Survey Shows That Americans , Are Reading the Lowest Number of Books , Annually in 30 Years.<br />'Newsweek' reports that a new survey <br />found that Americans are reading fewer <br />books than at any point since 1990. .<br />A recent Gallop survey found that adults in the U.S. <br />read an average of 12.6 books over the past year. .<br />According to 'Newsweek,' that's about <br />three less books than the same survey in 2016. .<br />It's also the smallest number of books annually read<br />that Gallup has measured in the past three decades. .<br />Between 2016 and now, the number of Americans <br />reading over 10 books a year has dropped 8%. .<br />Meanwhile, the number of Americans <br />reading between six and ten books, or reading <br />no books at all, remained relatively unchanged. .<br />The number of adults reading between five and <br />ten books increased from 35% in 2016 up to 40%.<br />According to Gallup, the reasons for <br />the decline, and whether the pandemic <br />played a role, remain unclear. .<br />The largest drop was reportedly among <br />college graduates, who read about six less <br />books in 2021 than they did in 2016 or in 2002. .<br />In 2002 and 2016, approximately half of college <br />grads were reading over 10 books a year. .<br />In 2021, only 35% of graduates <br />still read that many books. .<br />In 2016, just 12% of adults said that <br />their preferred pastime was reading. .<br />In 2020, that number dropped to <br />just 6% of adults who said that <br />reading was still their preferred pastime.
