The Jenkins Group released these survey results recently.
-33% of high school graduates never read a book after graduation
-42% of college graduates never read a book after graduation
-80% of US families did not buy or read a book last year
-70% of US adults have not been in a bookstore in the last five years
-57% of new books are not read to the last page
Yet, 80% of American adults want to write a book.
The math doesn’t add up.
No, it doesn’t add up at all.
As someone who loves books, I think those are some sad statistics.
By: Robin on February 8, 2008
at 6:15 pm
Do you think if readership increased the price of books would go down? My husband and I are keeping the used bookstores in business. We have purchased a few new books lately, but that is a small part of what we read.
By: anhinga on February 8, 2008
at 6:42 pm
wow. some of those numbers hardly even seem possible. 80% of families didn’t buy OR read a book last year?
who are these people?
what do they read? shampoo bottles?
By: amuirin on February 9, 2008
at 1:22 am
I have a hard time believing the statistics, too. Strange that high school graduates read more than college graduates. My son used to be a big reader until after college. Screeching halt. My daughter still inhales books (she had two years of college) and my youngest (blue collar business owner) will read blurry bottle labels. Who knows the answer? I know all our biblio-toilets are stacked with reading material, even the college grad.
The oddest thing is that 80% of us have a book to write. How do non-readers know how to go about writing ? I feel like a grain of sand sometime when I dare to think I can write.
By: anhinga on February 9, 2008
at 1:34 am
