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My oldest daughter was recently making comments to me that most of her classmates don't really have books at home.
We live in an affluent upper-middle class professional area, with supposedly high education standards. However, it is mostly immigrant, where I will say there is a more of the ends-justify-the-means mentality and a higher regard for status than real learning.
I know a few families around here with extensive libraries (i.e., literally hundreds upon hundreds of books), but by in large, many more have no books, or fairly close to it.
My oldest daughter has literally counted the number of books in some peoples houses. After purchasing books at the school book fair a couple of weeks ago, my daughter said that most of her classmates had less books in their house than I purchased that day. She also commented another classmate said that her friend (who has like 8 books, excluding textbooks) has a lot of books.
Is this really what America is becoming, or am I in an atypical area?
What are the average and median number of books amongst families around your local communities?
Maybe they're just not out in the public areas of the house? We have a couple hundred books in the kitchen/ living room, but more are put away elsewhere. I wouldn't assume that there are no books just because you haven't seen them...
I never counted books in my neighbor's homes, but we have 10 bookshelves filled with different kinds of books and more on the tables.
I just gave a box of books to the library booksale - I often do that with books I probably won't read again.
I was also at the library today doing the *door count* and from 10 am to 12 noon, we had the story hour which was attended by at least 50 parents and 80 children. All of them picked up lots of library books to take home - several took 10 or more children's books out. I'm not sure you can count how much reading the family does by how many books are actually bought and kept. As some others mentioned, most families also have e-readers now.
My oldest daughter was recently making comments to me that most of her classmates don't really have books at home.
We live in an affluent upper-middle class professional area, with supposedly high education standards. However, it is mostly immigrant, where I will say there is a more of the ends-justify-the-means mentality and a higher regard for status than real learning.
I know a few families around here with extensive libraries (i.e., literally hundreds upon hundreds of books), but by in large, many more have no books, or fairly close to it.
My oldest daughter has literally counted the number of books in some peoples houses. After purchasing books at the school book fair a couple of weeks ago, my daughter said that most of her classmates had less books in their house than I purchased that day. She also commented another classmate said that her friend (who has like 8 books, excluding textbooks) has a lot of books.
Is this really what America is becoming, or am I in an atypical area?
What are the average and median number of books amongst families around your local communities?
I haven't bought more than three books in the last year. I have this magic device called a library card. I get the card free (other than being a taxpayer) and I can check out more books than I could ever read and it is FREE as long as I return them before they are due. I don't own many books but I probably read at least one hundred every year and I never spend a dime. Heckuva deal!
My oldest daughter was recently making comments to me that most of her classmates don't really have books at home.
We live in an affluent upper-middle class professional area, with supposedly high education standards. However, it is mostly immigrant, where I will say there is a more of the ends-justify-the-means mentality and a higher regard for status than real learning.
I know a few families around here with extensive libraries (i.e., literally hundreds upon hundreds of books), but by in large, many more have no books, or fairly close to it.
My oldest daughter has literally counted the number of books in some peoples houses. After purchasing books at the school book fair a couple of weeks ago, my daughter said that most of her classmates had less books in their house than I purchased that day. She also commented another classmate said that her friend (who has like 8 books, excluding textbooks) has a lot of books.
Is this really what America is becoming, or am I in an atypical area?
What are the average and median number of books amongst families around your local communities?
Unless the person is into novels or fiction they may not own any books or read much of any thing other than news articles and having school textbooks.
Maybe they're just not out in the public areas of the house? We have a couple hundred books in the kitchen/ living room, but more are put away elsewhere. I wouldn't assume that there are no books just because you haven't seen them...
You'd be surprised. Babysitting in the 80s and 90s I was astounded by how few houses had any* adult books. Of course, they might have been in the master bedroom in some houses, but in other houses I chased kids through the master and there were none there, either. And this was before e-books.
*yes, that means even one. Some nights I'd be reduced to reading cookbooks.
After I paired down to retire I only have two full bookcases left - as usual all non-fiction except a half dozen. My step son's mother had been a librarian and I was able to increase his extensive collection by quite a bit and glad to have someone who wanted them.
My mother who was speech and hearing impaired read a book a day, mostly history and current events. She bought the books for an informal book club circuit to share. When she died her sunroom was filled with brand new books up to my knees. I was afraid to ask what my brother did with them as I wasn't entirely sure he wouldn't just throw them in the garbage. Sad.
Seriously, though, one of the things the agent who sold me the ranch told me was.............."Anyone who has earned 4 degrees is going to have a few extensive libraries. ".
Essentially, this being a university town, there are bound to be a lot of books.
Last edited by TamaraSavannah; 05-06-2016 at 06:45 AM..
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