The Read Well Podcast
Welcome to The Read Well Podcast, a weekly show dedicated to building a strong reading habit, improving research strategies, and learning intellectual ideas from the books you love. Your passion may be the wisdom of Plato, how to cook a curry, or the complex ideas hidden in Dostoevsky’s fiction. Whatever you’re researching today, this show is about helping you master the topic. You’ll find practical advice on how to take effective book notes, develop your annotation skills, and benefit from tools like a Zettelkasten or a second brain. So grab your favorite book, and let's get started.
Episodes
110 episodes
Why Bookstores Matter in a Digital World | EP 109
What makes a bookstore more than four walls and shelves of paper? In this episode, I read a short essay about how bookstores can help us rediscover ourselves. I’ll also share a powerful book recommendation—The Best Poems of the English Lang...
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Season 3
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Episode 109
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9:52
Meet J.D. Barker: The Author Continuing Dracula’s Legacy | Ep. 108
I sat down with J.D. Barker to talk about how he walked away from a career in corporate compliance and built a life as a full-time thriller writer. We cover his novels Dracul and Something I Keep Upstairs, the stories behind t...
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Season 3
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Episode 108
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38:59
How to Read Philosophy Without Losing Your Mind | EP107
Philosophy isn’t written like a story or a textbook—it unfolds in a completely different way. In this episode, I’ll walk you through how I approach reading philosophy without going insane. I’ll share practical tips that have helped me stay grou...
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Season 3
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Episode 107
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20:22
Why You Forget Books—and How to Stop | EP 106
I used to read a book and forget it days later. Then I realized the problem wasn’t my memory—it was how I was approaching the text. In this episode, I’ll explain why remembering is a choice, not a talent. I’ll show you how treating ide...
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Season 3
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Episode 106
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5:42
20 Brutal Truths Every Reader Needs to Hear | EP 105
In this episode of The Read Well Podcast, I’m cutting through the excuses lifelong learners love to tell themselves—“I don’t have time,” “I’m not smart enough,” “I just need the perfect system.” Nope. What you really need is discipline...
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Season 3
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Episode 105
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21:39
The 53-Page Book That Consumed My Brain (So I Bought 100 Copies) | Episode 104
In this week's episode, I’m sharing why The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy is one of the most powerful things I’ve ever read. It’s only 53 pages, but it forced me to rethink how I’m living, what I’m chasing, and whether I’m being h...
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Season 3
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Episode 104
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17:41
Reading Used to Be Magical. What Happened? | EP103
As a kid, I used to read by flashlight under my covers—completely absorbed, completely amazed. Somewhere along the way, I traded that sense of wonder for utility. In this episode, I talk about what happened and how to get it back. I’ll share on...
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Season 3
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Episode 103
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12:34
3 Books That Changed My Perspective | EP102
I didn’t pick these books expecting them to shake up my perspective. But they did. In this episode, I walk through Working Days by John Steinbeck, The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne, and Cultish by Amanda Montell—thr...
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Season 3
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Episode 102
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10:38
How to Actually Remember the Books You Read | EP101
In this episode, I talk about why so many people forget what they read—and how I’ve changed my habits to remember the books that matter. It’s not a trick or a hack. It’s just a way of treating books like relationships. You can’t know someone af...
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8:00
11 Books for a Year of Deep Reading | EP100
This is episode 100 of The Read Well Podcast, and to mark the moment, I’m sharing the 11 books we’ll be reading together from June 2025 to June 2026 in season 3 of the Book Club. If you’re someone who wants to read more deeply, especially when ...
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Season 2
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Episode 100
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19:13
Why I Quit Some Books (and You Should Too) | EP99
I read to spend time with people—fictional or not—that make me think, make me laugh, or just feel like good company. In this episode, I talk about why Less by Andrew Sean Greer worked for me, why Artemis by Andy Weir didn’t, a...
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Season 2
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Episode 99
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14:29
Want to Read Philosophy? Start with These 9 Easier Books | EP 98
Philosophy can feel like a foreign language at first. I used to struggle with it too—until I found the right books. In this episode, I walk through 9 books that helped me go from confused to curious, and eventually confident. If you’ve ever wan...
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Season 2
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Episode 98
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17:26
How Books Help Us Make Sense of Real Life | EP 97
In this episode, I sit down with Binnie Kirshenbaum to talk about her new novel, Counting Backwards—a story about love, aging, and the slow disappearance of memory. We talk about how books can help us wrestle with what it means to be h...
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Season 2
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Episode 97
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43:41
How to Read Like a Novelist: An Interview with Best Selling Authors L.R. Lam, Andrea Stewart, and Piers Torday | EP 96
Writing a novel is a long road, and no one knows that better than Piers Torday, Andrea Stewart, and L.R. Lam. In this live interview, they share what writing looks like on a daily basis, how they help new writers at The Novelry, and how reading...
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Season 2
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Episode 96
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49:12
Writing a Novel is Hard Work. Here's What I'm Learning | EP 95
I’ve started writing a novel—and it’s been draining in a way I didn’t expect. In this episode, I talk about the strange fatigue that comes with creative work and how I’ve learned to notice when I’m running low. I share what helps me recharge, i...
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Season 2
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Episode 95
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16:18
I Fixed My Handwriting—and My Reading Improved | EP 94
I tried to improve my handwriting because I couldn’t read my own notes. What I didn’t expect was that it would change how I read books. In this episode, I talk about how slowing down my writing helped me slow down my reading, how physical tensi...
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Season 2
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Episode 94
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22:59
The Difference Between Reading and Learning | EP 93
Reading isn’t enough. People love to say that books make you smarter, but that’s only true if you do something with what you read. In this episode, I’ll talk about how to read for knowledge in a way that actually improves your life. I’ll...
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Season 2
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Episode 93
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14:14
Is Classic Literature Worth Reading? | EP 92
In this episode, I talk about why classic literature is still worth reading, even in our busy lives. These books have lasted the test of time for a reason. They offer rich insights into the human experience, and I’ll show you how reading a nove...
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Season 2
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Episode 92
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16:28
6 Books That Helped Me Build a Daily Reading Habit | EP 91
Most people want to read more but struggle to stay consistent. I’ve been there. Over the years, I’ve learned a few simple ways to make reading part of my life without forcing it. I’ll share the strategies that worked, the six books that kept me...
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Season 2
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Episode 91
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17:09
Read, Highlight, Apply: A Simple Strategy | EP 90
I’ve highlighted hundreds of passages in books I’ve read over the years, and for a long time, most of them just sat there. I never looked at them again. In this episode, I’ll walk you through how I fixed that—how I actually use my highlights to...
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Season 2
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Episode 90
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17:37
What Shakespeare’s Henry V Teaches About Reading Deeply | EP 89
Shakespeare’s Henry V opens with an unusual request: The Chorus begs the audience to use their imagination because the play can’t capture the full scale of the story. That’s Shakespeare admitting something every reader should remember—...
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Season 2
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Episode 89
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15:04
Do You Forget Books? Try This When You Read | EP 88
If you feel like you forget books as soon as you finish them, you're not alone. Most people never move beyond basic comprehension when they read. In this episode, I break down the four levels of reading, how to work through a book more effectiv...
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Season 2
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Episode 88
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30:03
When Reading FEELS Overwhelming | EP 87
Sometimes, reading feels overwhelming. It’s normal to have feelings of self-doubt and overwhelm when it comes to reading books. Today I’m sharing with you how I tackle these feelings so that they don’t derail me from my reading sessions.
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Season 2
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Episode 87
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14:46
How to Read Books Without Feeling Overwhelmed | EP 86
Reading more books isn’t just about time—it’s about making better choices. I’ll explain why it’s okay to stop reading books you don’t love, how to handle a book when it gets boring, and how to find books that match your goals and interests. Let...
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Season 2
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Episode 86
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12:33
Plato's Euthyphro Rocks. Here's Why! | EP 85
In this video, I dive into Plato's Euthyphro and explore its famous dilemma: Are moral laws good because God commands them, or does God command them because they are good? Reflecting on my time as a Mormon, I apply this question to one...
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Season 2
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Episode 85
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42:34