There’s this common chatter all around that Gen Z doesn’t like to read anymore. These people born starting in 1997 to 2010 barely read and it might get even worse with people born after 2010 to last year. These so-called digital natives are often characterized to be glued to their smartphone and devices that owning a physical book feels like an ancient practice.
Recently, I had the chance to mingle with Gen Z and Alpha and tried to understand where they were coming from, especially to try to understand their obstacles to reading. I myself am an older gen Z but because I’ve grown around people who like to read, I certainly had a confirmation bias. So, it was why I ventured outside my comfort zone, asked around from people of my age but also the next generation on their reading interest and their challenges.
There was this one question asked to me. “ Well, what about you, what’s your reason to read?”
I felt like a grandma telling all the reasons why I started to read and my schooling was two decades ago. Without reading, I don’t think I would be here, I don’t think I would know many things and learned wisdom from the previous generation or the history. Not only that, it asks us to reflect and stop, even to the point of ditching our gadgets for a while to read a physical book.
Long story short, from the conversation, I actually learned that most of them like to read manga, manhua or manhwa. They like written words that have illustrative works to it more than works that are purely written in text.
Where I am from, Indonesia, our reading interest is considered to be the lowest in the world. Our people just don’t like to read but they are pretty active on all social media. It’s strange isn’t it? There were dozens of pieces of data supporting the argument that the people don’t like to read. However, recently I read a journal that argues and in its conclusion, Gen Z still likes to read. The only thing that is different is certainly the medium that is used to read a book. So, I suppose there is interest but a bit too low, more than some other countries whose people like to read by default.
It’s perhaps purely anecdotal that I also find similar problems happening all over these days. Perhaps, we no longer have the attention span needed to actually sit down and enjoy things. It’s probably why Manhwa and the likes gained more popularity as it has illustrative arts and the words tend to be shorter.
Honestly, I don’t know if there’s a difference in terms of the benefits gained from reading purely written text to illustrative books. I suppose sometimes some of us tend to be quite elitist about it and we have some type of judgment to those only reading comics, mahua or manhwa. But from what I learned having to talk to these people is that time has changed and it’s time to move forward.
It’s not that Gen Alpha and Gen Z don't like to read, it’s just that the medium that they prefer is something different from what we used to know. So, I guess, I would imagine more books having graphical illustration rather than purely containing words that bore these two generation.
In times when AI can be trained to write the most basic things and mold us to have some basic personalities, I think reading and reading comprehension is a good thing to have. It really saddened me that some people even in this community are using AI to write something that should be personal.
In my opinion, reading is a journey and it is personal. It doesn’t ask us to be perfect, to be grammatically correct and to not have logical fallacy or errors. Rather what makes it valuable is the journey that we take to finally come to a conclusion after reading something. Certainly it is not something tangible but it’s sad that maybe one day in the future, we’re so deeply reliant on AI that it even helps us make decisions for us.
I also advocate that reading isn’t really a challenge. It’s not about how many books you read in a month, a year or a day. I fell into this trap back in the day but these days I read whenever I can and want. It doesn’t matter if I read 5 books in a week, a book in a year but what mattered to me was that those were things I wanted to learn and read. I even talked about it all really starting with a minute, two that could ripple into an entire hour dedicated to reading.
In the end, I learn that it’s not that my generation or gen alpha hates/dislike reading. It’s just what they read that are different and their preferences too. Interestingly, that made me wonder why even in this book community, manga and comics are rarely found despite that’s what most Gen Z and Gen Alpha read these days.
Extra reference Gen Z Digital Reading Issues
You brought up many interesting points!
For reference I'm a millenial but nearly bordering on the Gen Z cusp, being born in the 90s.
I have tutored many young students over the years and I've noticed this troubling trend. They're often impatient, can't focus and often miss key details from simple sentences.
I think it's easy to attribute it to the increased consumption of "fast" media and use of smartphones. Some of these kids were pretty much born when smartphones were already the norm.
But just like you said, it's hard to offer something that isn't anecdotal.
I like to think that books will always be around and there will always be an audience for them.
However it's tricky to get interested in books if you haven't been reading for pleasure in your youth.
There's also something to say about books being very pricy. There's workarounds of course.. the library, used book stores, e-books..
What I can say it's I'm one of the few people in my circle of friends that is interested in reading but it's usually much simpler to strike up a conversation about the latest manga or TV series.
I also have to echo your sentiment about reading being a numbers game but I don't actually know too many people that set out with X books they have to read each year.
I think it's mostly just a warped perception that we have because of book influencers on social media.
Different genres have different merits and you can enjoy all of them, there's no shame in it.. however, there's definetely something to be said about the slow and mindful reading ( and re-reading ) that specific genres and authors require and that's probably the kind of experience that will make you more eloquent or expose you to more interesting ideas and just slow down ( in a good way.. ) your thinking in general.
Also, as a more frivolous ( but is it, really?? ) comment on what you said, I can understand the frustration with your own country always being at the bottom of most statistics. Within Europe, it's very much the same with Italy these days 😏
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I really appreciate how honest and reflective this post is. 💡 It’s so true that Gen Z and Gen Alpha do read—but in a different way. I think sometimes we forget that manga, manhwa, and even web novels are still forms of reading and storytelling. I love that you highlighted how reading is a personal journey, not a race or a flex about how many books we’ve finished. 💬✨ I also agree that it’s not really about losing interest in reading—it’s more about adapting to the media that speaks to today’s generation. Salute to you for starting this conversation! 📚🔥
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Just as many things, reading and literature should really adapt to the way our society operates. While there are people who enjoy reading physical book and even organize traditional book clubs, integrating new ways to it would be way more beneficial.
I do think it's about attention span. There's an entire economy devoted to stealing attention from us.
What makes me feel better is that people still love stories. Whether it's audiobooks, manga or Netflix, or even Tik Tok, people still lvoe a story just as we did thousands of years ago listening to poets and storytellers.
And I think there is always a bit of a kickback against the modern world where people go vintage and pick up a book on purpose - and those that don't would never have been readers anyway.
I also think it's up to parents and schools to encourage reading and for people to see it as valuable. There's a whole lot of neuron firing that goes off from reading that doesn't happen with other forms of storytelling. Smart kids are readers.
Indeed! I notice people still love stories, it's just the medium that's changed and evolved. I recently watched the film version of 1984 and realized some missing part to my understanding of the book. It was through film, I get some of the symbolism of it.
Encouraging more people to read would be a challenge in itself 😂 but lately, I found book party popping up all over and just like @stevenson7 said earlier, reading would never really go obsolete.
Well done for trying here on Hive! I wrote a review for you this week and I'll publish soon. Funny you should mention 1984... You'll understand when I publish!
You're probably like a sage to them at this point 😅
For me, reading would never really go obsolete. People woke always find their way to the library, between pages because it offers an adventure and people love adventures, I just more advocacy can help. I'd like to think of it as a disconnect between generations, and surely technology emergence of AI hasn't helped, but I still think theirs hope.
Readers a leaders as they say
hahahahaha not really. Just as you said, reading would never go obsolete. it will stay and be preserved in one way or another. By reading, it helps people dream, hope, and even act as an entertainment, and learn something new. Life without those things are dull. Most of us don't realize the joy it actually provides us.
Agreed. It's why the library for me is one of the most important establishment in any society
Well said Mac
I recently read that by not reading text only books, the imagination is not built. Reading illustrated books like you describe does not allow for imaginative thinking. Basically the reader of those books are told what to think, they don't imagine the world for themselves. Just another crucial piece of brain work being lost...
oooh that's interesting. I do notice that we read purely written box, we imagine a character based on our own understanding but when it's illustrative, well, we already know how do they look like and etc. It's honestly a bit complex & it's kinda sad too that our (including myself) is also labelled educated illiterate.
Your words really touched me, especially when you talked about how reading is a personal journey, not a numbers game.
Hello @elias22 ! Reading is definitely not a number game. It should be that way yet sadly, I still find people subscribing to that way. While I don't necessarily agree with that, if that works with them then be it.
Reading is still part of our lives, even if it’s in app form or full of illustrations. The love for stories is still there, just modernized!
Indeed. It's just more modernized these days and that's how we should evolve and embrace all types of reading preference.
I don't why but I think Rich Dad Poor Dad has to be a book that's on almost every reader's shelf. Or at least the most common I've seen.
hahahahaha yeah! I got them just because somebody convinced me to it and if I can tell you as much it's all fluff. There's only a few helpful advice especially if you're blind financially. Maybe that's why some people swears by it?
I think so too. The book is quite helpful in its tips.