I know my family doesn't spend much on reading. I'm the only one who buys books, and my parent usually only read the paper. My brothers won't even look at a book. Usually I borrow all my books from the library. So we hardly spend any money on reading in my house.

It is a very sad fact that people don't read these days. One can tell just from certain attitudes toward life in general. I strive to read just to keep my mind going, I want the constant experience. I love reading older books, they put me in another time zone. I find it very dissapointing that the puplic isn't more curious about life. Fact or fiction, it will make you see things in a different light. Reading is seeing things through other peoples eyes. I still shop yard sales for great books, sometimes people just don't realize what they are giving up. Lucky me!

It is a very sad fact that people don't read these days. One can tell just from certain attitudes towards life in general. I strive to read just to keep my mind going, I want the constant experience. I love reading older books, they put me in another time zone. I find it very dissapointing that the public isn't more curious about life. Fact or fiction, it will make you see things in a different light. Reading is seeing things through other peoples eyes. I still shop yard sales for great books, sometimes people just don't realize what they are giving up. Lucky me!

I love to read. It takes me away from my everyday life. Reading is my me time. I gave this love to my son, he is 17 and can read a book of 800 pages in 24 hours if he likes it enough. Reading should be encouraged more in school and I think it is terrible, the standards and changes that have been made since I was in school. Reading is so much fun and it opens so many wonderful adventures. So to all that don't read, I feel bad for you.

I don't believe that people are reading less, necessarily. Take a look at the sales of the Kindle by Amazon, for example. It may be simply that people are reading in different formats. I prefer e-books for most of my reading as it is significantly easier to carry one tool with multiple books in it than a bag full of books. Granted - I still enjoy the tactile experience of a paper-bound book, but for convenience, e-books are my favorite. Perhaps their study did not take into consideration the quantity of reading that is done online?

It could just be that more and more people are turning to the WWW to get the info they once got from newspapers, magazines, etc..., the more we read online, the less we read via the old traditional formats that our parents read from. I still spend about as much as ever on books but I have found myself needing less and less the others vehicles of literature. Any thoughts on why this could be the reason?

I totally agree with james patterson, we cant stop reading . reading is brain food, and it helps increase your vocabulary. i have teenagers around and grandchildren and i encourage them to read. i read 4 to 5 books a week and I love to share my books with anyone who wants to read. my step daughters and their friends read my books and almost out read me. I LOVE IT!! PATTY

Children learn to love books from their parents and the love of reading continues as a person ages. I have seen this in my own family where all 5 of us love books. It is also continuing with our grandchildren whose bookshelf is overflowing with books! Turn off the tv and read a good book !

Reading a book is alright as a distraction from studies or while waiting for a bus, but overall it serves little purpose and can even be detrimental. Some protest saying one obtains new experiences from books and can see life in a different perpective...but in the end nothing is really achieved since what did you really learn from all those fiction readings that you could use? It could be detrimental because of all the wasted time spent entertaining yourself (because that is essentially what it is) instead of picking up some technical book and learning something that can be actually useful. I have wasted my younger years reading books like Moby-Dick, 20000 Leagues under the Sea, Don Quixote...all of it a waste since I could have spent that time learning some Spanish or computer programming language...and for all of you who come off as thinking books are so great and praise yourself for reading them while those around you don't...well I hope you just keep on reading them and escaping from reality because once you put down those books and see how life really is, you will be just as disillusioned as I am.

I agree that reading is and should be a part of our everyday life.I scan through a few of your statements I did not fine the hightech internet mention. I love history and I am on the internet daily reading history , sports , government, news you name it I'm reading so please don't go by The Twilight of money being spent to read a book. As you can see I am not a great writer when it comes to explaining what I want to say, but I do read.Mr. Patterson I will check you out on the internet. God Bless

My family must be abnormal then. Both my husband and I are readers and we have passed the love of books onto our daughters. We make them read the book before they can see a movie based on a book and more often than not, after they see the movie they say that the book was better. We spend hundreds of dollars on books every year and visit our local library at least 2-3 times a month. Reading takes you to places you may never go to otherwise and allows your imagination to fill in the details. Movies have a short period of time in which to tell the story so the details get lost in translation. When the world outside is crazy and stressfull, a good book is like a mini-vacation. A step away from the world and a chance to breath and relax. LONG LIVE THE WRITTEN WORD!!

My husband and I are both avid readers. We are raising a family of readers. Our older daughters, now eleven, both have read at an adult level for years. Our son, a first grader, is reading chapter books. Our home is flled with books of all sorts and we buy books often.

We also utilize a traditional source for books that won't show up in the statistics about reading - the local library!

This message is for "Gabriel",

Ironically, in my family the only one of us who didn't read was my father...who has a doctorate degree in education.

The rest are avid readers. My father, bless him, is the stupidest man I ever met in my life.

The rest of us readers count as our professions:

Credit Manager for a major airline;
Engineering;
Medical Doctor;
Business owners.

First, as a child reader it gave me a fabulous imagination. What are the great engineers, genealogists, biologists, neurologists, parapsychologists, teachers, inventors, astronauts and etc...without that base of a great imagination?

If that expansion of the mind was untaught how would we ever go forward? That builds the love of learning and everything grows from there.

Terrie

I sure hope people are reading more than the popcorn trash that Patterson writes. There are so many great titles out there, don't limit yourself to the so-called bestseller list. Branch out, take a chance, broaden your horizons! Try some non-fiction, learn something!

Want an interesting read? I adore books about knights and all of Michael Jecks books are so expertley well written, very well reasearched. you'll be transported back to medieval times and learn history and try to solve a mureder all at the same time. First one in series Last Templar.I can guarantee you won't put them down. And you'll rush out to get the next one.

Many people talk - few think

Is Ferinheight 451 coming true?
I love to read and so does my boyfriend! $126.00 is a lot if you're buying used books. I used to buy paperback books at a thrift store for .25 each. I find that e-books are just as expensive as a regular book, and then you have to deal with changing format. My biggest fustration is turning pages. I read an average of 100 pages an hour and that's a lot of clicking on a little screen. And even if people aren't reading books, they are reading online. You can't surf the web without reading!!

It is said that reading isn't as important these days. Reading is important and can be a way to excape for hum drums. I started reading to my grandkids the day they were born. My grandson always has a book in hand now that he is 14 and reads two or three at a time. My granddaughter since I started buying her books of her own has become an avid reader also and reads constantly. We need to bring back the love of reading.

I wish parents would hand children a book once and a while instead of a new video game.

To Mary O'Herrin:

Oddly enough, I have managed to learn Spanish and several programming languages while still reading fiction as a primary source of entertainment. I know, I know... nobody can live at that speed, but what can I say? I'm reckless.

I could even go as far as to say that all of that time spent "wasting my time" as a child with books directly contributed to my ability to learn and use those languages, due to my instilled sense of curiosity and habit of reading anything at all to seek mental stimulation.

I am truly sorry that you are so cynical.

I'm guilty of overreading. xD If I read as much on chem or geometry, I'd be a whiz in science and math.

I do usually go to the library instead of Barnes N Noble. I love a good story once, but I find it a waste of money and space to buy the book unless I still love it 2 or 3 reads later. Otherwise, I'd have a room full of books, and no room for ME! lol.

Reading, to me, is a therapy. It gives me the opportunity to immerge myself in the book or the story it intends to narrate. Believe it or not... it's very addicting. It is the aphrodisiac of mental exercise with gusto.

There is no substitute for reading. It's far better than movie or tv version. It has a world of its own... in our minds.

Enjoy the gift of reading.

If one didn't read any book or reading materials... he/she misses a lot of interesting stories worth indulging which can only be experienced by reading.

Ain't reading more powerful than Viagra? No doubt!

I absolutely believe that real reading--not just romances and thrillers, but actual grounding in traditional literature--is fading and with it, literacy in general. The lack of knowledge of references and ideas among young people wouldn't have been acceptable in my small-town, southern high school 30 years ago, much less in the real world of employers who want literate, knowledgeable employees.

The principal complaint among employers is the poor writing/spelling/general communication skills among young applicants, yet we don't nurture a love of reading, an understanding of spelling nor any comprehension of coherent, structured, grammatically correct writing.

We're losing an irreplaceable skill. It's so much simpler to Google than to rise from the desk, walk to the shelf, and turn the pages of a book.

I grieve. I cringe.

I believe reading, reflection,
and thinking go hand in hand.
Conventional reading can usually be done in a more
relaxed mode, with sufficient
information at hand to provide
context for thinking, and thinking usually includes
some type of reflection in terms of the context. I
believe "electronic" reading will be be great - when it becomes packaged in a manner
which makes it relaxing and
convenient. Perhaps the new
Amazon device is a major step.
I anxiously await the arrival
of a true PDA which can handle
all communications, information, and entertainment
(ie. reading) activities in a
non obtrusive manner - and which is smart enough to find
and report its location if it
becomes lost or stolen. Paul

I have loved to read forever. When I moved to my new house I found I did not have the time to read due to the numerous things I needed to take care of in my new house. That is when I discovered "Books on Tape" I now am always listening to a book on tape while driving or working around the house. It is especially handy when I am sewing as making quilts is pretty mindless so a book on tape helps me accomplish 2 things at the same time. I do enjoy books on tape but nothing will take the place of an actual book. I seriously hope people will wake up and smell the roses and continue to write books and to read.

Gabriel,
Did it ever occur to you that reading those great works of science fiction and adventure gave you the kind of mind necessary to comprehend computer programming?
It is also surprising and distressing how many spelling and grammar mistakes are present in these book lovers' posts. I have always believed that my love of the written word is what provided me with the vocabulary to communicate effectively, in all formats. Apparently, this did not work for all of you. Do not be discouraged! Continue to read; expand your mind and your vocabulary! I have a personal library of over one hundred volumes, encompassing three dozen or so authors. I do agree with Shawna that the best-seller list is hardly the place to find great literature. If you don't know what might appeal to you, find a small mom-and-pop bookstore and spend some time chatting with the proprietor. They can often match people up with authors with uncanny accuracy.

It would be absolutely horrible for me to lose my eyesight and not be able to read books. Oh yeah, I know I could get audiobooks, but it would not be the same. I belong to a book club where I purchase books most months of the year. I also have discount cards with two well-know bookstore chains. I probably have six boxes of books that I haven't read yet. If only I could retire . . . I teach at the university level. During the semester, I don't have a lot of time to read for pleasure, but when the holidays come, I may have three "pleasure" books going at one time. Anyone who doesn't read, truly doesn't know what they are missing. It truly relaxes me and allows my mind to visit places it wouldn't normally get to go.

It would be absolutely horrible for me to lose my eyesight and not be able to read books. Oh yeah, I know I could get audiobooks, but it would not be the same. I belong to a book club where I purchase books most months of the year. I also have discount cards with two well-know bookstore chains. I probably have six boxes of books that I haven't read yet. If only I could retire . . . I teach at the university level. During the semester, I don't have a lot of time to read for pleasure, but when the holidays come, I may have three "pleasure" books going at one time. Anyone who doesn't read, truly doesn't know what they are missing. It truly relaxes me and allows my mind to visit places it wouldn't normally get to go.

One thing: be careful of the statistics. For instance, the New Yorker piece quotes the Editor & Publisher International Year Book, which states that in 1970 there were 62.1 million weekday newspapers in circulation, which comes to .30 papers per person; in 2006 there were only 52.3 million papers in circulation, which amounted to .17 papers per person. The flaw? The population in 1970 was 205 million, and in 2006 about 300 million. If you compare the number of papers in 2006 to the population in 1970, you get approximately .25 papers per person. Given the cost of production, and the explosion on online new sources, you can't expect that there would have been an increase in newpapers.

I was very surprised to find out that an average family spends so little on books.To me,reading has been the second greatest sorce of joy in my life(my family being the first!)I can go on adventures at the turn of a page,learn new things,discover different perspectives,experience history and various cultures....A whole incredible world.Unlike movies,when you read a good book,your imagination tailors the adventure just for you.The value to keeping our brain active is beyond value.I can only hope that libraries and half price book store have something to do with the decline.Actually,our family go to both of those places very often,as well as yard sales and Goodwill for our books.