Quest

Will technology SAVE or DESTROY reading?

QUEST

FIND THE BOOK FOR YOU

Become a BOOK EXPERT

Do COMIC BOOKS count?

Journey through literature Journey literature

Table of Contents Why The Best Bookstores Service a Bonanza of Booklovers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4~7 The best bookstores are losing a war for customers with book online websites and apps.

Choose Your Own Adventure Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8~9 A cool flowchart to find a good book for you to read.

Tech In Books . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10~13 Technology impacts reading signifigantly-- for good or for worse.

Popular E-Book Apps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Useful ratings of book apps to save you the hassle.

Books to Go . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Kindles are getting popular for their easy-to-use interface.

Comics Through Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16~19 A cool flowchart to find a good book for you to read.

Who Reads Me? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Statistics on who reads comic books.

Comic Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 How comics have changed over time.

Is Reading Running Out of Time? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22~25 With so many distractions and time taken, will reading die out?

7 Things You Didn’t Know About Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26~27 Exactly what it says-- crazy facts about reading you knever knew.

Meet The Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29-20

The Old Quarry Branch of the Austin Public Library Taken by Gus Gamble

Why the Best Bookstores Service a Bonanza of Booklovers he room is silent. There are tables, all empty, and a display table full of extra copies of excellent books. Price stickers featuring low numbers and deals are on each item. This describes Half Price Books, a local Austin bookstore that sells affordable books.

However, this store is quiet, and not just because everyone is engrossed in reading - actually, very few people are there shopping to read the books.

So, why do so few people go to these bookstores? Well, it might be because not everyone can find a bookstore that works with their 4 / Quest / Fall 2018

interests. So, here are the good and bad parts of each of the main Austin bookstores, as well as the library.

By Gus Gamble

The real question, says Rebecca Morlier of Half Price Books, is what sort of person the prospective buyer is; what factors go into their bookstore choice, like money and needs. “For instance, the library is free, although it can have a more limited selection.

Barnes & Noble has lots of full price books. And we have diverse books from all over the place, sold rather cheaply, which are not always in prime condition.”

certain pros and cons that are tailored to fit a certain audience. A mother with lots of children would probably go to the library so as to get a bunch of books that she wouldn’t really want in the future, unlike a college student low on funds, who would probably go to Half price books for a secondhand schoolbook, and both of these are separate from someone who just wants a fancy, pristine new book, who would go to Barnes and Noble or Book People. But what things aside from books could attract customers?

In other words, each store has

According to librarian Ann Min-

ner, programs can also often help bring in customers. Minner said, “We offer tax assistance, we bring people in who do taxes, we are an early voting place, so people can easily vote, there’s just so many things that we do that have an impact on the community and it just makes me really proud.” But this array of services isn’t all - libraries often also offer story time, computer use and Wi-Fi. The exterior of Half Price Books Taken by Gus Gamble

Also, programs are not solely limited to the library. “I do love Book

“We offer tax assistance,

“They’re free, and have

we bring people in who

holds, something unique

do taxes, we are an early

to libraries.”

voting place, so people

-Rebecca Morlier

can easily vote, there’s just so many things that we do that have an impact on the community and it just makes me really proud.”

-Ann Minner, Librarian

People - they just have everything, and it’s beautiful, and they have all the gee gaws and all, but I do go to Book People for their signings more than everything else,” Ann Minner added later. Book signings are another fun program, mainly used by Book People in the Austin area.

Now, you may have noticed that the library has been lumped in with all the Austin bookstores, while it really should be its own category. So, what are some advantages that the library has over bookstores? Well, obviously the library lends books for free. But also, as Morlier said, “They’re free, and have holds, something unique to libraries. Also, they

The inside of Half Price Books Taken by Gus Gamble

Fall 2018 / Quest / 5

the library lends books for free.

But also, as Morlier said, “They’re free, and have holds, something unique to libraries. Also, they do lots and lots of special events, many of which are about more than books.” Holds were a bit of a theme over the library’s advantages - the way Minner saw it, “The best thing about the library is that if you check out a book, and I want it, I can take out a hold and get the book immediately if I come pick it up when you return it.”

Naturally, the library doesn’t have all the advantages, or all bookstores would go out of business.

The bookstores have significant advantages over libraries as well, especially money. Minner said, “We could always use more money.

We are dependent upon the general fund of the city of Austin, and that’s great, ... We appreciate the money that we have, it’s just that

we’re lumped in with the emergency services, we’re lumped with the police, and fire and EMT, and while I might think that newborn babies need - that books for babies are lifesaving, they really don’t compare to defibrillators, and new ambulances and things like that, you know? We could always use more money to use for our collection, or to bring people in, or to get more staff, or to rehab the building, that’s really the only thing we could really make use of.” Not only that, but “The importance or advantage of bookstores over libraries is that when the new James Patterson or the new Stephen King or the new whatever comes out, they get it immediately and if you’re willing to pay the 24.99 or whatever, you can get the book the day it comes out. You get it right then.” as Minner later added. “That’s the big advantage of a bookstore- you can go and get

Gus Gamble and Ann Minner at the Yarborough Branch Library, Taken by Chris Gamble

6 / Quest / Fall 2018 6 / Quest / Fall 2018

“That’s the big advantage of a bookstore- you can go and get a new book the day it comes out, whereas that hardly ever happens in a library.”

-Ann Minner, Librarian

a new book the day it comes out, whereas that hardly ever happens in a library.”

In the end, each store caters to a different group of customers. The library loans to people who generally are getting a lot of books, don’t have much room or do not want to keep the books they are checking out for very long or more than one of these factors. Meanwhile, stores like Barnes and Noble, Book People, and the Amazon bookstore attract people who want a very good quality edition of a new book, for a rather higher price than Half Price Books or the library. These stores often also sell, as Minner put it, “geegaws,” or toys.

Lastly, Half Price Books and other used books bookstores will entice people who are low on money and are not very discriminating over the quality of the book, as long as it is readable and doesn’t fall apart easily. For instance, college students would fit right in this area, and Rebecca Morlier of Half Price Books made a special point to say that “We try to always have a bunch of books for students in case they need a book for school.”

Sandra Frellsen, a customer, rates the bookstores as follows: “The library, then Book People, then Barnes & Noble, and last Half Price Books.” This fits my demographic, because she has two children who likely read large quantities of books that they won’t read again, sending her to the library; has enough money to buy lots of quality books full price if they will be read more than once, directing her to Barnes and Noble and Book People; and she really doesn’t need a place to buy secondhand books at, hence Half Price Books going at the bottom of the list.

A tunnel of books, Courtesy of Pixabay

Fall 2018 / Quest / 7

Choose your own book Begin here to find your dream book

Wheel Of Time series by Robert Jordan Plenty Patient!

Very How patient Much! are you?

Not Very.

The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson

The Reckoners series by Brandon Sanderson

Do you like fantasy?

Nah...

Go for it!

Good How about Idea! dystopias?

Seriously? I want a GOOD book.

Then how ‘bout some nice scifi?

Can I add superheroes?

No thanks.

The Scythe series

by Neil Shusterman.

Realistic or Yes Please! far future?

About Realism, time too! Come Your please.

I want far on... negativity future!

The Martian has defeated Whoo!

by Andy me. Retry the Weir The Illuminae quiz!

Files by Amie Kaufman

Reviews The Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan The Wheel of Time is a 14 book series written mainly

by Robert Jordan, but the last three were made by Brandon Sanderson after Jordan’s death. It is an extremely lengthy read (about a year or four) and can be hard to understand or follow. However, it has been a longstanding cornerstone of epic fiction and rewards your patience with an amazing story, an interesting, more than fully developed world, and a ridiculously large amount of well-designed characters.

The Reckoners

Scythe, by Neal The Stormby Brandon Shusterman light Archive Sanderson

by Brandon A slightly dysSanderson Another gem topian world

by Brandon by an excellent Sanderson, author, I love Brandon this series is this series. Only Sanderson is about super- two books an amazing heroes, with a have been author, and twist. Every released so far, his excellent hero is evilbut I love the Stormlight and they all books. It is set Archive is have one in a utopian similar to specific weak- world with a the Wheel of ness that dystopian Time but is negates their system, that much easier powers. being ritual About a team to follow murder to keep of rebels population and can be trying to hunt down. Since read by a down the this world is younger tyrants who advanced audience. I rule their enough to would world and recommend focusing on create immorthis to you David, a boy tality, the population must be whether or trying to kept down, not you got avenge his which is done this on the father by

by Scythes, flow chart. I slaying the people trained Epic Steelcannot to kill enough heart, this recommend people so the series managthis series population es to ask too much. doesn’t overtough ques- flow. An amaztions about ing read with morality and serious moral be an excelimplications. lent read all at once.

Choose your own book Begin here to find your dream book

Wheel Of Time series by Robert Jordan

Very How patient Much!

Plenty are you?

Patient!

Not Very.

The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson

Do you like fantasy?

Nah...

Good How about Idea! dystopias?

Seriously? I want a GOOD book.

The Reckoners series by Brandon Sanderson Go for it!

Can I add superheroes?

No thanks.

The Scythe series Then how ‘bout Realistic or Yes Please!

by Neil some nice scifi? far future?

About Shusterman.

Realism, time too! Come Your please.

I want far on... negativity future!

The Martian has defeated Whoo!

by Andy me. Retry the Weir The Illuminae quiz!

Files by Amie Kaufman

The Martian, by Andy Weir

The Illuminae Files,

by Amie Kaufman

This book is about the astronaut Mark Watney, who gets stranded on Mars after the rest of his team mistakes him for dead and must leave him behind to return to Earth. When it turns out he is alive, a plan is immediately hatched to bring the lost astronaut home. While the chances of the ragtag plan working are debated

by NASA, Watney is struggling to survive on the red planet. A hilarious and amazing read.

A three book, massive series of basically new age epistolary, the Illuminae Files are the stories of six individuals, two in each book.

The stories of these six young adults are told through emails, narration of videos, post combat reports, and interviews.

While the six characters are paired up for romantic subplots, this book got me to realize that romance in books can actually be interesting to read. Not only that, but I would recommend you read the books just for the excellent story and the interesting moral struggles, which are a theme throughout the book.

Tech in Books Evan Austin-Puhr

10 / Quest / Fall 2018

(Photos courtesy of Pixabay)

T

The library is packed with people of all ages, leaning back in chairs or scattered on the ground to read. Chromebooks, computers and iPads are visible throughout the building.

Where children once held books, they now hold a phone or laptop.

This scene is seen throughout the globe.

Thanks to the booming popularity of reading apps, electronic devices and numerous writing platforms, hard copy

books are less prominent in our society.

With the selling point that one can read on the go, no matter where they are, people tend to overlook many of the consequences of the movement toward electronic reading.

That’s not to say that technology hasn’t helped both writers and readers. Accessibility to information has helped many authors and enabled readers to have more content.

(Photo courtesy of Pixabay)

People have asked, “what’s so bad with technology?” Well, try looking at it from a producer’s point of view instead of from a consumer’s.

“The fees for writing have gone down since the internet has really come up” — Juli Berwald Though it can speed up the writing process and it is a portable and simple system, electronic devices and the technological usurpations from readers is financially detrimental to writers.

Being an author or journalist has never promised substantial pay, and since the rise of the internet, according to scientific author Juli Berwald, there is a “devaluation of writing.”

Where once journalists were paid $10 for each word they wrote, they now are paid around one dollar per word.

People can be reached online to transcribe something or write for less amounts of money, so those who try to

do it professionally lose their jobs.

Berwald added to her previous statement with the remark that “the fees for writing have gone down since the internet has really come up.”

Yet despite the lack of pay for the creators, both consumers and producers of literature are attracted to the easy path of electronics. Naturally, the path of least resistance is the most often taken.

Fall 2018 / Quest / 11

Apps and websites like Google Docs, Word and Pear Note have made the process of writing significantly more efficient than using a pen or pencil.

Beyond that, it has made collecting information more possible through getting information out there, communication, and video chatting.

As Berwald admitted, “Skype is kinda nice because you get the personal interaction,” even if the person being interviewed lives too far away to interview conventionally, even overseas.

This is an important factor in interviews, becaue it allows the interviewer to be able to connect to the interviewee and get better information from them.

The wide variety of video chatting platforms has spread the popularity and

convenience of electronic interviews.

“It’s necessary to use tech in literature because the world is so tech-heavy” — Jen Austin

With the entire world technologically advancing, it’s difficult not to join in. “The whole world works in Word,” Berwald claims. On a train that can’t stop, people are either jumping on or being left at the station.

That can be dangerous because of detrimental effects of overusing technology.

“Even if you’re kind of moving forward technologically if you have an editor who isn’t, you still have to back up in order to have the conversation with them,” Berwald said.

A writer has to be able to write both ways and be knowledgeable about tech because certain editors prefer different methods.

Radio host and author Jen Austin said,

“It’s necessary to use tech in literature because the world is so tech-heavy, but not every reader will consume the work on a device.”

In recent years, many reading apps have become available, but many people still prefer reading from a hard-copy book.

It is easier on the eyes and has an appealing authentic feel.

Online, the screen can be crowded with advertisements or other interruptions.

Technological advancements and popular usage has allowed information to be found and shared easily. Many writers will create blogs or websites with their content because there is a better chance for them to be found out about online.

A person doesn’t even have to be an established author to create a successful blog. “I think that there’s something very valuable in that,” said Berwald, “it’s pretty cool that you can write a blog and get people to read it.”

12 / Quest / Fall 2018

From the reader’s perspective, technology is typically a blessing. Despite a strain on the eyes, the internet has made consuming literature effortless. “It’s frankly cheaper to buy books on Kindle,” Berwald said, “Sometimes I just want to spend $7 or $8 and not $30 on a book.”

Yet another aspect of technology that pushes people to buy electronic reading devices: almost an infinite supply of books for only a couple dollars per book, with some money up front on an electronic reading device.

In libraries, technology is a somewhat neutral topic. They have evolved over the years, incorporating technology and maintaining popularity.

Manager of Ruiz Library in Austin

sistently will soon add up to cost more than paying a little with more up front.

It appears difficult to try to choose a side between technology and old-fashioned methods, but why not choose both?

When discussing her writing tactics, Berwald disclosed that “[she] wished [that she] had the hard copy because, it’s nice ... to refer to, much nicer than having a Kindle.”

One thing that it is confirmed that technology hurts is the environment. Berwald brought up the point that “Technology is its own pollution. There’s heavy metals that cause big problems when we don’t recycle our electronics very well … we’re in a balancing act right now”.

“Sometimes I just want to spend $7 or $8 and not $30 on a book” — Juli Berwald

Author of Spineless, Juli Berwald relaxes in a grassy park. (Photo courtesy of Juli Berwald)

Texas, Carlos Pin, said that “this idea of a computer revolution completely overtaking libraries is a bit of a misconception. Libraries have always adapted with technology.”

Anyone who has taken an algebra class knows that paying a medium price con-

Being an environmentally-aware author, Berwald has experienced multiple positives and negatives to technology.

Even though we have a way to go with protecting the environment and using renewable energy, technology plays a large part in that.

The pros and cons of technological influence seem pretty even, but by society’s standards, there are more pros than cons.

The world is on a track, and it is too soon to know how it will end. Will it better the lives of readers or will it hurt the authors who made reading possible?

Fall 2018 / Quest / 13

Popular EBook Apps 5

Stars

4 3 2 1 0

Google Play Books (4.1)

NOOK (4.8)

Kindle (4.8)

Aldiko Book Reader (3)

Moon + Reader Pro (4.7)

Reading Apps

Kindle

Aldiko Book Reader

Moon + Reader Pro Free

Free

Read PDFs

Night-Reading mode

+4 million books

#3 rank

Not on list

Not on list

#17 rank

381.8k ratings

18 ratings

234k ratings

41.3k ratings

Owned by Amazon

Owned by Adobe

Free Syncs quickly

Ages 4 years and up

Free

Ages 12 years and up

Owned by Moon+ Everyone

Google Play Books

NOOK

Free Read and listen #9 rank

1.6k ratings

Owned by Barnes & Noble Ages 4 years and up

Owned by Google Ages 4 years and up

Sources: AMZN Mobile LLC SL, Uptodown Technologies Barnes & Noble

s

Books to Go Ebooks are a largely disputed topic among readers and writers.

Electronic reading devices like Kindles, as well as new apps you can get on your phone, actual books and book stores in general have suffered. Everyone is moving digital, even authors. This seems like progress, but in reality, the consequences of the influx of technology in literature are considerable.

With a higher consumption of digital literature, writers are less valued. If someone could get a online platform to do something for little money, why would they pay someone to write it for them?

Journalists face this problem daily. In the eyes of former textbook writer and author of the book Spineless, Juli Berwald, “there’s a devaluation of writing� as technology has become more prominent.

Still, the accecibility is undeniable. Even Berwald admits to owning a Kindle. While some prefer a hard copy, and others prefer to read on the go, society is making a switch to digital, and everyone will have to get on board while they can.

Sources: Sian Cain, The Guardian Laurie Swenson, Small Business-Chron.com Conor Pope, The Irish Times

Comics through Time -Samuel Gomez

Think of books that were made for fun and laughter during a hard time; they entertain both the eyes and brain with amazing drawings. Books have no age limit. Stories are only limited by the mind of the author. Comics are stories of heroes and villains fighting over serious or silly reasons. Over the years, graphic novels, or comics for this article, have been increasing in popularity exponentially.

Graphic novels, more generally comics, were just viewed as entertainment or a hobby in the early 21st century. They were considered as something that in your free time you would read to immerse yourself into a colorful and amazing world with no real meaning.

Over the years, comics have become more and more popular both as a novel itself and as a genre. In 2005, a total of 20,000 people visited Comicon, an event focused on graphic novels, mangas and comics.

“Like the best literature, the best Graphic Literature opens up human experience to the reader, opens up historical events by granting a human perspective to the event, and displays how the creative mind can transform thoughts into art.”

Graphic novels are books that mix both a use of words and visual imagery. They are, by definition, a book in comic book format that is published as a book in a comic strip format.

They’ve been around for as long as the 1970s when Will Eisner wrote “A Contract with God”. They are called graphic novels as a way to differentiate them from comic strips in newspapers. Comic books through time have gotten to a point where they are now available in bookstores and libraries alike. Comic

-Brian Doherty Comic books laid out. Courtesy of Pixabay.

Fall 2018 / Quest / 17

“Graphic literature does something else — they provide one version of explicitly visual representation to complement the words on the page. For many readers, there is a great appeal in this, as they may be more inclined towards visual rather than written learning,” This gives insight into what a reader enjoys about graphic of literature.

Comic books layed out on bed. Image courtesy of Pixabay.

books started as small whimsical stories with no real direction. Through time, they have evolved into complex and serious comics with humor used not as much.

Brian Doherty, Ph.D and University of Texas Professor, who has taught classes of graphic novels. He said comic books and graphic novels are set apart from

normal fictional novels or books. “They use different paths and registers of cognition.¨ Leading back to the idea that comics have become more than just silly books for kids to read, they have in fact become their own novels, using pictures as a way to propose information to the reader in a new fascinating way.

Comic books are not regularly viewed

“Graphic literature does something else — they provide one version of explicitly visual representation to complement the words on the page. For many readers, there is a great appeal in this, as they may be more inclined towards visual rather than written learning.”

Hulk fighting villian. image is framed. Image courtesy of Unsplash.

as a educational thing. They are viewed as more of a hobby or thing to do in free time. Doherty said comic books could be read in school, and not just at home as a hobby or for fun. ”I do think that it depends on the work that you speak of.”

“Like the best literature, the best Graphic Literature opens up human experience to the reader, opens up historical events

by granting a human perspective to the event, and displays how the creative mind can transform thoughts into art,” Doherty said. This opens the idea that comics bring a new perspective to how the human mind perceives or views something.

This isn’t one hundred percent accurate, as Dr.Doherty believes, “There are a great many graphic novels whose sole purpose

-Brian Doherty Book covers layed out on presentation. image courtesy of Pixabay.

18 / Quest / Fall 2018

School during school hours. Image courtesy of LASA.

is for escapism, or to entertain, or to do things that may not be so useful at any level of education (excepting perhaps for artists in training).”

Comics are known as a funny and humorous thing that had the main purpose of providing a doorway for a child or young adult to liberate themselves from reality and immerse themselves in a world full of wacky and weird characters.

Many articles have similar ideas that go hand and hand with the idea that Doherty has about how graphic novels help open a gateway to growth in reading and in visual understanding.

The mix of both the images and words helps the readers see into how an author might have seen, sees or imagined the character, world or surroundings look

“There are a great many graphic novels whose sole purpose is for escapism, or to entertain, or to do things that may not be so useful at any level of education (excepting perhaps for artists in training).”

book for children.

Graphic novels have also become a way for people to learn the English language.

They provide contextual clues with pictures, that can help someone who is struggling to understand something they didn’t understand through reading alone.

Over time, comics and graphic novels have changed drastically. They have changed both in story structure and their application to the modern world. They have become more than just hobbies, they have become books for children or adults to read and enjoy.

-Brian Doherty like.

Hulk iighting a villian. Image courtesy of Pixabay.

Along with this, most comic books and graphic novels have 36-76 percent text with lexicon words that are usually featured in senior secondary school and college/university placement tests.

Newspaper text only seem to contain lexicon words in 14 percent of their text.

Scholastic published a listing reasons why graphic novels should be read, what makes a good graphic novel, and why these graphic novels are good to be read in school.

The guide state that graphic novels are great ways to engage children into reading. The mix of both literature and amazing photos create a great and intriguing Comic book covers laid out on table. Image courtesy of Pixabay.

Fall 2018 / Quest / 19

Who Reads Me? Ages of People who read me

1%

13%

For the ages 10-14 only thirteen percent of people start reading comics which is a large fall off from the 60% of ages 2-9

Very little only one percent of people start reading at ages 30-59.

60% Sixty percent of people who start reading comics start at a young age of 2-9. Most children read comics for intertainment.

Twenty-six percent start at ages 15-29 which isn’t as high as thought.

26%

Sources: The Seattle Times. Are Comics for Kids?

Newsarama Is the Average Age of Comic Book Readers Increasing? Retailers Talk State of the Business 2017 StatistaAt what age did you start reading comic books?

Source: Supervillian Comic Blog. How Comics have changed.

Publishers Weekly;From the Fringes to the Mainstream: Ten Years of Growth In Graphic Novel Publishing RetroSmash:HOW COMIC BOOKS HAVE EVOLVED OVER THE YEARS

Comic Change By-Samuel Gomez

When comics where first released they were whimsical and humurous stroies used for enjoyment. They were stories with no real direction or realistic charcters.

Now comic have become things with much meaning and story put behind them. They’re charcters that have complex lifes and backgrounds.

Graphic novels like comics where not very popular.

Only 20,000 people attended Comicon in 2005.

These older comics had very little substance and more just action. There colors where dull and the art was still on it’s way to improving.

These newer comics have amazing art, and wonderful array of colors. The stories are full of context and funny at the same time.

In 2015 more than 150,00 poeple attended ComicCon; either to see the new comics, or to dress-up/cosplay.

Comic book wrighter Stan Lee wrote and created many of the first works of Marvel, one of the largest comic book companies. He helped create famous charcter like Spider-man, The Incredible Hulk, and Captain America.

Comic books have only become more and more popular over the past years with movie addaptation being made from the wonderful stories a people wrote.

Comic books are amazing books that provide a great story with little words, but it said a pictire is worth 1000.

22 / Quest / Fall 2018

Picture of books, glasses, etc. Photographer unknown. Image from Pixabay.com

Is Reading Running Out of Time?

Written by Marina Kinzy

M

Many people used to think that sitting down with a book on a relaxing Sunday evening would be the best thing to do with their time. But recently there hasn’t been the motivation to read, even though the benefits are evident and it’s encouraged by most schools. So why would someone dislike reading?

actually wants to, especially with so many other things to do. It can rely on their family members’ attitudes toward reading, how reading is viewed where they lives, their school, how good their comprehension and vocabulary is, and so forth. But if they have trouble enjoying reading, they might question the point of picking up a book in the first place.

It is an incredibly complicated question, and all the answers are valid and reasonable. In part, the reason for the rejection of reading can be the sole fact that each person is different, and that difference on its own will decide who enjoys reading and why they do.

Many people question it worldwide, all for reasons of their own; the most common reason being they don’t have enough time. Especially with young adults, the day is already crammed with so much work and other things to spend time on that there isn’t any time left.

This raises the question; if enough people stop reading, will it die out altogether?

So the question is, at what point do all of these factors building up cause a person to not have time to read, or even make any?

The long and short of it is really quite simple -- it depends. The reasons for why someone should read have little to nothing to do with if that person

A large portion of the reason for disliking reading is often the feeling that

time is being wasted while reading a book or magazine. The people in this modern day and age don’t really have the time to sit down with a book. So when they do so for enjoyment it often feels like wasting time, especially when there are other things they would rather be doing.

Yarborough Austin Public Library branch manager, Rebecca Rich-Wulfmeyer said that “When you have your spare time and you have all your choices of what to do in that spare time, there are a lot of things that compete for a person’s attention.”

This is why many people do things like play sports, watch video games, or go through social media instead of reading.

The reason people don’t read isn’t always that people don’t like it, but very plainly because there are more fun things to do in the spare time that they rarely have.

Fall 2018 / Quest / 23

Another factor to consider is how people are raised. With so much other things to do and no outside encouragement to read, people tend not to pick up a book. The fact that their parents and siblings don’t get into a reading career or don’t have the time to read likely contributes to the many reasons why someone doesn’t read anything.

In response to the question of the difference between encouraged reading and wanting to read, Linnea Den, a librarian at the Fine Arts Library at the University of Austin said, “I had to have encouragement and love it.”

The encouragement of others is always helpful, but doesn’t control whether someone reads for pleasure or not. Unless someone enjoys reading, they most likely will not on a regular basis.

As a result, a lot of people do not like to read. The reason behind this

reading but because they have no time.

In addition to the previous statement, one can further argue that this, as well as the “nerdy kid” image, may cause many men, young adults especially, to lean away from reading.

Picture of books on a shelf. Photographer unknown. Image from Pixabay.com

question is why? It’s hard to pinpoint the exact answer.

Rich-Wulfmeyer asked, “Is it that their brains are different? Is it social factors? And as boys get older, I mean like teen boys, they read even less, typically.”

There is no difference between male and female brains as far as modern scientists can tell, so why exactly is there a difference?

Social factors, as Rich-Wulfmeyer mentioned, could be an issue for everyone. In terms of young adult boys, the issue may be more severe.

Picture of books, glasses, etc. Photographer unknown. Image from Pixabay.com

is not only that their parents have failed to encourage them to read, but they have also never learned to enjoy reading.

For most, there is a constant pressure to go into whatever the parent’s careers are, and while there isn’t anything wrong with it, it often makes them lean farther and farther away from reading (if that isn’t connected to one of their parent’s careers) not only because they generally dislike

24 / Quest / Fall 2018

“I had to have encouragement and love it.”

— Linnea Den ing, won’t get very far. Rich-Wulfmeyer said “There’s an impact later on, in college and when they apply to colleges. And they get into less good colleges, because they don’t read as much, and they don’t read as deeply.”

Physical issues could be directed to this as well though, like dyslexia, Vision Tracking Disorder and so on.

People with these issues will likely be discouraged to read, even when in most cases there is a way around the prominent issue.

School can impact how someone views reading as well. It is a very common occurrence for students to be forced to read something they don’t like; works like “Fahrenheit 451”, “To Kill a Mockingbird”, and “Romeo and Juliet” come to mind.

Besides this, the way reading is treated publicly plays a significant role in whether or not someone reads. If nobody beyond someone’s family will support the reading, many in that situation just won’t.

This is especially true for young boys; teen boys tend to read far less and at a lower level than equal age girls. The

Comprehension of text is a principal aspect as well. People who are not taught how to do more than just read, but also understand the read-

Picture of books, glasses, etc. Photographer unknown. Image from Pixabay.com

Because the people who read this in school don’t want to, they begin to associate the dislike of that particular

Photo courtesy of Austin Public Library.

situation and book to all reading.

The ability to ignore all of these factors isn’t in everyone, and it’s understandable.

Many of the reasons not to read are important to a person, besides the obvious of simply not enjoying reading for no reason in particular. This is actually the majority of people who dislike reading. While of course it had to root from somewhere, the question of why can’t always be answered.

In the end, all of these reasons to why reading just isn’t liked by many doesn’t have a sole answer. The role that society, family and personal beliefs play in it is undeniable, but not the only roles involved.

The dislike of reading can also just be the constant stream of bad books, and the hassle of finding a good one.

Even so, the chance of reading dying out because of the lack of interest in it is probably unlikely, especially since it’s incorporated in day to day life so much.

Why people like reading can be decided just by who they are, and while reading is very good for the brain and

Picture of books on a shelf. Photographer unknown. Image from Pixabay.com

strongly encouraged, it just isn’t for everyone. The fact that time is short in the modern world doesn’t help either.

With no encouragement, no time, and no want or need to do something, there is no action to do it. And though the world relies on reading for many things, one can’t force anyone to love anything.

Reading is not loved by everyone, nor will it ever be, but even so, it’s impact on day to day life is significant.

Fall 2018 / Quest / 25

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QUEST

Letters From the Editors Gus Gamble

When I started this project, I immediately knew that I wanted to do an article on books. I love to read, often so much that I fail to pay attention in class. When my group agreed, I only had to decide what to do for my feature article. In order to choose, I thought about the biggest problems facing readers today, chief among those being the difficulty libraries face in not earn difficulty in deciding where to get books and why, and why it is so hard to find especially good books out of the myriad easily accessible. I chose to work on the last for my flowchart, and the second for my article. I hope you enjoy!

Evan Austin-Puhr

I used to read a lot when I was younger, but recently have been too busy to stop by a library.

Technology has made it easier to continue this passion. I chose to write about the effects/causes of increasing usage of technology in creating and consuming literary works. More and more, we see new reading and writing apps, and tech companies have been developing new ways to make books easier to read and write. I believe that the influence of technology in literature will determine the future of how, when, and if we read in the future. Without technology, authors would have a lot harder time writing their books, and getting the books to become popular. Social Media in it’s own has boosted business for so many people who maybe publish on a local level.

As technology advances, the entire world must as well, including literature.

Letters From the Editors Marina Kinzy This magazine’s topic was an easy choice. I’ve loved reading ever since I was a kid, especially fantasy, and even more so now. I never understood how anybody could ever dislike reading; it’s just so amazing to be in a world with magic and mystery, or to learn about the world around us, even if many things in books don’t exist and never will. So when my group and I decided on literature, I took it upon myself to learn why.

After lots of research, I figured out it’s mostly because people don’t have time anymore. I learned a lot by making this magazine, and of things I thought I knew everything about! This magazine’s topic was perfect for me and my team, and I’m so glad we chose it.

Samuel Gomez

I used to read a lot when I was younger, but recently have been too busy to stop by a library, but technology has made it easier. I chose to write about the effects/causes of increasing usage of technology in creating and consuming literary works. More and more, we see new reading and writing apps, and tech companies have been developing new ways to make books easier to read and write. I believe that the influence of technology in literature will determine the future of how, when, and if we read in the future. Without technology, authors would have a lot harder time writing their books, and getting the books to become popular. Social Media in it’s own has boosted business for so many people who maybe publish on a local level. As technology advances, the entire world must as well, including literature.