I would love to read a book, but between working and kids there’s just very little time for reading. When I was younger, I would read while exercising on stationary bike
But my eyes can’t really do that anymore. I do listen to several audiobooks a year, that I listen to while I do chores or drive.
46% of Americans didn't read a book in 2023
101–110 of 181 posts
Re: 46% of Americans didn't read a book in 2023
#102Do audiobooks count?
Re: 46% of Americans didn't read a book in 2023
#103I have a hard time believing 54% did read a book. 18% of the U.S. population is functionally illiterate, and I don't know for you, I really don't feel like reading a book after I work the whole day at a computer.
> 18% of the U.S. population is functionally illiterate
N.B. This stat appears to pertain to English language literacy, not literacy per se. Some of those 18%ers might be reading Dante in the original Italian or Shakespeare in the original Klingon.
Re: 46% of Americans didn't read a book in 2023
#104Earlier quoted context omitted.
The depth of a book is vastly different than the 10min youtube video summarizing said book. I’ve tried both modern and legacy form factors and honestly I’m on camp book more and more as the years go on. The modern stuff feels like total fluff compared to a book, which in turn feel like total fluff compared to the academic papers it is based on. These days I would rather spend 2 hours reading a good book or paper than…
> The depth of a book is vastly different than the 10min youtube video summarizing said book. Yep, it appears that the deepest format we have today is long-form hypertext. Often containing a few 10min videos itself. Some people do equate those with books, but it's far from unanimous.
Hey if you’re getting the depth of a book, it’s a book no matter the format. My objection is to surface level edutainment formats that feed your brain chicken nuggets but trick you into thinking it was steak.
Lots of surface level books that are the length of a book and the value of a 5min tiktok too.
Re: 46% of Americans didn't read a book in 2023
#105I would love to read a book, but between working and kids there’s just very little time for reading. When I was younger, I would read while exercising on stationary bike But my eyes can’t really do that anymore. I do listen to several audiobooks a year, that I listen to while I do chores or drive.
Read to your kids!
Re: 46% of Americans didn't read a book in 2023
#106I have a hard time believing 54% did read a book. 18% of the U.S. population is functionally illiterate, and I don't know for you, I really don't feel like reading a book after I work the whole day at a computer.
I used to read quite often, in the days before YouTube and internet. I still read a lot online, but it's not the same experience as getting deeply absorbed in a book for a few hours.
These days I'll often read a book or two on vacation, but not always.
Re: 46% of Americans didn't read a book in 2023
#107Earlier quoted context omitted.
Well, can you name a computer game that is a great artistic work? There are many that are good , but I can't say there are any that are on a par with, say, "The Lord of the Rings" or "War and Peace" or "1984". I'd love to hear of one that was though.
Come on, that's a lame argument and completely subjective. What makes LotR a "great artistic work"? What makes Stardew Valley not a "great artistic work"? Just like some books, films, or other art can resonate and have a profound impact on a person, so can video games.
> What makes LotR a "great artistic work"?
That's a great question. It's a mixture of technical skill and intellectual depth.
For example, throughout Scotland placenames are a mixture of old Gaelic, modern Gaelic and Norse, and then there are the Anglicised versions on top. So learning what placenames mean is something I did in school and it's a fascinating subject.
So when Gildor is talking with Frodo, and mentions the "...Branduin, that you call the Brandywine..." (quote from memory; might not be correct), that's exactly what happens with placenames. It's that level of depth (in all aspects, this is just an example) that makes it a great work. You can read more on just the name of a river at https://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Baranduin
Enjoyment of art is, as you say, totally subjective, but anyone who's artistic can generally identify when something is a great work even if they don't personally like it.
Edit: if you like this kind of stuff, there are also some cool blog posts on the logistics of the Battle of Gonder: https://acoup.blog/2019/05/10/collections-the-siege-of-gondo...
Re: 46% of Americans didn't read a book in 2023
#108I have found a high correlation in my life between book reading and general happiness. When I am in a period when I am reading books regularly, I am generally happy. Things are going well, I have good life balance. When I go a stretch without reading books, I am generally stressed out and in burnout mode at work, and home life is not great. Note - this is generally fiction. I read very little non fiction. Note 2 - mo…
I'm in the minority but I moved so many times that when I finally got a Kindle I just gave away every book I owned so I didn't have to haul hundreds of pounds of dead tree. Now I manage a calibre server.
Re: 46% of Americans didn't read a book in 2023
#109Why do we obsess so much over legacy form factors? Watching movies, listening to 2h conference talks, playing a 60h narrative videogame, and reading scientific papers in PDF may not be as noble, but they are equally meaningful to me.
As you know games can be incredibly informative even though they usually aren't. I learned history in a way that sticks much better from Europa Universalis and Total War than from books, even though those games aren't even real in the sense that you're making up a new timeline. Orbital mechanics only clicked for me when trying to land a rover on the Mun in KSP. Maybe entertaining simulations are the second-best way t…
I've met a lot more people who were profoundly misled about history by paradox/4x games than those who were meaningfully educated by them. acoup actually has a good series of blogs about how they serve as a form of historical education, which is worth reading through:
https://acoup.blog/2021/04/30/collections-teaching-paradox-e...
Re: 46% of Americans didn't read a book in 2023
#110Earlier quoted context omitted.
The activity in this context isn’t just that you are reading, it’s that you have to interpret what is written into scenes in your imagination. This is also required when listening to books or podcasts. This is partly why they show much of the same benefits from reading are also gained from listening to books and kids being read to by their parents.
What about for people who don't have an imagination? Is there no difference between watching a movie and listening to an audiobook for them?
Everyone has an imagination. Some people have had it beaten out of them or were never taught to pay attention to it or use it, but everyone has one.