Does anyone else rarely read "real books" or novels?

[CyberCubed]

I say this because I just came to the realization that I haven't actually read a "real book" or novel since an English course I had in College.

I read comic books of course, but other than that and reading on the internet...I don't do any actual reading.

I've always enjoyed watching TV and movies more than books as a kid, and of course videogames take up the rest of my free time. So I never actually sit down to read a book anymore. Is anyone else like this?

[Donatello19]

Yeah, I'm also like this. Sure, reading is present every day...but just sitting down to read an actual book for fun is not my kind of thing.

[Candy Kappa]

It's been a while since it read a book, a year maybe. But when I find one I like, I really get lost into it, so I love reading books. Just often don't have the schedule for it.

[Leo656]

I read pretty much constantly, but mostly magazines and comics, but I do read "real" books, just not as often. For some reason I prefer nonfiction stuff, like biographies, autobiographies, and history. It could be because I already get the fiction requirement covered in comics and movies, I guess.

I read very fast so I can usually knock off a 300-400 pager in a day if I'm really into it. But again, that's a lot easier to do with nonfiction. Fiction takes longer to read because your brain has to fill in more holes.

[Eiko]

I read when I can fantasy is my fav. I'm currently reading, Eldest second book in the Eragon series I have read it many times, but enjoy it so much.

[RaphAndDonnie]

Whenever I'm not on the Internet or my phone I like to reread some of my books. I don't do it often and sometimes I just like to skip around in the books I've already read to read my favorite parts. I haven't bought any new books in a while.

[Whatswiththeheadbands?]

Originally Posted by CyberCubed

I say this because I just came to the realization that I haven't actually read a "real book" or novel since an English course I had in College.

I read comic books of course, but other than that and reading on the internet...I don't do any actual reading.

This is so much like me it's not even funny.

[Mzx10484]

I started reading memoirs of different people (German politician Albert Speer for example) when I was in Norway for 5 months. Previously never read real books. Reading real books can be a mentally enrichment, genuine interest as requirement, of course.

[NinjaPug]

I try to read a book every 2 weeks. It used to be 1 per week but family/work started cutting in to my free time.

[Prowler]

I've been getting more into literature in the past 3-4 years. Buying an e-reader last year made me read more as well.

[CyberCubed]

As the saying goes, "Who has time to read anymore?"

I don't think I'll ever pick up an actual novel or fiction-based chapter book for the rest of my life. It just doesn't interest me.

[Prowler]

Originally Posted by CyberCubed

As the saying goes, "Who has time to read anymore?"

I don't think I'll ever pick up an actual novel or fiction-based chapter book for the rest of my life. It just doesn't interest me.

I rarely watch tv, so I certainly have time to read.

Well, that's too bad, I guess. Your loss.

[NinjaPug]

Plenty of people find the time to read novels now. It just depends on their interests. Some people prefer to read books over watching TV and movies, reading comics or playing video games.

[CyberCubed]

To be fair back in the olden days books were the only "entertainment" people had. TV only started to become mainstream during the 50's, and even back then there were only like 6 channels.

But now in the days where there are literally hundreds of shows to watch, both old and new, tons of cartoons and anime, movies, and of course videogames, there is just little room for books anymore.

In fact even in terms of comics I only read TMNT and Usagi Yojimbo, I don't even read any DC or Marvel comics at all. Although I do like keeping up to date on what's happening in them so I read online summaries and character bio's from time to time.

The only time I ever read outside of when I was a very young kid was when I was forced to for an english class in High School and College. After I graduated I had no desire to pick up a book again. I do plenty of reading on the internet every day anyway. Although I don't agree with the catch phrase, I've seen people say, "Books are for schmooks." online. Now I think that's a silly saying and bit ridiculous, but I wouldn't have seen that online if not.

[discordiatookie]

I've always got a book on the go. As soon as I finish one, I'm on to the next. Hate not having a book to read!

[TMNT_Guy]

Originally Posted by CyberCubed

TV only started to become mainstream during the 50's, and even back then there were only like 6 channels.

Heh, and yet there was always somthing good on.

My problem is that ever since Waldenbooks shut down I don't have a local book store to go to anymore, the next nearest one is about a one hour drive. Sure I can just buy books online, but I have to know exactly what book I'm looking for to do that. With Waldenbooks I was able to walk down aisles, pick up various books, read the first coulple of pages to see if I'm interested in them...good times. My local Walmart sells books, but the selection is so small that it's not even worth looking most of the time.

I even went to my local "library" a few years back thinking I could checkout a few good books to read there. I asked the Librarian if they had any classic novels like Tressure Island and stuff, only to be told nearly all the fiction books had been either sold or were for sale. I ended up buying Alice in Wonderland, Heidi, Tom Sawyer, and the Wizard of Oz. How much did these five books cost me? $1. I repeat, I got five classic books, practically in perfect condition, for one single US dollar. My library turned out to be nothing more then a computer lab in disguise of a library. But, hey, at least I could checkout a VHS copy of the Marx Brothers, so I guess it's not all bad.

As for comics, I haven't been in a comic shop since the 90s when my local one closed. I guess thats the punishment of living in small towns instead of large cities.

[Prowler]

Originally Posted by CyberCubed

To be fair back in the olden days books were the only "entertainment" people had. TV only started to become mainstream during the 50's, and even back then there were only like 6 channels.

But now in the days where there are literally hundreds of shows to watch, both old and new, tons of cartoons and anime, movies, and of course videogames, there is just little room for books anymore.

In fact even in terms of comics I only read TMNT and Usagi Yojimbo, I don't even read any DC or Marvel comics at all. Although I do like keeping up to date on what's happening in them so I read online summaries and character bio's from time to time.

The only time I ever read outside of when I was a very young kid was when I was forced to for an english class in High School and College. After I graduated I had no desire to pick up a book again. I do plenty of reading on the internet every day anyway. Although I don't agree with the catch phrase, I've seen people say, "Books are for schmooks." online. Now I think that's a silly saying and bit ridiculous, but I wouldn't have seen that online if not.

Well, to be fair, being forced to read books you don't like can really turn you off from reading.

[shuriken]

Yeah, I read books. I try to read 6-10 books a year. Just finished Flowers for Algernon and started A tale of 2 cities. But holy crap is Tale of 2 cities boring. I've never been a fan of Dickens but I kinda wanna will myself into finishing this book.

[Peanut]

I read a lot. Mostly in bed at night. I've always read a lot of books and comics. However I stopped reading comics in my late teens, which is around the time I really started to appreciate more sophisticated writing. I don't care if people enjoy comics or prefer them to "real" books, at one point I preferred trash fantasy to "real" literature as well, but I honestly can't stand them anymore. Everytime someone tells me about a "good" comic story, I can't help but sorta inwardly roll my eyes at the prospect, as sh*tty as that sounds. Kind of like when people talk about "good" video game stories.

Often TV shows and movies take a backseat to games for me, but reading is something I never stop doing. In fact at this point I think I probably read more regularly than I play games. I read every single day, but I can't say the same for games, or really any other kind of entertainment.

Written word is king, yo.

[Cipher]

I'm a pretty binary reader.

I read comic books. Quite a few. Some have literary merit, but I have an enormous soft-spot for silly superhero stuff and eat it right up. That's my genre intake.

And, as far as genre goes, that's it. I don't touch it in prose. Nothing against it, but it's not my thing.

For prose, which I read regularly, these days I lean more toward short story collections and small press than anything, and lately I've been diving into more slipstream and experimental writing. But solidly crafted, urgent realism is still appreciated. I like to keep up on recent literary novels as well, though as a format I prefer short fiction. Basically, I read the kind of writing I want to emulate.

I'm a fiction writer and will be teaching and attending an MFA program in the fall, so keeping up on modern literary writing is basically going to be my job for the next two or three years, and hopefully beyond as well.

Heh, and yet there was always somthing good on.

We've apparently had very different experiences with TV.

I've never been a fan of Dickens but I kinda wanna will myself into finishing this book.

I ... really can't imagine reading Dickens for pleasure, but I know some people do. His work was serialized and he was paid by the word, and you can absolutely tell.