A book summary mind map that keeps the argument

Separate argument from story

Start from a blank map with the title and the author in the root node, then add two branches, one called "what happens" and one called "what the author claims". A summary that only carries the plot is a retelling, and two readers can agree about every event and still disagree about what the book was arguing. Give the two branches different colors from the eight-color palette, which sits above a row of recent colors, so the halves never blur together.

If you would rather begin from a shape that already exists, the Book Summary starter is one of thirteen templates in the gallery, and it gives you branches you can rename, fill in or delete. Use a template when the book is a course requirement and everyone will present the same shape, and the template gallery guide explains how the starters differ.

• One branch for the events, one for the argument
• Two different colors so the halves never blur
• The title and the author belong in the root
• Rename a template branch with Enter and F2

Capture the author's core claim

The core claim is one sentence with a shape: the author claims that X because Y. If you cannot write that sentence, you have not found the claim yet, and the usual places to look are the introduction, where the argument is set up, and the last chapter, where it is paid off. Read those two again before anything else.

Under the claim node, add children for the supporting claims that carry it, the objection the author deals with, and the kind of evidence the book runs on. In the rich note, keep a bulleted list of the pages where the claim appears, so you can go back to the text later. The note editor gives you bold, italic, underline, bulleted and numbered lists and a button for links.

• One sentence: the author claims X because Y
• Children for supporting claims, the objection, the evidence type
• A bulleted list of page numbers in the note
• The claim is one sentence, not a paragraph

Collect quotable evidence

A quote earns its place only when it does work: it proves a claim, it names a concept precisely, or it is the line you would repeat to someone else. Put the quotation in the rich note with its page number, and let the node label say what the quote is for, such as "the definition of deliberate practice", rather than carrying the quotation itself.

Sometimes the evidence is a diagram, a table or a page you want to keep. A node image accepts PNG, JPEG, WebP and GIF files up to 1.5 MB, and you double-click the thumbnail to view it. You can also draw inside the node on a 1000 by 650 canvas with a color and a brush from size 1 to 32, which beats photographing a chart you would redraw anyway.

• Keep the quotation in the note and the purpose on the label
• One line per passage in a bulleted list, with the page
• Node images take PNG, JPEG, WebP and GIF up to 1.5 MB
• Redraw a chart inside the node when a photo would be blurry

Note: Images on a node are not searchable, because search reads labels and notes. If a picture matters later, write its one-line meaning in the note as well.

Map the structure the author used

The structure branch shows how the book was built, which is usually the part worth borrowing. Its children are the parts of the book, each labeled with the job the part does, such as "sets up the vocabulary" or "gives the historical case", plus one key idea from it. A book that argues by example has a different shape from one that argues by definition.

Keep the structure shallow. If the book has thirty chapters, group them into three or four movements and name each movement after its job. Thirty nodes of chapter titles is a table of contents with extra steps, and it hides the one thing worth noticing, which is the order the argument takes. The map is for the shape, and the list of titles belongs in a document.

• Group many chapters into three or four movements
• Name each movement by the job it does
• Record the order the author takes them in
• A reusable structure beats a full table of contents

Write your one-paragraph takeaway

The takeaway is the part that survives after you forget the book: what the author claims, whether you agree, and what it changes about how you think about the subject. Write it in your own words, in one paragraph, and give it a node of its own under a branch called "my takeaway". A summary that only repeats the author tells you nothing about what you took from it.

Dictate it instead of typing it. Dictate turns what you say into text inside a rich note, and a summary you are saying out loud straight after reading is faster to dictate and usually sharper than the version you would type. Use the bulleted list style for the supporting points if you want the paragraph broken into pieces underneath.

Check that the takeaway is a claim rather than a topic. "The book is about leadership" is a topic, and nobody can disagree with it. "The book argues that leadership is a practice you design rather than a trait you hire for" is a claim, and you can defend it, and your disagreement with it is worth having.

• One paragraph, in your own words, on a node of its own
• Dictate the paragraph rather than typing it
• Include whether you agree and what the book changes
• A topic can be agreed with, a claim can be argued with

Note: Dictate uses the browser's speech recognition, so it needs a microphone and a browser that supports it, and the permission prompt has to be accepted. Typing works just as well.

Revisit the map while you read ahead

The map is a live document, not a report you write at the end. As you read, add a branch for a claim you did not expect, a term you need to look up, or a quote that belongs beside the core claim. Before you start a new part, look at the structure branch to see what the author is about to do, which beats skimming and hoping something sticks.

Use search, with Ctrl/Cmd+F, to check whether a name or a term you half remember appears anywhere in your notes. It works while a mind map is the active tab, and it searches labels and notes with ranked results, so you jump straight to the node. A reading group can add question nodes to the same map, and the lecture notes map covers the same habit for a class.

Review in layers. Collapse All leaves the root and the branch labels visible, and that is the version you should be able to recite out loud: the argument, the structure and the takeaway. Expand All brings the detail back. If the collapsed version will not hold together, the problem is the shape of the map and not your memory.

• Add branches while you read instead of writing the map afterwards
• Check the structure branch before starting each new part
• Search for a half-remembered term to find the node again
• Collapse All to check that the argument still holds together

Note: A map with sixty branches is a record, not a summary. Keep the summary branches on the map and push the detail into notes, where it stays available without crowding the picture.

A checklist you can reuse

• The root node holds the title and the author
• One branch holds the events and another holds the argument
• The core claim reads as one sentence in the form X because Y
• Every quote in the map sits in a note with a page number
• The structure branch names three or four movements
• The takeaway is a claim in one paragraph, in your own words
• Collapse All still leaves a coherent summary in front of you

Common mistakes to avoid

• Summarizing the plot only. A map of events gives you a retelling and nothing to think with. Give the argument its own branch and treat the events as evidence for it.
• Collecting quotes with no claim. A pile of quotations is a notebook. Attach each one to the claim it supports, or delete it, and the map gets sharper.
• Labeling a node with the whole quote. A long label cannot be read at a glance and slows you down when you present. Put the quotation in the note and the purpose on the label.
• Photographing every page. Node images are useful for a diagram you will look at again, not for bulk. Images are not searchable, so a page of photos is a page you cannot search.
• Writing a topic as the takeaway. "The book is about leadership" cannot be disagreed with and teaches you nothing. Write a claim with a position you are willing to defend.

Frequently asked questions

How long should a book summary mind map be?

Short enough that you can recite the collapsed version in about a minute: the claim, the structure in three movements, and your takeaway. Detail belongs in the notes, where it does not clutter the picture. If the collapsed map takes longer than that, the branches have drifted into chapters that should be notes.

Do I have to finish the book before I start the map?

No. Start at the introduction, where the claim and the structure are usually set up, and add branches as you read. The map then grows with your understanding instead of being reconstructed afterwards, which is faster and more honest about what the book actually argued.

Can I put a picture of a page into the map?

Yes, as a node image. PNG, JPEG, WebP and GIF files work, up to 1.5 MB each, and double-clicking the thumbnail opens it. You can also draw inside the node on a 1000 by 650 canvas with a color and a brush size from 1 to 32, which suits redrawing a chart.

Can I search for a phrase I photographed into a node?

No. Search reads labels and notes, not images, so anything you capture as a picture has to have its important words written in the note as well. That habit is the difference between a map you can search and one you can only scroll through.

This guide is part of the mind map use cases collection. For the wider product tour, read the complete Canvasola guide, and keep the keyboard shortcut cheat sheet open while you work.