It’s quite often that people say we’re in a digital age.
With the amount of technology out there at the moment, and with it ever increasing, technology has become our main source of entertainment. And compared to history – say the Victorian era – books have drastically been cast aside.
But are books dying out?
As mentioned before, books used to be the main entertainment. Everyone who could read, would read. But now we have TV, movies, social media etc. And it’s suddenly become uncommon for people to say their favourite hobby is reading.
And even if people do like reading, it’s not always necessarily a book. Once again, thanks to technology, people have E-books and audiobooks. Most of which are cheaper than the physical copy, and often more convenient to carry around.
But does all the alternate choices mean book are dying out?
Personally…I think no.
Because I can assure you that every single time I go to a bookshop, there’s quite a lot of people in it. And I go to the bookshop nearly every week, so it must be a common thing for it to be busy.
I also feel like more and more, people are attempting to add reading into their lifestyle. I’ve been surprised quite often, finding out that someone I didn’t think read at all is actually trying out a book because they heard about it so much, or they liked the movie. And pretty much always, they will buy the paperback copy of it.
And then there us. The devoted readers that cannot live without reading at least a few pages every day. More often than not, we bookworms prefer the physical copies of books, whether that be paperback or hardback. I mean, it’s people like us, with our book buying addictions that practically fund book stores.
So no. I don’t think books are dying out.
Sure, not everyone reads like they used to in the Victorian days or whatever…but I actually think reading is on the rise. Now, that might just be because I discover more of the reading community every week through social media and blogging. But like I mentioned before, I see more and more people around me dipping their toes into the reading world, gradually being lured into this wonderful side of words.
So what do you think?
Are books dying out? Do you see less people reading now than you used to?
Do you think technology is knocking books off the hobby list?
Or do you agree with me, and think books are actually doing quite well in the world?
Have you seen any examples of reading being on the rise?
Join the discussion in the comments!
Until next time…
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Come and visit me!
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A frolic through fiction 
I don’t think books are dying out but I think technology is pushing them closer. I take a book to school with me every day and I don’t see anyone else with one unless it’s for class. Everyone is on their phones and I think it’s kind of sad.
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It’s really sad. I think the place I see people reading most is public transport…so maybe it’s once people are older that they commonly start reading? It’s still seen as being odd for people our age to love reading I think, because people expect us to like technology more.
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As the previous person who commented said, I don’t think books are dying out but technology is pushing them closer. For instance, there’s a large wave of people who’s starting to get into books because of the growing popularity of audiobooks. Additionally, e-readers make reading books a lot more convenient and a more viable activity when traveling or waiting in between classes.
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That’s great! It’s always good knowing that while technology is advancing, it can actually help encourage people read 🙂
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I’m pretty torn on this subject. Although my local bookstore is never *busy*, there is always people in there. But then, there is so much technology now. Ah, it’s a hard one – but I agree with you completely!
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It is a pretty difficult subject to make your mind on. It seemed a lot easier for me when I could write it all down haha!
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Definitely! And seeing how many people online are so addicted to books (like us!) really helps – there are definitely more people reading now than there was 10 or 20 years ago.
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I definitely don’t think books are dying out at all! Even though libraries are closing down, I think young people are researching more through non fiction books. Also with LGBTQIA books coming up the ranks people will be reading them as well to see the representation. I’m praying that tablets and other devices of that sort are helping people read instead of going on social media.
Great discussion post!
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Thank you!
I think Ereaders definitely help encourage reading, especially since a lot of books are so cheap on them. And like you said, more and more young people are reading too, so it’s great 🙂
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Definitely! And I think the dystopian genre did a lot to help get people into reading with the Hunger Games and Divergent hype.
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I think the idea about reading physically has died out over time, but the act of actually going to bookstores, book blogging, and ideas like that are still around (thankfully). I have ran into a ton of people that ask me why I am carrying around a paperback when I could use a device “with all the books you need”. So, yeah, I am really hoping those devices don’t override the community, for I am ALWAYS a lover of physical copies, lol. Great discussion post, Ashleigh! 🙂
-Jess @jbelkbooks
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Thank you!
I’m very much the same. I’ll always use physical copies over digital ones. Usually it’s my family that ask why I don’t have a Kindle or something and quite frankly, I just don’t want one. Like you, I hope technology doesn’t overrun!
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Great discussion! From my experience, I don’t think books are dying out at all. The vast majority of my work colleagues love reading, yet only one owns an e-reader. Also, my local bookstore is always busy. There is always a small queue at the till. They also have an instore coffee shop so there are always people pausing to have a look at the displays going to and from it.
I also don’t find ebooks to be cheaper at all. I’ve often found books I’ve wanted to buy to be up to £2 more expensive in ebook format than in paperback. Which is incredibly weird as there is no postage or anything needed.
Lauren @ My Expanding Bookshelf
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Thank you!
My local bookstore has a coffee shop too, so it sort of just proves how popular they can be if people need to rest while browsing! Also, that’s REALLY strange that sometimes books are more expensive on Ereaders. I mean, I don’t have one myself so it might be a common thing, but from other people’s experiences I always thought they were cheaper.
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Books and reading are definitely not a dying art! I work as a bookseller, and I can guarantee this. We get people coming in every now and then who comment on books dying out, and people not reading as much, but honestly it’s quite the opposite.
You’d be very surprised at how often we get people coming in asking for book recommendations because they’ve never really read before, and want to start reading.
You would be especially shocked at how many kids come in, excited to choose out a new book. This begins anywhere from about the ages of 6-8. We’ll have parents beaming about their child being excited by books, and tell us stories of how many books these kids power through in a week. Honestly, some of these kids have probably read more than I have in my lifetime, and I’v got a good ten years on them.
I would say, that if anything, technology is helping to spread awareness of books. People assume that with the release of the e-readers, that book sales dropped, thus began the closing of bookstores. It’s really not the case. Most bookstores close due to poor business management. Here in Australia, there was an amazing chain of stores called Borders. These stores were HUGE and contained everything from books, to comics & manga, to DVD’s and magazines, to merchandise, and even knick-knacks and homewares. You’d think a shop with this much variety wouldn’t struggle, right? Well they did, and the reason behind it was that their stock was TOO diverse. They put so much money into products that just didn’t sell. A good bookshop looks at what sells, and stocks their shelves accordingly.
Heck, I know a bunch of people with e-readers who still prefer buying physical books, to reading off a screen. They mostly use the e-reader to preview a book before committing to purchasing the physical thing.
It’s just so very insulting to the work that I do, authors, publishers, and even readers when people claim that books are dying out. Really, they’re just not very well informed.
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This is what I love to hear!
It really bugs me when people say books are dying out because if they just look around enough, loads of people read! And I love it when I see little kids in bookstores, even if I don’t know them I get a small sense of “yes you’re doing this right” haha 😀
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I would say that the kids section in our store is probably the section that empties the quickest, every week! It requires the most work when re-filling, and it’s not a very small section.
It always makes me so happy and proud that so many kids are in love with reading.
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