Is working through dense books the only way to become a knowledgeable person?

I lean toward agreeing with the statement, although I don’t think one can claim unequivocally that it’s the only way. But for the most part, I agree.

Dense, difficult books are more likely to present ideas that are challenging to grasp, and are probably more nuanced than books that provide only an overview. Working through difficult books exercises critical thinking and argumentation skills. These skills are foundational in becoming a person whose has deep knowledge, rather than just a superficial grasp of trivia.

Ideally, a person would pay attention to different presentations of knowledge, and it may be that easier methods (videos, podcasts, popular books) provide an initial entry point to the more difficult texts. I wouldn’t suggest that these less demanding ways of acquiring knowledge are not valuable. I think they’re very valuable, but they have limitations.

And of course, many dense books on the same subject are contradictory! But that’s all the more reason to work through them, to understand the arguments made so one can come to an informed position oneself.