# How many books (for entertainment) do you read per year? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 17, 2014, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013 "2014-06-17T21:23:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Learjeff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/94ad74/32.png) [@Learjeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Learjeff)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/41 "2014-06-18T15:20:50Z")
I put down 13-30, but it’s a wild-ass guess, and invites the question, “What’s a book?” I read a lot of 1000+ page books, and I also tend to get ebooks with all the public-domain works by a classic author. Is each of those 1 book or 30? About 1/4 of my reading is fast-read fun novels; if that was all I read, it’d be well over 40 books per year. I read Cryptonomicon last week. I count that as a fast-read fun novel, though it’s about 1100 pages, plus I read the appendices and learned how to cypher using solitaire. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Learjeff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/94ad74/32.png) [@Learjeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Learjeff)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/42 "2014-06-18T15:31:25Z")
Forgot to add: I’m 56. I prefer ebooks: I can carry my whole library with me. I can quickly look up any word or subject that appears (and I do that a lot, both dictionary words and wikipedia chain-lookups!) I can buy them quickly and conveniently. They’re even less expensive than paperbacks, especially for classics. But I admit I miss the benefit of seeing all my books lined up on the bookshelves. When visiting people I don’t yet know very well, one of my favorite things is to loiter by their bookshelves, seeing what kinds of things they read and asking questions about the books I see there. I learn a lot about the people as well as tips on interesting books I hadn’t heard of. I prefer paperback to hard-cover, since they’re more comfortable to hold (especially in bed, where I do a lot of reading). IMHO, books are to be read, not worshiped, and only a few books are really worthy of hard-cover treatment. It’s the contents I revere, not the vessel. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/43 "2014-06-18T15:48:46Z")
Well over 50. Though I got an iPad maybe 6 months ago, now a lot of my reading-before-bed time is taken up by looking-at-dog-pictures on Buzzfeed time. Oops. I prefer paper, but that might be because I’m just not used to eBooks yet, and I have a lot of books I got used to work through. I don’t like paying full price for books. > [@kayaker](#): > > And keeping stats is way beyond what I could imagine doing. My mom has a spreadsheet of everything she’s read since the 1980s! She started writing everything down because she loves English mysteries, and could never remember which ones she’d already read when she’s at the library. Now she has her spreadsheet accessible any time via smartphone. 🙂 She’s on vaca, or else I’d ask her for her per-year number. She now reads ebooks almost exclusively. The Kindle is very light and easy to hold, which she appreciates at age 72. Because she can sync it with her phone, she always has her book on her without carrying any extra weight. She syncs with her iPad too but prefers the Kindle at home because it’s lighter. I tried to lend her a book recently, and she looked at me like I was crazy and said “a PAPER book???” Kids today, I’m tellin’ ya. > [@Learjeff](#): > > I read a lot of 1000+ page books, and I also tend to get ebooks with all the public-domain works by a classic author. Is each of those 1 book or 30? The 1000+ page book is one book. Each of the classic author’s books are one book, even if they’re collected in one “volume.” ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/44 "2014-06-18T16:23:51Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > I easily read about five books a week. Easily 300 a year. None of them are math books, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/45 "2014-06-18T16:35:48Z")
> [@Green\_Bean](#): > > My mom has a spreadsheet of everything she’s read since the 1980s! > > She started writing everything down because she loves English mysteries, and could never remember which ones she’d already read when she’s at the library. That’s exactly why I use Goodreads. I can’t remember which of the books in various series I have or haven’t read. “Did I read this one or just see it on the shelf and remember the title?” So now I keep track on Goodreads, download from the library, and read on my kindle. Technology is the best. ---
**Author:** ![LibrarySpy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f9ae1b/32.png) [@LibrarySpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LibrarySpy)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/46 "2014-06-18T16:45:43Z")
I read 27 last year, the first year I counted. This year I’m on track to read about 25 again, even though I set my goal at 52. Alas. I’m 35, and I read exclusively ebooks. No print books for me. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/47 "2014-06-18T17:23:48Z")
I think I’ve done five books in the last five weeks, but that includes audiobooks I listen to while walking the dog. The dog and I go out for an hour and a quarter a day, so I can get thru about a reasonably-sized book every week. I also read myself to sleep most nights, so I got thru three books on paper as well. I don’t own a Kindle. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a88e4f/32.png) [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleanor_of_Aquitaine)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/48 "2014-06-18T18:26:07Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > I would do little else but read for pleasure if it were up to me. A few years ago, I realized reading was getting squeezed completely out of my life, so I decided to prioritize it. Now I get up extra early in the morning, drive to work, then sit in the parking lot and read until it’s time to go in. It’s the best part of the day! I used to say that I’d like to do nothing but read, but actually I find that I enjoy reading more when I’m sneaking time to do it. To quote Jerome K. Jerome, “I like idling when I ought not to be idling; not when it is the only thing I have to do.” On a lazy Sunday afternoon I get restless trying to read, but on a weeknight I will stay up reading way past my bedtime. I read about two books a week. I’ve been tracking and cataloging on Goodreads since 2007; it’s a strangely satisfying activity. Mostly paper books still, but I do like my kindle. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/49 "2014-06-18T18:41:24Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > I used to read voraciously. Then I got married, had kids, and went to grad school. I’m now lucky to get through a couple of pages a day at breakfast. Marriage and grad school didn’t slow down my reading, but parenthood did - other than reading to my son, of course. Does that count? Right now, at bedtime, we’re working our way through the _Magic Treehouse_ series. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/50 "2014-06-18T18:47:28Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > I read like other people breath. With your mouth open?! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/51 "2014-06-18T18:54:50Z")
> [@chiroptera](#): > > How many books do you read, not counting for scholastic or business requirements? Bonus points for what generation you hail from (I’m boomer) and what format you prefer (traditional paper, personally.) I devour books. I have a library with over a thousand dead tree books. SWMBO was overjoyed when we got Kindles, because I rarely buy a dead tree book any more. And that Kindle is with me everywhere; if I’ve got 5 minutes, I’m reading. Boomer, BTW. ---
**Author:** ![Wednesday\_Evening](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b2d939/32.png) [@Wednesday\_Evening](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wednesday_Evening)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/52 "2014-06-18T19:03:01Z")
About 50, although based on my Goodreads stats for this year I’m on track for over 70. I’m 43, and I will read whatever format is handy (Kindle or paper). I rely heavily on the library for books, so it largely depends on the most available format for any given book. If the book is heavily in demand, I will try and check out the Kindle format since e-book holds are free, but paper book holds are $1. ---
**Author:** ![gwendee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/35a633/32.png) [@gwendee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gwendee)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/53 "2014-06-18T21:05:58Z")
I’ve been dwelling on this thread throughout the day. First of all, I breezed past the additional questions in the OP. I didn’t realize until right this minute that I’m a Gen Xer. I feel as if all the “how to market to Generation X or Y” information I’ve listened to at business seminars was geared towards people ten or so years younger than I am. (I turn 46 later this year.) It’s always been remarked in our family that my mom was born in the first “official” year of the Baby Boom, and my sister in the last. I just asked the internet if there’s a generation between Boomers and GenX and learned of “Generation Jones” which actually seems to be a subset of Boomers, as the years given intersect. But I digress. I’m 45, and have only embraced electronic and audio books over the last 18 months or so. Our county library system is top notch. I can obtain vast amounts of literature any time of the day or night wirelessly on my phone. And no fines! I haven’t built up my own collection of eBooks, other than some public domain items. How many books I read per week/month/year varies quite a bit depending on what I’m reading. I’ll burn through YA novels, or series mysteries, or hacky Jane Austen fanfic books (don’t judge me!) at a mighty clip, but dense literary prose slows my roll. So some weeks it’s 3 books, and others it’s .04. And some, like last week when season 2 of Orange is the New Black became available it is, to my shame, zero. That is what I want to change. No more zero weeks. And **Dung Beetle** , I meant for you to have all the credit. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/54 "2014-06-18T21:31:27Z")
I wish I could read. ---
**Author:** ![jayrey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/47e85d/32.png) [@jayrey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayrey)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2014, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/55 "2014-06-18T23:56:19Z")
Age: 57. I, too, read a book to a book-and-a-half a week. Pretty evenly split between “real” books (with covers!) and the Kindle. ---
**Author:** ![rsat3acr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@rsat3acr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rsat3acr)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2014, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/56 "2014-06-19T00:16:58Z")
I clicked 0-5 not because I don’t read but because I don’t do it for entertainment. I am currently reading my old Encyclopedia Britannica cover to cover. I get about five vol. a year and read about 10 other books a year. All nonfiction. I liken it to going to the gym don’t like doing it but like the results. I don’t like reading(as an act) but like to learn things. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2014, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/57 "2014-06-19T00:20:14Z")
The internet has replaced the majority of my need to read books but even when I did read on a regular basis I suspect I rarely got through 20 at most, probably more like one a month, in any given year. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2014, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013/58 "2014-06-19T01:52:46Z")
> [@KneadToKnow](#): > > I wish I could read. It’s fundamental. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-many-books-for-entertainment-do-you-read-per-year/691013.md?page=2)