How often do you read books? According to the results of the survey on public reading conditions conducted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in 2021, Korean adults read an average of five books per year. This means that most adults do not even read a single book every two months. The reading rate of adults is decreasing year by year. In particular, the use of paper books has decreased to nearly 20% in four years. The main reasons are time constraints due to busy schedules, and the fact that modern people tend to enjoy other media outlets than books.

Meanwhile, the change in the reading rate by age indicates slightly different results. While the reading rate of all age groups has been steadily decreasing, only the reading rate of young adults in their twenties has not decreased since 2017. This is presumed to be due to the increase in the use of e-books among this age group. In fact, the use of e-books is steadily increasing. After COVID-19, the number of e-book platforms such as Millie’s Library, RIDI, or Yes24 EBOOK increased by about 20%.

The question remains: why are the use of e-books increasing? First, e-books are lighter than paper books and easier to carry. In addition, people can enjoy reading e-books conveniently with their smartphones on their way to school or work. In addition, e-books are often cheaper than paper books, whereas underlining or marking e-books do not damage the book. These days, as the number of single-person households is increasing in the younger generation, e-books can be a great choice when space in the home is limited.

Of course, there are still problems with e-books, such as how purchased e-books disappear when the platform is closed, or how the readability is not as enjoyable as paper books. Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that e-books are a suitable reading medium for modern society. If you have an issue sticking to paper books, why don’t you try reading e-books via your smartphone that you use every day? Try to develop a habit of reading books on your phone for even a fraction of the time that you spend on social media.

| Kim Eun-ji Editor-in-Chief