Do Australians Still Fancy Books? Stats Tell The Story

It was predicted by some businessmen and scientists that the book reading business would go out in a few years, as with the advent of technology and social media people do not have time for book reading. This statement was supported by the figures that out of all United States, only 40% of people read books and that too only 1 book in a year. This might suggest that book reading is going downhills in the United States, but not in Australia.

Australians are spending their hard-earned money on books, finding discounts on books if they have to quench their thirst for reading. This article will put light on the different reading behaviors of Australians with the help of research conducted by McQuarrie university.

How Much Does An Average Australian Read?

The research was conducted among 3000 Australians and the results were quite convincing. The results showed that more than 92% of Australians read books regularly. These people read more than ten to fifteen books per year for the sake of pleasure or interest. More than sixty-five percent of these people read at least one book once a week and twenty-nine percent of them read something daily. These are significantly huge numbers. The survey also showed that only four to five percent of Australians never read a book. In other countries, the numbers of people who don’t read are two to three fold high.

What Age Groups Read Most In Australia?

It is seen that an average Australian spends almost seven hours of his week in reading and more than seventy percent of this is a pleasure reading. People who visit book fairs and festivals would be familiar with the fact that women tend to read more books than men. Estimated figures are that thirty percent more women read books than men. It means, out of all frequent readers in Australia, more than two-thirds are women. Similarly, people above the age of 60 spend more of their time reading as compared to younger people. Forty percent of frequent readers are elder citizens and people younger than 20 spend very little time reading.

What Kind Of Books Do Australians Read?

The survey showed that Australians read a variety of books from fiction to philosophy to news to science. It generally depends on the intellectual acumen of the reader. Seventy percent of Australians prefer to read books by Australian authors. The figures showed that more than sixty percent of people read a book when they hear it is a good read. These books could be suggested by friends, or advertised on social media, etc. more than 50% of Australians read books by physically browsing through the bookstores and libraries to find a good read. More than thirty percent read through newspapers and magazines. Apart from that people read academic and research books for all purposes. More than forty percent of Australians buy a book while the rest go to the library or rent from a book store.

How Much Money Do Australians Spend On Books?

The reports showed that more than seventy percent of people still buy books physically from the traditional book stores while some prefer reading online books or e-books. Even with the popularity of kindle ebooks and e-readers in other countries, nine out of ten Australian people still prefer ink printed books over online reading. Many readers order books online as it gives them the chance to utilize discount offers through Book Depository coupon codes. These people believe that books bring out much greater value in our lives than we pay for them.

According to another research, in 2016 more than 54.6 million books were sold in Australia worth more than 1.06 billion dollars. These numbers were raised to 55.5 million books in 2017 worth more than 1.08 billion Australian dollars. These figures suggest a total of 0.9% increase in book purchasing in Australia. It means when there are rumors of the demise of book reading in the rest of the world, Australians continue to read books as a strong habit.

Is Book Reading Declining In Australia?

The surveys show that reading books is still ranked third among the leisure activities and hobbies among Australians, coming behind only surfing the internet and social media and watching TV. Although book reading might be growing as a hobby among Australians generally, there is a certain age group of Australians that is not very inclined towards this activity. These are the teenagers aged between 14 to 20 years. The main reason is that they are captivated by other internet activities like using Instagram, TikTok, playing games, etc. on the contrary, the numbers of book readers among children aged between 6 to 13 are rising swiftly. These children said they quite enjoy reading books and they are also willing to spend their own pocket money to buy new books.

Fiction Or Nonfiction; What Do Australians Prefer?

The Australians answer in the survey that they most enjoy reading psychic thrillers and mystery books. This genre is most sold among Australian book readers; however, most Australians prefer to read books that are written by Australian authors and are based on Australian settings. They consider it important that the coming generations are provided with books enriched with Australian culture and traditions to preserve the country’s history. More than two-thirds of Australian readers believe that memoirs and autobiographies of Australian authors should be written and published regularly by the Australian Council.

Conclusion:

The findings of these reports suggest that book reading is blossoming as a rose in Australia. The Australians have managed to keep the habit of book reading alive by defying all the odds against it. That is why the literacy rate in Australia is considerably higher than in other developed countries. However, this report could be giving more optimistic results than the actual circumstances as people tend to list hobbies that they want to have rather they actually have. All in all, Australian people have a strong book reading habit as compared to other nations.

Published on: December 01, 2021