Number of books read in the past 12 months in the U.S. 1978-2011
This graph illustrates the results of a survey about the number of books read in the past 12 months in the United States since 1978*. In broad strokes, fewer people are reading books now than in 1978, but the data have fluctuated over time. In the first Gallup survey in the summer of 1978, 12 percent of adults said they had not read a book in the previous 12 months or refused to answer a question about book reading. In 2011, 19 percent of the Americans had not read a book in the previous 12 months.
