Back to the Corner to Cry

According to an Associated Press-Ipsos poll released Tuesday, one in four adults didn’t read a single book last year. The typical person claims to have read four, and if you eliminate the group that read zero, the average number of books read was seven.

Of course, women and “older people” were the most avid readers, and “religious books and popular fiction were the top choices.”

As if all this isn’t disturbing enough, here’s a nice quote explaining the situation:

“I just get sleepy when I read,” said Richard Bustos of Dallas, a habit with which millions of Americans can doubtless identify. Bustos, a 34-year-old project manager for a telecommunications company, said he had not read any books in the last year and would rather spend time in his backyard pool.

Nice. Probably an atheist as well.

Who are the 27 percent of people the AP-Ipsos poll found hadn’t read a single book this year? Nearly a third of men and a quarter of women fit that category. They tend to be older, less educated, lower income, minorities, from rural areas and less religious. (All quote via ABC News.)

The NEA’s Reading at Risk study (Executive Summary and full report available online in pdf format) is more comprehensive and just as fascinating. And also makes me want to go back to my corner with my tears and Speed Dating.