jurassicalien

February 12, 2009 1:42 am

@ohcaroline. For me the frustration comes from the lack of wanting to expand. Be it Twilight/Harry Potter, or if someone just reads only Batman and that's it. It's a bit frustrating to go "well there's this too, if you like that you'll like this." and they blank stare you. It seems more and more people are unwilling to get outside of their comfert zone, whatever that may be, and it can be frustrating, that's all

February 11, 2009 6:55 pm

I'm also wondering if in younger generations the decline in branching out has anything to do with the decline in the children novella series. (I'm about to show my age) when I was geting to the age of reading, the biggest books were gooesbumps. They were a big deal because in some schools they were banned, and they had scary (for kids) pictures on the front of the book. My school didn't ban them. So everyone, boy and girl was reading goosebumps. And the author was usually putting out a new book in the series at least every other month or so. There were a few seqauls, but the majority of the goosebumps books were standalone, and there were over 100 printed. At the same time when I was growing we had Animoprhs, Babysitter's Club, so there were these giant novella series for us to read. During reading for enjoyment this is what everyone was reading. You could re-read the series I suppose, but when they're over 100 it can feel daunting. As me and my classmates grew up and began to find that Goosebumps wasn't scary and that it was only take about a half hour to burn thorugh any of the novellas we started to branch out, because we still had two more years of half hour reading for enjoyment in elementary school and then an hour of it in Jr. High. So we all had to find something. I branched off into Stephen King, who I heard was the "adult Goosebumps". From there I went to sci-fi, fantasy, horror and just kept going.

The point of ALL that being that by the time my younger sister and her friends has entered elementary school and proper reading age (my sister is four years younger then me) the novella was a by gone product. Teachers no longer had book shelves filled with them. This was also the first year of Harry Potter. Reading for enjoyment was cut down to a fifteen minute routine and taken out of the Jr. High schools compleatly to "raise test scores". I'm now in my early 20's and I read whenever I can, be it comics or books, I love reading. All my friends with two years of me love reading and often complain about the times when they can't find a time in life to read. My sister and the group of kids around her age have read Twilight because "the boy was cute and they wanted to know what would happen to the cute boy" (I kid you not, that's a quote I was given by one of her friends). When I ask if they have interest in reading anything I get a look like I have just spoken in tounges.

I think they're are alot of reasons people don't read as much, all of them being very sad. But I'm not going to give up, I'm still pushing many a books on my sister and her friends, I got one of them to start "Carrie" so it's a good step. 

February 11, 2009 10:34 am

It always drives me mad that I see less and less reading happening with my generation (20's and younger age demographic). I find the people in my life that do read are much better at holding conversation, finishing thoughts and all around are better people.

The problem with the "Harry Potter" and "Twilight" examples is that in my experience alot of the younger people that read those books read just those books, and I don't mean those kinds of books, I really mean just THOSE books. My sister for example burned through the Twilight series, when she was done she had no interest in reading anything else, I know people that will re-read the Harry Potter series again and again, but have no interest in picking up anything else, not even something in that same genre, and I've seen that alot lately. Picking up of the "fad" books, but not branching out, I do wonder what causes that.

Great article btw. 

February 9, 2009 8:00 am I think after litsening to this episode Josh is going to have to hand over the title of the ifanperson that doesn't like fun.

February 8, 2009 6:05 pm

Awesome episode, only two small SMALL things, which I hope will be addressed later (one will for sure)

1. What happened with Sam/Kara/Lawyer?

2. In the last episode Balter talked about some papers he had on Gaeta. Do we know what those are and I missed it or...

January 29, 2009 5:05 am

I'd recommend Madam Mirage when it starts up again and anything else from the Dinicartoons banner at Top Cow coming this year.

January 22, 2009 10:50 pm Grant Morrison's work made me do terrible terrible things.

January 22, 2009 10:03 am

I also wonder how much of it is delays. Now delays happen and they happen to many books, but I'm wondering if the fact that they are happening in these bigger headier books is more frustrating. People want hints or answers, but months and months go before we get the next installment. Having bigger books be delayed is frustrating, having bigger head scartching books be delayed can be murder, for some I assume.

I like Morrison's stuff, don't love it, but like it, and I'm not frustrated with F.C. or Batman possible because I have sooo much stuff to read.

January 5, 2009 10:23 pm

not the busiest week, but none the less a pretty good one.

 BQ: Spilling my ceral bowl on me before work...that was a bad surprise

December 25, 2008 11:54 am woo hoo! End of the year wrap up show!