Closed Stacks: Read Better, Remember More

Closed Stacks: Read Better, Remember More

Most readers can decode words but still miss the meaning. Closed Stacks teaches you to read in a way that builds comprehension, not just completion. You learn why your notes don't help you remember, how to handle difficult prose without rereading the same paragraph five times, and what actually changes in your brain when you read fiction versus nonfiction. A few episodes in, you start seeing arguments you used to skim past and remembering books long after you close them. Follow the show and leave a five-star rating if it sharpens how you read.The internet trained you to skim, and now even good books feel harder to hold in your head. Closed Stacks starts with that problem and works backward: why you believe things the author never said, why audiobooks feel different from paper, whether Emily Wilson rewrote The Odyssey or just translated it clearly. Each episode takes one reading problem and shows you the mechanics underneath.

Episodes

October 15, 2026 • 12 mins
This video is about schema activation and ways it can both help and distort reading comprehension.Uploaded 10-01-26References and for further reading:Alvermann, D. E., and Hague, S. A. (1989). Comprehension of counterintuitive science text. Journal of Educational Research, 82(4), 197–202. Bransford, J. D., Johnson, M. K. (1972). “Contextual prerequisites for understanding: Some investigations of comprehension and recall...
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Not all books are difficult for the same reason. This video is a simple guide to reading difficult books. In this video, I explain why some books seem difficult to read and share a practical process for understanding them more clearly and confidently. Uploaded 16-04-26#reading #deepreading #books Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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In this video, I talk about how sentences can make us believe things that are never directly stated. I talk about presupposition, implicature, and how true statements can intentionally (or unintentionally) leave a false impression.Uploaded 29-08-26#linguistics #reading #comprehension Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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This is a book review of The Searcher, by Tana French. Uploaded 01-11-25#booktube #tanafrench #thesearcher Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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October 15, 2026 • 12 mins
Why is it so difficult to explain something that seems perfectly clear in your own head? This video explores the curse of knowledge and how expertise, difficult writing, and complicated language can make intelligent ideas harder to communicate.Uploaded 10-08-26#Howtoreadabook #sokalhoax #curseofknowledgeFurther readingAdler, M. J., and Van Doren, C. (1972). How to read a book (Rev. and updated ed.). Simon and Schuster.Camerer, C.,...
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October 15, 2026 • 10 mins
Many people believe that fiction is a waste of time, but this is not too surprising. Society is too preoccupied with developing skills improving their career to appreciate the benefits that fiction might bring. Stories are often dismissed because they don't translate into measurable skills or career advancement. In this video, I draw on the Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath to reflect on art, loss, and meaning. Fiction may not help you fin...
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October 14, 2026 • 10 mins
This video is about hyper reading and deep reading and why deep tends to lead to better memory. Uploaded 03-02-26The Maryanne Wolf quote about deep reading:Wolf M., and Barzillai, M. (2009). The importance of deep reading. Educational Leadership, 66(6), 32-37.#deepreading #booktube #reading Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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October 14, 2026 • 11 mins
This video is about some of the most common misconceptions about reading comprehension and why this may cause difficulty for readers.Uploaded 20-03-26Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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October 14, 2026 • 10 mins
This video is about how to read more books without sacrificing quality, such as overall reading comprehension, engagement, resonance, and artistic appreciation.Uploaded 15-11-25#readmorebooks #readingmotivation #booktube Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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October 14, 2026 • 7 mins
This video is about why I prefer reading paper books over e-readers, such as an Amazon Kindle or Rakuten Kobo. Uploaded 08-11-25#paperbooks #ereader #booktube Some of the research supporting paper-based reading. Ackerman, R., and Lauterman, T. (2012). Taking reading comprehension exams on screen or on paper? A metacognitive analysis of learning texts under time pressure. Computers in Human Behavior, 28(5), 1816–1828. Altamu...
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October 14, 2026 • 5 mins
Welcome to my new YouTube/BookTube channel, Closed Stacks. My plan (so far) is to make book reviews and commentary on (primarily) works of fiction. I'm sure the channel will evolve over time. Hope you'll stay tuned to see where it goes. Thanks for stopping by.Uploaded 01-11-25#booktube #books #newbooktuber Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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October 14, 2026 • 12 mins
Not all reading advice works for every book. In this video, I explain how to adjust your approach to a book based on the type of book you're reading.Uploaded 27-06-26#howtoreadabook #books #booktube Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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October 14, 2026 • 11 mins
Audiobooks and print books reach the mind through different pathways (auditory vs. visual). However, the higher-level comprehension systems they activate overlap far more than most people realize. This video breaks down what actually changes between listening and reading: the mechanics, the cognitive load, the role of spacial memory, the impact of narrators, and why complex texts behave differently across formats. If you've ever wo...
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October 14, 2026 • 11 mins
In this video, I look at how note-taking affects memory, understanding, and the way we process information. The real value of notes may not be storing information but the mental processing we do when we take them.Uploaded 19-07-26Further reading:Mueller, P., Oppenheimer, D.M. (2014) The pen is mightier than the keyboard: advantages of longhand over laptop note taking. Morehead, K., Dunlosky, J., and Rawson, K. A. (2019). How much ...
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October 14, 2026 • 13 mins
In this video, I look at what scholars have said about Emily Wilson's translation of The Odyssey and evaluate some of the criticism both for and against her book.Uploaded 31-05-26#theodyssey #emilywilson #homer Gabrielson, M. (2018). Review of Homer, Emily Wilson, trans., The Odyssey. New England Classical Journal, 45(2).Hardwick, A. (2025). Iliad translations in the undergraduate classroom. Journal of Classics Teaching, 26(52), 15...
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October 13, 2026 • 11 mins
This video is for anyone who wants to build a strong reading habit. Whether you're starting from scratch or you just want to rekindle an old habit, this video is your guide.Uploaded 25-04-26#booktube #readinghabit #reading Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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October 13, 2026 • 12 mins
This video compares the structure of digital text to traditional print and discusses how issues with comprehension may arise if one becomes the dominant way of approaching a text.Uploaded 28-02-26#booktube #reading #biliteracy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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October 13, 2026 • 11 mins
This video is about three specific habits that will help you grow as a reader.Uploaded 29-11-25#readbooks #readingmotivation #booktube Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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October 13, 2026 • 9 mins
In this video, I talk about how fiction trains different ways to thinking and perspective, abstraction, and self-reflection, through books like The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, The Old Man and the Sea, by Ernest Hemingway, and The Road by Cormac McCarthy.Uploaded 09-05-26#books #reading #literature Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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