The Memory Book: The Classic Guide to Improving Your Memory at Work, at School, and at Play

Waiting on a replacement to ship but it might not be coming.

After reading "The Memory Book", I can have a group of people give me random words, one at a time, and memorize them... in the order in which they were given. Then, given a number, I can quickly recall the corresponding word. Or, alternately, given a word I can recall the corresponding number. It takes a few seconds for me to engrain each word, but I can easily do this with 20 words. I'm confident I could recall over 95 out of a 100 if I ever had a reason to try. I have always considered my memory to be rather poor. But after using the VERY SIMPLE techniques in this book, I am capable of memorizing things many people would deem near impossible, with minimal effort. The first exercise listed ten words: Airplane, tree, envelope, earring, bucket, sing, basketball, salami, nose, and star. Then provided a child-like way to not only remember all ten words but also in the sequence in which they were presented. Some might, at first glance, think that's simple, but try it without a method! I had them memorized in about fifteen minutes and now they seem to be permanently etched in my brain; that was over a week ago and I just wrote them in this review from memory! The next exercise was a list of thirty words, most of which were complex and I had never seen before. That might impress some people, but these methods have real practical applications. Memorizing names with faces, speeches, numbers (phone, credit card, a 50-digit number if you so desire) are what's taught in the first half alone. The use of "pegging" is central to the memorization methods taught in this book. Every number from 0 through 9 has a phonetic sound(s) associated with it. By mastering the basics, one can quickly figure out how to memorize a list of 100 words/names if he really wants to. Here's an oversimplified example. Memorize the following ten groupings by using a simple rhyming method: 1. Bun 2. Shoe 3. Tree 4. Door 5. Hive 6. Sticks 7. Heaven 8. Gate 9. Vine 10. Pen Now think of a word you want to memorize. This will be the first word in your memory. Now peg this word to the word "bun". For example, if you thought about a cloud, picture a hamburger bun with a big pile of "cloud" sitting in it instead of a hamburger patty. The more outlandish the connection you imagine, the easier it will be to recall. Peg your second word to "shoe" and so on. This is really awesome. Why isn't this mandatory in elementary school?

This book definately requires work. It is a "How To" guide which will only be effective if the reader is committed to putting in the work of practicing the techniques explained. I think one of the most interesting aspects of this is that good memory, like many other things, can be a LEARNED skill. I found this book after searching specifically for a helpful one to improve my poor memory. In particular, I went from being a very good law student who was a capable researcher and writer and preformed well on essay exams in school, and even won a competitive moot court competition based on advocacy skills, to a JD who failed the BAR Exam multiple times due to an inability to remember details and jargon. After time with every legal study aid possible, I turned to resources to improve my memory. While I unfortunately can't yet say I have passed the BAR exam, I can say that I have noticed a significant improvement in my relationship with my husband and others as I have become more attentinve to remembering details and with the techniques in this book thus have become a more dependable person. In the past when he or anyone else asked me to do things, though I was well intentioned and sincere in my "Yes", I had a serious problem with follow up due to inattentiveness and poor memory skills. This book was most helpful as an aid to overcoming those limitations and assisited me in becoming a more responsible and less absentminded irritating person to be around. As a serious, logical, pragmatic person, this book was helpful in specificallly giving me the prompt to think of silly associations with the specific intent of remembering items. That would be something I wouldn't have ever NATURALLY done on my own! In discussing it with others I have found that many people ALREADY utilize many of the memory techniques described, and they were surprised these were new to me. This book is most helpful for those of us who just haven't gotton into those habits. As someone who NEVER could even remember any of those numonics throughout school it was a relief to discover that there are other techniques which are more effective for me. The book also discusses how memory and intelligence are distinct, and that the problem of poor memory, and in particular absentmindedness is one of not being fully consious in the moment. It is helpful in identifying the source of many memory problems is simply not being in the habit of focusing on the mundane with full attention. Making that ASSUMPTION that something is "simple" and "easy" and therefore doesn't require much time and attention is a trap I more consiously avoid after employing the techniques of this book. The disctinction between intellegence and memory is one which I feel is helpful as it validates those of us who have great capacity to understand things easily, but little capacity to recall. That distinction made me as reader feel more empowered to use memory as a TOOL, and I believe offers needed encouragement

Harry Lorayne, a master magician and card entertainer, is also one of the world's leading memory experts. "The Memory Book" will change your life, literally. In the book, Lorayne describes in detail several memory techniques that, with a little practice, will have you remembering virtually anything you want. Among the techniques, the three I use the most are the Link, Substitute Words, and the Peg. The Link is used to remember any number of items, such as 20 objects, etc. The Peg is used to remember any number of objects in order. Using a phonetic type alphabet for numbers, that is, assigning a consonant sound for each number, Lorayne shows how to memorize numbers easily. The techniques really do work. Frankly, I've never spent so little for something that has changed my life so much. One testimonial is in order: I am a professional teacher. The first day of class I use one of Lorayne's techniques in my class that allows everyone in the classroom, including me, to remember the name of everyone else in the classroom. And it takes less than 20 minutes. The systems work. The only minor quibble I have with the book is that after reading this book, I also read widely in the area of memory improvement. Other books have used the identical techniques to improve memory, so I'm confused as to how much of Lorayne's techniques originated with him, or were borrowed from the literature. This minor point aside, you really do need to have this book on your "READ" list. A real treasure.

I am currently a senior in high school who has been using the techniques in this book since the 8th grade. I can memorize a list of 100+ items in about five minutes! I used to have the worse memory but now my head is like a mental file cabinet. I excel in all areas involving memory. This book should be required reading for all students because the methods guarantee excellent grades and quite frankly, a better life.