Thread by @lzsthw

I have this theory I call "The Secret Book Theory of Self Education", or something like that. The idea is that when you run into someone who's awesome at some skill, they'll claim they're totally a natural, but then you find out they read some secret book that taught tricks.

For example, Calculus Made Easy by Thompson:

gutenberg.org/files/33283/33…

Published in 1910 teaches a practical and easy way to do Calc that's just an extension of Algebra, which is originally how it was devised.

For painting there's How To See Color and Paint It:

amazon.com/How-Color-Pain…

It's the only book describing how to match a color and paint the shape then break shapes down into smaller colors. You do that book and you're very far along as a painter.

For guitar there's Chop Builder by Gambale:

alfred.com/frank-gambale-…

It is hilariously bad video BUT it's the only set of exercises that reliably builds your hands dexterity and stamina and a ton of very good players used it. The tiny book is really the secret book.

For Jazz--or just music theory in general--there's Jazz Theory by Levine:

amazon.com/Jazz-Theory-Bo…

Most Jazz books are just pages and pages of random notes and no explanation. Mark's book explains everything very well, and is the first jazz book that shows pentatonics use.

Many times these secret books also contradict the standard teaching methods to show ways that actually work, or that people actually use. In Levine's book there's a whole section on "yeah just play a pentatonic", which is literal SACRILEGE in Jazz, but totally used by players.

In Calculus Made Easy he doesn't even bother with limit theory and the geometric version of Calc and teaches infinitesimals as a modification on algebra. He also starts off right away telling you the NAMES OF THE SYMBOLS! WHAT?! HOW DARE HE!

Calculus Made Easy also does away with that obnoxious teaching style where they teach you the insanely correct full details of everything at first. He calls dx "a little bit of x" and dy "a little bit of y". A lot of the secret book style is "this is good enough to learn it".

In How to See Color, there isn't much talk of value or doing any kind of work in black and white. The idea is, if you can match/see the full color, then, well, that should also get the value. He also uses a palette knife, which NO other book does, but turns out to be right on.

With all that in mind, reply me some of your favorite secret books and their stories. Did you get a book on Physics and suddenly you were getting As in class and it was really easy? How about Design? Writing? Oh, I have a writing book, hang on...

Adios, Strunk and White:

amazon.com/Adios-Strunk-W…

Strunk and White is a terrible contradictory weird book that should be banned.

This book is kind of a big middle finger to proscribed grammar and lays out how English is actually used by real writers, especially creatively.

So, tell me your secret book recommendations. Something you bought and it made you seem like a genius.

I almost forgot my most favorite secret Guitar book:

amazon.com/Mickey-Bakers-…

This book is also the basis of how my books are structured where there's an exercise per week. It's also by Mickey Baker who did this song:



Which everyone has heard.