The Reading Note That Saves You Looking Up the Same Book Twice
You remember the passage. It was near the back of a book with a dark cover, probably in a chapter about the early part of the war. You even remember disagreeing with it. What you cannot remember is the author’s name, which makes the rest of that excellent memory rather difficult to use. Military-history reading […]
You remember the passage. It was near the back of a book with a dark cover, probably in a chapter about the early part of the war. You even remember disagreeing with it. What you cannot remember is the author’s name, which makes the rest of that excellent memory rather difficult to use.
Military-history reading produces this sort of loose end surprisingly easily. A few notes made while the book is still on the desk can save a long search later. Late summer is a good time to sort an untidy reading pile before adding the next one.
Copy the publication details first
Write down the author, full title, publisher and publication year from the book itself. Include the edition when one is identified. A cover photograph helps you recognise the book, but it may not show the details needed to distinguish it from another edition.
Put the page number beside each note as you make it. Waiting until the end of a chapter is how a precise reference becomes "somewhere around page two hundred". If an electronic edition uses locations rather than printed pages, record what it actually shows and identify the format.
Keep the author’s words separate from yours
Use quotation marks when copying a short passage exactly. For a paraphrase, make it clear that the wording is your own. Leave your response on a separate line. Six months later, "this seems unlikely" should still be recognisable as your comment rather than part of the author’s argument.
It is useful to note why you stopped at the passage. Perhaps it contradicts another account, names a source you want to find, or leaves the date unclear. That small explanation gives the reference a purpose. Otherwise a notebook can fill with perfectly accurate page numbers that no longer mean anything to you.
Follow one reference at a time
When a footnote leads to an archive, copy the reference before opening a dozen search tabs. Record the archive’s name and the identifiers given by the author. If you find a matching catalogue entry, save its title, reference number and link together.
A catalogue description and a document are different things to have consulted. If you have read only the description, say so in your note. The National Archives’ guide explains how its catalogue combines descriptions with access to digitised material; finding a description does not necessarily mean the underlying record is available online.
Keep a short list of unresolved points
You do not have to settle every disagreement before moving to the next chapter. Put the question on a separate list with the two references you need to compare. "Check the date" is vague. "Compare the date on page 84 with the date in the catalogue entry" gives you a manageable next step.
Be wary of quietly replacing an uncertain detail with the version you have seen most often. Repetition may mean several writers used the same source. Until you have checked, uncertainty belongs in the note, where you can see it.
Leave yourself a route back
At the end of the reading session, check that the book details and page references are together. A bookmark is helpful while the book is yours; it is less helpful after a library return. A photograph of your own note can be a useful extra copy if you keep paper notebooks.
The best reading record is one you continue using. A modest page of clear references beats an elaborate system abandoned after three books. When that half-remembered passage comes up again, you will know where to look.