Australians, especially men, are reading less than ever before (www.abc.net.au)

submitted 4 days ago by Tau@aussie.zone to c/australia@aussie.zone

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Across the board, Australians are reading less than ever before, with young men reading the least and older women reading the most.

The trend is reinforced from a young age, with parents more likely to read to their daughters than sons.

Australia Reads, a book industry initiative, is calling for a national strategy that reminds people of the fun and comfort that reading can bring.

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[-] maniacalmanicmania@aussie.zone 3 points 4 days ago

I didn't read in school. I read sporadically as an adult, mostly science fiction. I completely dropped the ball during the pandemic when I got hooked on reddit. I think that, and working in tech has addled my brain. Now I just listen to audiobooks but it feels like cheating. The only books I look forward to buying.and reading is whatever Greg Egan puts out.

[-] spiffmeister@aussie.zone 2 points 4 days ago

If you're into sci-fi, how much have you gone through the classics? Most are novel length so don't require a huge commitment (I too struggle with long books).

[-] maniacalmanicmania@aussie.zone 2 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

A bit but having googled 'sci fi classic authors' I can see many more I haven't picked up. I've been trying to catch up/keep up by listening to audiobooks but even then I find myself lacking time. At this moment It's Revelation Space. I bet if we had a much shorter working week reads rates would skyrocket.

[-] spiffmeister@aussie.zone 2 points 4 days ago

Loved revelation space, but yeah long read.

Arthur C Clarke and Asimov both wrote loads of good novel length SciFi so I'd start there if you haven't gotten into them.

this post was submitted on 14 Jul 2025

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