Washington — There it sits on your nightstand, that book you've meant to read for who knows how long but haven't yet cracked open. Tonight, as you feel its stare from beneath that teetering pile of magazines, know one thing - you are not alone.
One in four adults reads no books at all in the past year, according to an Associated Press-Ipsos poll released Tuesday. Of those who did read, women and older people were most avid, and religious works and popular fiction were the top choices.
The survey reveals a nation whose book readers, on the whole, can hardly be called ravenous. The typical person claimed to have read four books in the last year - half read more and half read fewer. Excluding those who hadn't read any, the usual number read was seven.
"I just get sleepy when I read," said Richard Bustos of Dallas, a habit with which millions of Americans can doubtless identify. Bustos, a 34-year-old project manager for a telecommunications company, said he had not read any books in the last year and would rather spend time in his backyard pool.
That choice by Bustos and others is reflected in book sales, which have been flat in recent years and are expected to stay that way indefinitely. Analysts attribute the listlessness to competition from the Internet and other media, the unsteady economy and a well-established industry with limited opportunities for expansion.
When the Gallup Poll asked in 2005 how many books people had at least started - a similar but not directly comparable question - the typical answer was five. That was down from 10 in 1999, but close to the 1990 response of six.
In 2004, a National Endowment for the Arts report titled "Reading at Risk" found only 57 percent of American adults had read a book in 2002, a four percentage point drop in a decade. The study faulted television, movies and the Internet.
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jmadison (anonymous) says…
Perhaps the real reason is the current crop of authors write dull boring books.
costello (anonymous) says…
I love to read. I've read several books already this week, two mysteries and a non-fiction book.
I read the entire non-fiction book Tuesday night - very quickly. I intend to re-read it more slowly. It's called Achieving permanency for adolescents in foster care : a guide for legal professionals. Excellent! I'd recommend it to attorneys working with CINC and juvenile offender cases and to anyone involved in the foster care and/or juvenile justice systems.
I read an Edward Marston mystery this weekend - one of his Elizabethan theater mysteries with Nicholas Bracewell. Then Monday I started a book by a new (to me) author, Monica Ferris, who writes mysteries with a needlework theme. I finished that one last night (or actually in the wee hours this morning!)
costello (anonymous) says…
"Perhaps the real reason is the current crop of authors write dull boring books."
There are still copies of the older authors available! ;-)
Bubbles (anonymous) says…
Of course, our school system has nothing to do with this stat.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus (anonymous) says…
The current resident of the White House doesn't read. Who says he doesn't have leadership skills?
sourpuss (anonymous) says…
I'm in a PhD program, so I have to read all of the time, but I do consider it my job to read. When I can get some pleasure reading in, I really enjoy it. I've been reading some of H. P. Lovecraft's stories lately. The Colour Out of Space really freaked me out. Something lighter next time, methinks.
Dazie (Aileen Dingus) says…
But... American Idol is on! I can't miss THAT- it is just TOO important!
*rolls eyes*
I participated in a book club a few years ago. "Not enough time to read" was the #1 reason my fellow clubbers didn't read the books. (why join a book club if you don't plan on reading??) Anyway- after about the 15th meeting wherein American Idol or Survivor or some other POS TV show was discussed instead of the book, I said "That's why you can't read the books. Turn off the damn TV." I wasn't terribly popular after that.
On a similar note- do you consider listening to a book on CD or tape to be "reading" the book?
costello (anonymous) says…
"Of course, our school system has nothing to do with this stat."
I'm not sure what's to blame. I raised two non-readers. They say you should read to your kids when they're very young to cultivate a love of reading. One of my sons was adopted and didn't come to me until he was almost 13. (I still read to him, but I think I was a bit too late.) My bio son - I read to him every night until he was about 12. Many nights I read until I was hoarse because he wanted me to continue. He's still not a reader. Where did I go wrong?
coolmom (anonymous) says…
i just finished a book on bonding with your adopted child. we are adopting a teenager and it isnt easy. as hectic as my life is instead of watching tv in the evenings i read. half for info and half for pleasure.
costello (anonymous) says…
"Anyway- after about the 15th meeting wherein American Idol or Survivor or some other POS TV show was discussed instead of the book ..."
Yuck! If I want to discuss those shows, I'll talk to my coworkers.
My mom belongs to a book club. She never gets the books read, but she always hates the book they choose.
"On a similar note- do you consider listening to a book on CD or tape to be 'reading' the book?"
I don't. Sometimes I enjoy listening to a book on tape, but mostly I read 'em myself.
costello (anonymous) says…
"we are adopting a teenager and it isnt easy."
Good for you, coolmom! I love to hear about others adopting teens. There's a great need for families for teenagers. It isn't easy, but - as I always remind myself - I wasn't doing anything more important with my life/time/money anyway. ;-)
Which book on bonding are you reading?
Stain (anonymous) says…
The current occupants like it that way. That's why they are burdening schools with the stupid and failed No Child Left Behind - because it sucks up all the resources and keeps teachers from actually teaching what they know they need to teach.
They like overburdened and ineffective schools, expensive college tuition, an illiterate, employed and military-ready population with few other options, and people who watch TV which is a much better way to manipulate them.
The way to fight them is to keep reading.
Roadkill_Rob (anonymous) says…
The dumbing down of America continues.
avoice (anonymous) says…
The way to encourage any activity in your children is to do that activity yourself. Do you like to jog? So will your kids. Do you watch a lot of TV? So will your kids. My kids see me reading constantly. And when they whine that the VCR or DVD won't work, I remind them that they can always read a book. A book never fails you. It never stops "working." It's still available (by candle or flashlight) when the power is off. And if you miss something, you can always reread, as many times as you want, even decades later. It's a technology that will never be outdated, unless, of course, future generations lose the ability to read. But that could only happen if they lose the ability to understand the written word, to employ syntax that makes sense to others, to write intelligible sentences. But, that would never happen. imho, my bff's kwim.
mom_of_three (anonymous) says…
I have always loved to read, but have found that I have less time as a working adult with children.
I starting taking classes at KU last spring, which required reading, and I loved it. It re-sparked my love of reading, and I have tons of books at home waiting on me. For another class, I just finished "All but my life" by Gerda Klein. It was fantastic.
I have one kid who has always been a reader, another who hates it, and another who is developing an interest, but has a hard time with dyslexia.
horsegirl (anonymous) says…
I love to read, but honestly, I find it difficult to make the time. And yes, television is easy. When I read, I get so absorbed in the book I cannot put it down, which means I don't want to socialize with my kids or be interrupted. But television is like background noise, so I can still participate in kid's homework, picking up house, etc. It's a sorry excuse, but the truth.
As for kids' developing good reading habits because they see their parents read, that didn't work for me. I used to read all the time when my older kids were young, but neither of them are readers. My youngest, who rarely saw me read, is an avid reader. But he's also a GOOD reader, always has been, which makes it easier for him. My daughter (8th grade) complains that she reads slow, so it irritates her to read. And no, she's not a slow learner, just a slow reader. She actually makes mostly As and a few Bs. But she's not interested in reading which I'm sure ties in to her reading slow... Vicious circle.
Ragingbear (anonymous) says…
i lrn 2reed gude!
Confrontation (anonymous) says…
If a kid is a slow reader, then wouldn't it make sense to turn off the TV and have reading time? Practice is extremely important for developing reading skills. In high school, there were two guys in my class who read at a first or second grade level. We always hated when the teachers asked them to read out loud, since it took forever just to get a paragraph covered. However, they did have football to focus on....
dulcinea47 (anonymous) says…
In my experience whether a person loves to read as a kid doesn't necessarily correlate with reading as an adult. Neither one of my brothers liked to read as a kid and had to be pinned down to do it for school. Both now read recreationally, but didn't do so until their mid-20s, give or take a few years. I on the other hand have always loved to read. All three of us had the same sort of upbringing and elementary education.
Daize- I have only recently started listening to books on tape (actually on MP3 player) and really wasn't sure what I'd think of it. Well, I adore it. I knit a lot and it's really hard to knit and read a physical book at the same time. Audiobooks are great for that! BTW did you know you can download many audiobooks for free from the Lawrence Public Library?
Wilbur_Nether (anonymous) says…
Books don't come in pithy 2- or 3-sentence segments. Discussion forums do! Maybe they are all reading these forums...?
matahari (anonymous) says…
I read from 5 to 10 books a month, and dozens of 'partial reads' If the book doesn't catch my attention in the first chapter, or 30-50 pages, I'll lay it down, and sometimes read a book to within 10-30 pages from the end....I am an extremely lackadasial reader~and wouldn't have it any other way
also, I disagree with above comment, I come from a family of readers, and firmly believe if you start kids early to the pleasures of the written word, it's a habit they will maintain for a lifetime of pleasure and learning~!