Is this generation reading books less?

[Saucycarpdog]

The title says it. This has been brough to my attention recently and I honestly can't tell. I don't see a whole lot of people read but then I can't judge based on that alone.

Do you think the current generation of kids/young adults read less?

EDIT: I guess I'm the dumb one here. I thought people would understand what I was saying with "reading", as in reading books. Normally people just say "reading" when they talk about someone reading a book. But I guess this doesn't apply everywhere.

 

[The Virgo]

I'm sorry, I don't have time to read your post.

;-)

Seriously, though, yeah, this generation is reading less. There still are people who read, but it's not like the older days. Then again, would you much rather read a book or play a game? I rest my case.

 

[neonsword13-ops]

RISE AGAINST THE E-READERS! BURN THEM!

Anway, Reading is common with me, Playing as many roleplay games as I do.

 

[EdwardOrchard]

Assuming you mean novels/actual books, then, yes, of course, it isn't even a question.
If you mean this as some sort of "Are we becoming illiterate?" thread, then fuck no, don't be silly.

 

[Blue2]

Reading books? Yes
Reading in general? No

As you see this, you are basically reading but I truly see more people willing to see a movie then reading the book of the same title.

 

[Xeraxis]

Overall, yes. Too much technological interaction (phones, social networking, etc., etc.) has led to a decline in reading.

Well, in books per say. Aren't we all reading the posts made by other authors here .

 

[Hides His Eyes]

I'm not so sure. It's kind of hard to measure. And since I'm only in one generation I have no basis of comparison. I think perhaps the number of people reading AT ALL is not going down, but the number of people going out of their way to read something interesting, obscure or a little different is. Lots of people don't seem interested in classics or older books. Most people who read seem to be content with the latest Dan Brown, Stieg Larsson or whatever other crime novel or conspiracy thriller is currently nearest the front when you walk in Waterstones. And chicks read chick-lit like good little girls.

(I assumed you meant reading books).

 

[Azaez]

Its going down alot, more people read things like this more and more each day, im still old school and read alot of books though, reading is on of the best things to do in my spare time, can learn alot.

 

[OrenjiJusu]

Being one of "This generation" despite my protests to the contrary, i have to say that overall yes there is a decline in reading. Not in myself (egotistical statement), I usually leave the house with a book in my pocket and 3 books on my phone.
Unfortunately some spikes do occur, twilight being the horrible example here.

 

[StriderShinryu]

Reading books? Yes
Reading in general? No

As you see this, you are basically reading but I truly see more people willing to see a movie then reading the book of the same title.

My thoughts as well. While I do feel that less people are picking up and reading paper books, I think reading overall is perhaps more prevalent now than it's ever been. Of course, that doesn't necessarily mean that real literacy is keeping pace.

 

[Stall]

Read traditional material like books or plays less? Probably.

Read overall less? Hell no. This generation probably reads more than any previous generation before it, with the wide adoption and communication through text. Think about how much text you must read on the internet everyday, and when you throw in texts, e-mails, social media, etc., this generation reads a shit ton.

 

[Nimcha]

Read traditional material like books or plays less? Probably.

Read overall less? Hell no. This generation probably reads more than any previous generation before it, with the wide adoption and communication through text. Think about how much text you must read on the internet everyday, not to count texts, e-mails, social media, etc.. This generation reads a shit ton.

Exactly. And consequently also gain a lot more information about more different matters.

Not necesseraly a good thing though, since that means those people also have more opinions on those matters and more ways to share them. But since the information is usually superficial, whether or not those opinions are worth sharing is doubtful...

 

[Beryl77]

In relevance to which generation? For example, compared to a generation 200 years ago, yes this generation is reading much less.
What I want to say is, that obviously with all the new possiblities, books look rather boring to many kids. That doesn't mean that books will vanish. In the past they didn't have so many other things that they could be doing instead of reading, so less people read but there will always be many people who like reading books.

 

[monkey_man]

I read a lot, I really do. I must have read harry potter about 10-13 times completely, and still going (charm's a bit lower now, I can nearly spell out the entire book by now :3) But I also read LoTR now, and it's awesome. And I've read countess other books.

But I do feel that I'm alone in this, everyone (but one or perhaps some more) I know condemns reading as "boring" or "stupid" And I feel kinda sorry for them, as the narrative is so incredibly strong.
(I must admit, my girlfriend, the one - mentioned, thinks books are too long, and she just downloads the audiobooks and runs them at twice the speed. That counts as reading too IMO)

It's also Why I like halflife so much, the gameplay is not very special, but the narrative is so very good. And I mean characters, setting, story and how it's told. I kinda search that in the books I read as well. And I have a preference for fantasy, but I also quite enjoy good detectives, or other fine stories. It requires a good story and firm characters

Then again, would you much rather read a book or play a game? I rest my case.

If the books good, I take that over a game. Right now, I am doubting to play tf2,l4d2 or some other game OR reading Lord of the Rings

Anyway, yes reading's not done as much as it should.

 

[Hides His Eyes]

Maybe less novels... maybe. But certainly not less reading.

We're forever being bombarded with newspapers, magazines, blogs, whatever. Our generation is probably reading the most content that any generation has ever read.

We just don't read as much novel content as we watch film because it's a relatively long undertaking when you can have media beamed to our eyes in 90 minutes.

Humans have always been about making things more convenient. Books just aren't the most convenient form of story telling any more.

I don't think the novel will ever die out though. Because their certainly is still a large market for it. Possibly the largest there has ever been with e-books and relatively cheap paper publications.

It's an odd situation really. There are possibly more books being read now than ever before, but they're still the least consumed form of media.

That's a might odd thought.

I think you're right. While novels are not the most convenient form of storytelling they are certainly my favourite, and I'm sure there are plenty of others who feel the same way. Enough to keep the medium alive, even if we are a minority.

 

[IkeGreil29]

I think we read differently. We no longer expect Herman Melville novels, but Twilight novels that are shitty and straight to the point, because our lives are in such a rush. I also think we actually read more, because of all the crap we read online.

 

[Queen Michael]

People still read books. After all, you might complain that people read trash, but in olden days people read trash too. People who don't read a lot usualy still have something they like, like Harry Potter. And remember: in the old days there were lots of people who didn't read a lot. It's not anything new.