The Well-Educated Mind: A Guide to the Classical Education You Never Had Hardcover – August 1, 2003

With "The Well-Educated Mind," Susan Wise Bauer gracefully takes up the torch long held by Mortimer J. Adler, and becomes the modern advocate for purposeful reading.She gives us her own interpretation of what it means to “read well” and, thankfully, holds our hand a little more than Adler does in "How to Read a Book." You can think of their two works as a pair of college textbooks--Adler’s is for general instruction while Bauer’s contains the detailed steps and procedures use for lab work.Her book begins with a general overview of the “whats, whys, and hows” of classical education and then subsequent chapters dive into medium-specific analysis--novels, autobiographies, history, drama, and poetry. It’s obviously not an end-all-be-all list of classical education material, but enough to cover the literary bases (as Bauer states, “List making is a dangerous occupation.”)Within each of those chapters is an outline of questions we should ask ourselves, specific to that medium. Then we’re given a list of recommended books at the end of each section, each book having its own synopsis.The one notion I disagree with Bauer on is sticking to one medium at a time in order to grasp the chronological flow of work. In my opinion, many of these classics reference stories outside of their own medium, so I personally feel a wider breadth of reading is more beneficial. For example, if you don’t familiarize yourself with the poetic and historical books of the Bible, you’re going to miss references in all sorts of novels and plays.But I do agree with the overall message put out by Bauer (and Adler): You get out what you put in. It’s slow going at first, sometimes mind-numbingly so, but like anything worth doing, it takes practice. And like anything you practice, the more you work at it, the faster and more natural it becomes (the fact that I’m typing up my notes more regularly is a good example. :) )Though both Bauer and Adler admit that not all books require the same level of thought, only by working through the various stages of what classical education calls the trivium--grammar, logic, rhetoric--can the reader be sure they’re getting the most out of books that do matter.

This book is ideal for anyone interested in reading and truly understanding great works of literature. It is perfect for anyone who is hard wired for a regimented system. I managed to do quite well getting through college without really ever reading and understanding the texts I was required to read, as an adult I wanted to try to read these texts and actually appreciate them. I concluded that perhaps though my comprehension was fine, my critical approach needed revising. I picked this book up because I was not quite ready to read the rather large "how to read a book" by Adler. I have since read both books and this one in my opinion, is a little easier to read. I. Recommend reading this first, then Adler's book after.I like "well educated mind" because it provides a system, and part of that is that she provides questions you should be answering on your various reads specific to each genre. This is immediately helpful in making sure you are doing more than just reading but actually engaging the text. She provides a system of journal writing that I have found quite helpful and now use for every book I read. Too many times I plowed through a great work and afterward had literarily no idea or appreciation for what I just read, this book was perfect to get me to truly understand great works.

Many, many years out of college I felt my mind atrophying and decided to start a "serious" reading program, similar to the old "summer reading" that used to be done by high-school and college students. I picked up this book to use as a I guide.Yes, many of the techniques Susan Wise Bauer talks about in the opening chapters are ones that many readers will have picked up along the way. But even experienced readers may find her suggestions of keeping a "commonplace book" or reading journal helpful and brief background explanations of the various literary genres helpful.The very structured approach to notekeeping and journaling will probably not sit well with every reader. (I don't plan to follow all of her suggestions myself.) And many people will surely debate about the choices included on the reading lists. But Bauer is very firm about taking a book and making it your own, so disregard suggestions that don't work for you. And as she admits, no one reading list will be considered canonical by everyone. In fact, Bauer encourages the reader to use her lists as a "jumping off" point.All in all, I think any reader who is serious about reading the great "classics" can find something in this book to help with that process.

Liberal Arts is a path well traveled and appreciated by those who devote even the least amount of their time. This work is where I rest my case for The Well Educated Mind, it is a remote control through the history of reading and the classical education you should have had. Teaching in Japan was a remarkable experience for me, my regular job was NCOIC (military term) at the Rifle Range off the coast of Iwakuni, on an island known as Eta Jima. Between "qualifying" Marines with their basic weapons, I couldn't rush fast enough to my few books on history and liberal arts. Where was Susan Wise Bauer when I needed her? What I learned through my home humble means translated of how much more I learned teaching conversational English to the most remarkable students I have ever known. In turn they brought me more than insight to their ability and willingness to learn, they made it possible for me to find the same values. The Well-Educated Mind should be mandatory reading everywhere. Thanks, Susan Wise Bauer for the reminder that a Classical Education is more than conversation it is company that keeps me curious and in want of answers.

For a hard-working, but unsatisfied product of the British curriculum, I was looking for a starting point from which to develop a lifelong habit in studying PPE (Philosophy, Politics and Economics), science and literature for fun.The Well-Educated Mind (though I am still working through it) seems to be a very good starting point and a practical guide (in terms of helping you develop the reading habit and teaching how to read for different purposes), but the reading lists are not quite comprehensive enough.The solution, in my mind, is to grab a copy of The Well-Educated Mind and supplement the reading lists with the 1972 version of Mortimer J. Adler's classic 'How to Read a Book'. This will fill the gaps where Da Vinci, the Stoics and some of the other theological classics are missing in Susan Wise Bauer's book.A final positive for this book is the fact that I have stuck at it - this book is a program, not just educational theory and reading lists and, as such, compliance should be considered a major factor in its success.

Not quite what I had expected. I had hoped the book would put forward a broad theory of education and a wide range of practical tips and resources.Instead, the book is mainly (70%) a guide to English literature, in the form of a list of the author's 'good books to read' (just a pared-back list of the usual stuff on any comprehensive reading list), with brief notes on each book. Books are divided into literature, histories, drama and poetry lists.The author's stated theory is a re-evaluation of the classical 'trivium' system (grammar, rhetoric and logic). However, her take on this is that it is mainly just a way to read a book on three different levels: grammar (superficial understanding), rhetoric (deeper meaning), logic (in-depth analysis). It's a nice idea, but it is really just a grafting of some 'classical' terminology onto a fairly standard English lit course to make it sound like something new.Good points: the general introduction is quite upbeat and inspiring, and the introductions to each of the four main sections (literature, histories, drama and poetry) provide quite good overviews to the history of each genre.Weak points: the book lists and notes on each book are a bit dull.

Mien Kampf as a classic auto biography. Charles Colson as a classic? Darwin only a note in passing and many others don't even get a look in. However an interesting list, useful information on reading and studying and perhaps the reader will be led to create/ research their own list of classics.

Great book that really makes you think.

good