If you find yourself in front of your laptop looking for something interesting/fun to read, here's one. It's not about sustainable reading, trees, green books or any of our usual topics, but it's definitely worth reading. The topic: can we blame guys for not reading?Chris Goldberg is discussing this important issue on Huffington Post ("Dudes Don't Read: The Book Biz's Self-Fulfilling Prophecy?"). In his own words: "Dudes aren't reading. But is it our fault? Or have publishers just given up trying to publish and market books that we'd want to read?"
Do men really read less than women? the research Goldberg is referring to is not the only one claiming that. Eric Weiner reported last year on NPR about a A poll released last month by The Associated Press and Ipsos, a market-research firm: "Among avid readers surveyed by the AP, the typical woman read nine books in a year, compared with only five for men. Women read more than men in all categories except for history and biography." And it's not only in the U.S. - my guestimation is that this is a worldwide phenomenon. Check out Sweden for example.
Goldberg tries to figure out if it's us, the men, or the publishers who are putting almost all of their bets into girly books. He also makes a good point that these gender-biased reading habits also reflect similar bias in picking authors (hint: women rule). And he sums it up asking "How can we make reading novels -- and writing them -- cool again for guys under thirty?"
So check it out at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-goldberg/dudes-dont-read-the-book_b_152362.html
Happy Holidays!
Raz @ Eco-Libris
www.ecolibris.net
