Some 23% of American adults said they have not read a book in whole or in part during the previous year, whether in print, electronic or audio form, a Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults conducted January 25 to February 8 2021, found.
According to the PRC survey, adults with a high school diploma or less are far more likely than those with a bachelor’s or advanced degree to report not reading books in any format in the past year (39% vs. 11%). Adults with lower levels of educational attainment are also among the least likely to own smartphones, an increasingly common way for adults to read e-books.
In addition, “adults whose annual household income is less than $30,000 are more likely than those living in households earning $75,000 or more a year to be non-book readers (31% vs. 15%). Hispanic adults (38%) are more likely than Black (25%) or white adults (20%) to report not having read a book in the past 12 months,” the PRC wrote…
