📚 Read Slowly - Take Notes - Apply the Ideas You're reading this with 9,133 other critical thinkers.🙌🏻

What Vincent van Gogh Taught Me About Reading

👋 Hey Reader,

​
I bought this wonderful painting by Vincent van Gogh for my reading room. Unfortunately, it’s a $40 print from Ross—not the real thing. Still, I love it.

At first, I just saw the whole painting. It sat there on my wall, making the room feel calmer. But over time, I got curious. I got out of my chair and walked over to it—closer, then much closer.

And what I found did something to my brain.

I started to see the brushstrokes. Colors I had missed. Little ideas tucked into the details that I couldn’t have noticed from across the room.

It made me realize something about the way I read.

Too often, I treat books as a single thing—
​Anna Karenina.​
​Crime & Punishment.​
​Ulysses.

I’m busy trying to “read the book.”

But really, the page I’m on is full of brushstrokes. Colors I’ve missed. Ideas buried in the details.

So try this:

Grab whatever you’re reading right now. Got it? Good.

Turn to your current page and commit to it. Slow down. Read each word. Savor it. Sit with the author long enough to see what’s actually there—to smell the setting, to hear the characters.

It’s just one page. No excuses about being busy or not seeing the point.

Give it a shot. See if the book gets better.

And pay attention to your brain—how does it feel?

📚 Until next time, read slowly - take notes - apply the ideas.

-Eddy

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New This Week:

Book Recommendation A Book Forged in Hell What Happening in Book Club this Week The Picture of Dorian Gray Update on My Novel I'm Looking for 10 Beta Readers

Book Recommendation

A Book Forged in Hell by Steven Nadler

I’m getting ready for a trip to Paris and Amsterdam this spring for a study abroad with my philosophy professors. While we’re there, we’ll spend a good amount of time with the work of Baruch Spinoza—so I figured I should probably come prepared.

One of the required readings is A Book Forged in Hell by Steven Nadler—and I loved it.

Nadler doesn’t just explain Spinoza’s ideas—he shows you why they mattered, and why they were so dangerous at the time.

Here’s the quick version: Spinoza was writing in the mid-1600s in Amsterdam and was labeled a heretic for it. He was excommunicated from the Jewish community—not for some minor disagreement, but because he challenged the entire framework of how people understood God, scripture, and authority.

He argued that religion should be examined rationally. That scripture should be interpreted, not blindly accepted. That people should think for themselves—and live ethically, not just obediently.

That might not sound shocking now. Back then, it was explosive.

What I appreciated most about this book is that it makes those ideas feel alive again. You start to see just how costly it was for Spinoza to think the way he did—and how much of our modern world rests on that kind of courage.

If you’re even a little interested in philosophy, or just want to understand where our ideas about freedom, reason, and religion come from, this is absolutely worth your time.

Get Your Copy at Edgewater→

Update From Book Club

What We're Reading:

The Picture of Dorian Gray

Edition: Wilde, Oscar. The Picture of Dorian Gray. Fingerprint! Publishing, 2020. ISBN: 978-93-5440-217-3

Reading Pace: 15 pages / day

Dates: 4/14/2026 to 4/28/2026

Online Meetings Held: Tuesdays at 8:30 EST – [Click here to join]​

The Picture of Dorian Gray tells the story of a young man who trades his soul for eternal youth and beauty. Oscar Wilde’s novel is a gothic tale of vanity, corruption, and moral decay.

Three questions to consider while you read:

1. How does Wilde explore the relationship between beauty, morality, and identity?
2. What role does art play in shaping Dorian’s worldview and fate?
3. How does the novel critique Victorian society and its values?

📚 Ready to Join Book Club?

If you want to read deeper, remember more, and meet people who love late-night philosophical conversations as much as you do… come read with us.

You get:​
✓ All weekly notes
✓ All recordings
✓ Access to our live Tuesday discussions
✓ A thoughtful community of readers

📚 - Join us here →

Update on My Novel

I'm Looking for 10 Beta Readers for My New Novel

Title: Sinners in the Orchard

What It's About: A woman helps create a religion that can prevent death in exchange for perfect obedience—only to be sentenced to die after exposing its lies.

Length: 80,000 words (roughly 250–300 pages in a finished book). The beta copy will be longer due to standard manuscript formatting.

This book has been a long time in the making, and I’m planning to have it ready to send out to beta readers by April 18.

I need a small group of sharp, honest readers who are willing to help me see what’s actually working—and what’s not. Your feedback will help make the story better before I send it to literary agents.

Here’s what I’m looking for:

1. You love (and regularly read) fiction, especially science fiction or dystopian novels
2. You’re open to a short call to talk through what didn’t work for you
   • I enjoy compliments as much as anyone, but what I really need is clarity on where the story falls apart, drags, or misses
   • If you’d rather not call, a short write-up (1 page or less) works great too
3. You’re comfortable reading a PDF (and uploading it to your Kindle or e-reader if you want)
4. You can finish the book and send feedback by May 30

That’s it.

👋 If you’re interested, just reply to this email and let me know. I’ll choose 10 readers and send it over once it’s ready.

I’m excited—and honestly a little nervous—to get this into your hands. 🙌🏻

Hi, I'm Eddy. How Can I Help? Feel free to respond to this email. Let me know how I can make your experience in our reading community better, or if you have questions, I'm all ears. As always, read slowly - take notes - apply the ideas. -Eddy

Got Questions?

Reply to this email with your questions. I respond to each and sometimes make a podcast or video to answer your bookish questions.

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