Did you know that August 9th was National Book Lover’s Day? Did you also know that we didn’t do a post about it? I meant to, honest, and then time ran away from me like it always does. But then I came across this awesome infographic about how Americans read and thought I’d share it and discuss it.
I found it interesting that almost half of all books read are in the mystery or thriller genre. Kinda laughed that westerns are least read. I think those were more popular during another time. I’m sad to see that less than a quarter of people read more than 21 books last year, looks like we need to step up our reading times. Even working full time with a baby at home I still find time to listen to books on my commute. Yay for Texas having so many bookstores! Well those were my main takeaways from this graphic, what thoughts do you have after reading it?
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August 9 is National Book Lovers Day. Here are a few statistics about America’s reading and book-buying habits. via H&R Block
This is very interesting. Thanks for sharing.
Melanie Simmons @mlsimmons recently posted…Chase the Darkness Audiobook by J.D. Tyler (REVIEW)
I found it fascinating that suburbanites read the least out of anyone! Apparently us suburbanites are too busy driving our kids to soccer practice. LOL!
Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction recently posted…Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon – 5 Star Review (Sort Of)
Ha! But at least it isn’t different by very much. I think it is because us suburbanites spend so much time driving to our urban jobs that we don’t have time for anything else…
This is an interesting graphic. I can’t believe only 21% of people read 21 or more books per year. Crazy!
Cynthia @ Bingeing On Books recently posted…Top Ten Tuesday – Tyrannical Governments 101
Yea I find that number kind of sad and also hard to believe since most of the people I choose to hang around with read a lot 😉
I’d be interested to know how many pages are in those books that people are reading. I’m reading 300 pages a week. That’s 4 books a month. But if it were 600 page books? That would cut down my average significantly.
Yea I wonder how they did the study, whether they have an average length of a book in their numbers. Maybe they would count a 600 page book as 2 books if they use 300 pages as a typical book?
I did the math on the amount of books sold in 2013 compared to the US population for the same year, and what I got was an average of approximately 8 books per person. With that being said, those of us participating in #ShelfLove know that in reality, we’ve bought far more books than that. So, really we were picking up the slack not only in how many books we read per year but in how many we buy as well. What I’m curious to know though is how many of the 21% that read more than 21 books per year are book bloggers?
Rachelle recently posted…The Classics Club Spin: And the Winner Is…
Ooh good question! I bet quite a bit of the over 21 books read are bloggers, but also students and educators too.
It is surprising to me that people in urban and suburban areas read so much less. What are they doing on their commutes?!? LOL I also find the info on Amazon sales very interesting. No wonder book stores are a dying breed. And that makes me sad. Not that I don’t buy on Amazon, because I do. But I spend a lot of time in bookstores, both independent and B&N.
Bookworm Brandee recently posted…Rock Chick Chat ~ Fire Inside ~ Kristen Ashley
Ha! Cause commuting is the only time I read so I definitely understand your question! I don’t spend a lot of time in bookstores anymore, but I used to enjoy the way they looked inside heh.
Some surprising statistics. Like people in urban areas read more (even slightly) than suburban areas. I really would have figured the opposite to be true. And the cost of books always confuses me. Like why a new adult or adult book automatically costs more than a YA novel. Just last weekend I bought a YA hardcover and an adult trade paperback. And the YA *hardcover* cost LESS than the paperback. Crazy!
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I think the difference for the urban vs. suburban has to do with commute times. Urban people who work near where they live have shorter commutes and thus more time to read? As for the cost – I assume it is just based on the age group they expect to buy the books. YA costs less probably because it is assume the teens will use allowance money to buy the books versus adult books that they assume us working folk can afford to pay higher prices for. That’s just my assumption but it probably is somewhat true. I hate paying hardback book prices in general, they always feel like a ripoff, but I don’t think I’ve seen a YA hardback that was less than a paperback adult book. Sheesh!
Wow that really surprises me! I love reading, I have since I was 4. My kids do too, but I’ve carefully conditioned them to. I’ve been thinking about doing a post on encouraging kids to read it seems like a great time for it, considering!
Steph@thestephblog recently posted…Citrus Lane – August 2015 Review
Since it is back to school time, it is definitely a good time for a post encouraging kids to read. March is read aloud month so there’s a big push then also.
Such an interesting infographic. It’s funny, but every time I come across one of these, I find myself invariably surprised (you’d think I learned by now, but nope, lol). It makes me sad too. I wish people read more.
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It is surprising for those of us book addicts, I’m totally with you on that.