \u201cTwenty-One,\u201d a popular quiz show. He ultimately won over $129,000 (which equates to over a million dollars today). However, rumors of fraud prompted a Congressional investigation, and Van Doren ultimately admitted that the network gave him the questions and answers in advance. The 1994 movie \u201cQuiz Show\u201d is based on his involvement in the scandal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Book\u2019s Publication<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Publisher: Simon & Schuster<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to Read a Book <\/em>was originally published in 1940 with the subtitle, \u201cThe Art of Getting a Liberal Education.\u201d Mortimer J. Adler was the sole author of the first edition. This guide, however, covers the revised 1972 edition, which features a significant content expansion (the book is divided into four parts, only one of which was present in the first edition) and a new subtitle: \u201cThe Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading.\u201d The first edition of How to Read a Book <\/em>was Adler\u2019s ninth book; the 1972 edition was Van Doren\u2019s second book. Both authors wrote extensively on the importance of books and reading (including Van Doren\u2019s The Joy of Reading<\/em><\/a>); however, How to Read a Book <\/em>remains the most popular book in both authors\u2019 bibliographies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Book\u2019s Context<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In the preface to this edition of How to Read a Book<\/em>, Adler described the changes he observed in American society that prompted him to revisit the book 32 years after its original publication. First, the percentage of young people earning college degrees rose significantly during that time period<\/a> (in part due to the passage of the GI Bill, which financed college education for veterans returning from World War II<\/a>). Additionally, in 1970, the federal government reiterated the importance of reading when the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare announced a national \u201cRight to Read\u201d effort<\/a> designed to improve reading education for children under age 10. Adler took this educational boom as a sign that reading well was more important than ever and decided to revamp his 1940 classic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Intellectual Context<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

How to Read a Book<\/em> was one of the first books to explicitly teach the art of reading for comprehension rather than speed. Its modern successors include Thomas C. Foster\u2019s How to Read Literature Like a Professor<\/em><\/a>, Steve Leveen\u2019s The Little Guide to Your Well-Read Life<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>and Harold Bloom\u2019s How to Read and Why<\/em><\/a>, all of which focus primarily on works of fiction (unlike How to Read a Book<\/em>, which focuses on techniques for reading nonfiction books). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Book\u2019s Impact<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

How to Read a Book<\/em> became an immediate bestseller when it was first published in 1940. The 1972 revised edition has been consistently successful and was most recently republished in 2014<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1997, Adler wrote a companion volume to How to Read a Book<\/em> entitled How to Speak How to Listen<\/em><\/a>, in which he adapts his methodology for close reading to the art of spoken conversation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Book\u2019s Strengths and Weaknesses<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The 1940 edition of How to Read a Book<\/em> was critically well-received; upon the book\u2019s release, one reviewer called it, \u201ca serious and valuable invitation to an enrichment of personal life<\/a>.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reviews of the 1972 revised and updated edition, on the other hand, are much more mixed. A 1972 New York Times review particularly exemplifies this tension\u2014the reviewer said he couldn\u2019t decide \u201cwhether to praise it or damn it.\u201d<\/a> He concedes that How to Read a Book<\/em> fills an important gap in popular education (by teaching the reader how to get the most from a book) but also argues that the book is overly highbrow and ignores the quality of modern fiction. In the end, the reviewer recommends the book to those who are just beginning to read critically; however, he advises those who are already well-versed in the art of reading to \u201cdrop this book down the incinerator, throw it on the compost heap, get rid of it; then fumigate the premises and start reading as you please.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Modern reviews of the 1972 edition are equally mixed\u2014many praise the book for its unique approach to analytical reading<\/a> but argue that it\u2019s now thoroughly out of date<\/a> and \u201cboring.\u201d<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Commentary on the Book\u2019s Approach<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Nearly every idea in How to Read a Book<\/em> is thoroughly fleshed out. Adler and Van Doren explain what<\/em> their techniques are, why <\/em>they\u2019re important, and how<\/em> to use them. Thus, the authors meet their goal of helping the reader wring more understanding out of the books they read.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To a modern reader, it may seem as though the authors give undue attention to some points that aren\u2019t critical to the main argument; this is likely because society has changed significantly in the decades since the book was published. For example, the authors analyze the strengths and weaknesses of speed-reading in depth because speed-reading was part of the intellectual zeitgeist of the late 1960s and early 1970s. However, speed-reading has fallen in popularity, so the argument has lost some cultural relevance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Commentary on the Book\u2019s Organization<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

How to Read a Book<\/em> is organized into four parts. Part One covers the mechanics of \u201celementary reading\u201d and tips for \u201cinspectional reading\u201d (which is a form of in-depth skimming). Part Two covers \u201canalytical reading,\u201d which is the authors\u2019 method of wringing as much understanding as possible out of a single book. Part Three offers specific advice for reading books of different genres (like philosophy, poetry, and science). Finally, Part Four covers \u201ccomparative reading,\u201d which is the art of reading a wide variety of books on a single subject in order to fully understand that subject. The book ends with a recommended reading list<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This four-part structure is somewhat confusing because the four parts don\u2019t directly map onto the four \u201clevels of reading\u201d that the authors reference throughout the book (with elementary reading and inspectional reading<\/a> being compressed into one part), nor do they map onto the \u201cfour basic questions\u201d that the authors claim a reader should ask about every book. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Are you thinking of reading How to Read a Book but want to know more about it first? In what context was it written and how was it received? How to Read a Book was written by Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren in 1940. It was one of the first books to teach the art of reading for comprehension rather than speed, and so it became an immediate bestseller. However, it may not still live up to its name in the modern day. Continue reading for our How to Read a Book review.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":45127,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[40,39],"tags":[395],"class_list":["post-45123","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-books","category-history","tag-how-to-read-a-book","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nHow to Read a Book: Review and Background - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"How to Read a Book by Adler and Van Doren was a hit in 1940, but does it stand the test of time? Read our review to decide for yourself.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to Read a Book: Review and Background\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"How to Read a Book by Adler and Van Doren was a hit in 1940, but does it stand the test of time? Read our review to decide for yourself.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Shortform Books\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-08-15T23:07:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-08-15T23:09:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/wordpress.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/notebook.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"921\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"506\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Hannah Aster\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Hannah Aster\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Hannah Aster\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/f39f52830e4f7039a16e45d12354542f\"},\"headline\":\"How to Read a Book: Review and Background\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-08-15T23:07:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-08-15T23:09:45+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/\"},\"wordCount\":1341,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/notebook.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"How to Read a Book\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Books\",\"History\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/\",\"name\":\"How to Read a Book: Review and Background - Shortform Books\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/notebook.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-08-15T23:07:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-08-15T23:09:45+00:00\",\"description\":\"How to Read a Book by Adler and Van Doren was a hit in 1940, but does it stand the test of time? Read our review to decide for yourself.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/notebook.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/notebook.jpg\",\"width\":921,\"height\":506},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"How to Read a Book: Review and Background\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"description\":\"The World's Best Book Summaries\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"width\":500,\"height\":74,\"caption\":\"Shortform Books\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/f39f52830e4f7039a16e45d12354542f\",\"name\":\"Hannah Aster\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0302cb2690b70a21639bc6873e587f42d39d02385b7e59d8efd0d3e000ae7681?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0302cb2690b70a21639bc6873e587f42d39d02385b7e59d8efd0d3e000ae7681?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Hannah Aster\"},\"description\":\"Hannah is a seasoned writer and editor who started her journey with Shortform nearly five years ago. She grew up reading mostly fiction books but transitioned to non-fiction writing when she started her travel website in 2018. When she's not writing or traveling, you can find Hannah working on home reno projects, crafting, or taking care of plants.\",\"knowsAbout\":[\"Graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's degree in English and minors in professional and creative writing\"],\"jobTitle\":\"SEO Team Lead\",\"worksFor\":\"Shortform\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/hannah\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How to Read a Book: Review and Background - Shortform Books","description":"How to Read a Book by Adler and Van Doren was a hit in 1940, but does it stand the test of time? Read our review to decide for yourself.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"How to Read a Book: Review and Background","og_description":"How to Read a Book by Adler and Van Doren was a hit in 1940, but does it stand the test of time? Read our review to decide for yourself.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/","og_site_name":"Shortform Books","article_published_time":"2021-08-15T23:07:35+00:00","article_modified_time":"2021-08-15T23:09:45+00:00","og_image":[{"width":921,"height":506,"url":"https:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/wordpress.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/notebook.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Hannah Aster","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Hannah Aster","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/"},"author":{"name":"Hannah Aster","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/f39f52830e4f7039a16e45d12354542f"},"headline":"How to Read a Book: Review and Background","datePublished":"2021-08-15T23:07:35+00:00","dateModified":"2021-08-15T23:09:45+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/"},"wordCount":1341,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/notebook.jpg","keywords":["How to Read a Book"],"articleSection":["Books","History"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/","name":"How to Read a Book: Review and Background - Shortform Books","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/notebook.jpg","datePublished":"2021-08-15T23:07:35+00:00","dateModified":"2021-08-15T23:09:45+00:00","description":"How to Read a Book by Adler and Van Doren was a hit in 1940, but does it stand the test of time? Read our review to decide for yourself.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/notebook.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/notebook.jpg","width":921,"height":506},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-read-a-book-review\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How to Read a Book: Review and Background"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","name":"Shortform Books","description":"The World's Best Book Summaries","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Shortform Books","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","width":500,"height":74,"caption":"Shortform Books"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/f39f52830e4f7039a16e45d12354542f","name":"Hannah Aster","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0302cb2690b70a21639bc6873e587f42d39d02385b7e59d8efd0d3e000ae7681?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0302cb2690b70a21639bc6873e587f42d39d02385b7e59d8efd0d3e000ae7681?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Hannah Aster"},"description":"Hannah is a seasoned writer and editor who started her journey with Shortform nearly five years ago. She grew up reading mostly fiction books but transitioned to non-fiction writing when she started her travel website in 2018. When she's not writing or traveling, you can find Hannah working on home reno projects, crafting, or taking care of plants.","knowsAbout":["Graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's degree in English and minors in professional and creative writing"],"jobTitle":"SEO Team Lead","worksFor":"Shortform","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/hannah\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/notebook.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45123","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45123"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45123\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45457,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45123\/revisions\/45457"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45127"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45123"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45123"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45123"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}