One in Four Americans Read No Books Last Year

[yodamarie78]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:30am

I find this absolutely mind boggling!

WASHINGTON - There it sits on your night stand, 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 read 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.
One in Four Read No Books Last Year

[Kringas]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:31am

I wonder how many BWW folks read no books last year.

[Magdalene]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:32am

I think I read enough for 2 people...

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:33am

I read enough books to make up for all of them. But that's beside the point. So sad.

[iHeartMyGeek]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:35am

Personally, I'm surprised that that figure is so low.

I read a lot of books last year, but, well, those of us cultured folks tend to be an exception to the norm.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:36am

I find this absolutely mind boggling!

You're kidding, right? Americans are brainless, uneducated idiots who would rather spend their time killing innocent animals for fun or sitting on their fat asses eating fast food and watching reality TV than reading (or learning to read, or to think).

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:38am

Three out of four Americans DID read books last year?

That's fantastic.

[JustAGuy]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:38am

Who cares about books? AMERICAN GLADIATORS is coming back!!!! WOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

[DG]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:39am

I actually agree with Geek - I would have thought even less than that actually read. Maybe they're including anything printed - like The Enquirer.

Of course, this makes NO assumptions as to comprehension . . .

[yodamarie78]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:41am

You're kidding, right? Americans are brainless, uneducated idiots who would rather spend their time killing innocent animals for fun or sitting on their fat asses eating fast food and watching reality TV than reading (or learning to read, or to think).

While I know that very well, I still can't seem to wrap my head around the idea of not reading at all. I'm having enough trouble with the idea that the average person who does read books only reads 7 in a year. I've read three times that since January.

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:45am

I've actually been reading a lot lately, although I'll admit it took me about 4 years to finally finish reading the fifth Harry Potter book.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:45am

I think there are a lot of really fascinating tidbits in that article.

First of all, the fact that three out of four Americans read a book last year is pretty great.

I found this intriguing:

People from the West and Midwest are more likely to have read at least one book in the past year. Southerners who do read, however, tend to read more books, mostly religious books and romance novels, than people from other regions. Whites read more than blacks and Hispanics, and those who said they never attend religious services read nearly twice as many as those who attend frequently.

[Patronus]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:46am

I read about this in the paper yesterday. I found it interesting that the majority of the books that people did read were either religious related or Popular Fiction.

No wonder we are in the Bush Administration mess...25% of the people in our country don't read a book a year and the other 75% are reading about Jeebus and the DaVinci Code.

Honestly, I may be the worst reader in the world. A book has to grab me right away or else I loose focus and interest - that being said, I read enough books in a 12 month span to keep the curve from being lowered.
Updated On: 8/23/07 at 11:46 AM

[AbbaRabbit]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:47am

consitering that america is #62 in literacy, this does not surprise me.

[Patronus]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:49am

Abba, was that a joke or a typo?

[AbbaRabbit]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 11:56am

neither

http://www.geographyiq.com/ranking/ranking_Literacy_total_population_dall.htm

[Patronus]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 12:03pm

Not the statistic, sweetie. The spelling of Considering.

It just thought the irony of a misspelled word in a post about our literacy rate was amusing.

[AbbaRabbit]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 12:06pm

i have a learning disability x_X

but anyone who knows me here knows that i am an avid reader. just ask the guy in my avatar

Updated On: 8/23/07 at 12:06 PM

[yodamarie78]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 12:07pm

It just thought the irony of a misspelled word in a post about our literacy rate was amusing.

And the typo based irony goes on and on.

[Patronus]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 12:09pm

Tooshay, yodamarie. Tooshay indeed!

I wasn't making fun of you at all Abba. I'm sorry if it came across that way. I just thought it was amusing if intentional is all.


Updated On: 8/23/07 at 12:09 PM

[erikaamato]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 12:20pm

yoda: In defense of those of us who don't read as many books as you do, and yet still consider oursleves "readers," I have to say, some people simply don't have the time to read novels - or non-work-related books of any sort - on a regular basis. I've read "only" 5 books since January, but I've also read countless scripts, committed 4 full length plays to memory, learned a new language (ASL), worked on innumerable audition sides, studied and memorized charts for at least 100 songs, translated all my lines into French for a short film, etc. My "free" time is spent working on these sorts of things, so reading for pleasure is a luxury I rarely get. When I do read a book, it usually takes me only 2 to 3 days to complete it. And yet, I'll probably only get to the pitiful "7 books" mark this year.

Just food for thought, before you judge us "average" readers too harshly.

[One Song Glory]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 12:21pm

I'm not much of a reader, I've read probably four new books in the past year, with two of them being for school.

[Izzy's Baby]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 12:26pm

*reads*

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 12:27pm

I've read "only" 5 books since January, but I've also read countless scripts, committed 4 full length plays to memory, learned a new language (ASL), worked on innumerable audition sides, studied and memorized charts for at least 100 songs, translated all my lines into French for a short film, etc.

That's what I call some big readin', girl.

[Patronus]

Posted: 8/23/07 at 12:28pm

I've also read countless scripts, committed 4 full length plays to memory, learned a new language (ASL), worked on innumerable audition sides, studied and memorized charts for at least 100 songs, translated all my lines into French for a short film, etc.

What did you do after lunch?