During the coronavirus shutdown, people turned to two things for entertainment: binge-watching and binge-reading.
This last activity is a bit surprising considering how much book sales have dropped in recent years as television and streaming services became more popular. But sales began to pick back up this summer, according to the Wall Street Journal, and were up 13% as of August.
“I was not a heavy reader other than Christian Bible study books,” Ginny Muse, 47, said. “When the coronavirus hit, I just felt a need to get away from TV and screens. I just needed to sit outside and hold a book in my hand.”
It seems many others felt the same way. About 40% of millennials said they were more inclined to read during the shutdown, according to a recent Statista survey, while 61% of baby boomers said they read just as much as they had before the quarantine hit.
Some smart business moves made by independent book stores are part of the reason why young people have a renewed interest in reading. Octavia Books, located in New Orleans, began hosting author events over Zoom. And in Illinois, Page 1 Books created a subscription service that allows users to create a custom profile and receive a monthly package of books specifically curated for them. Both of these strategies helped peak interest.
Unfortunately, brick-and-mortar bookstores have had to deal with the economic consequences of the shutdown just like every other business. Audio book purchases held steady during the pandemic, but in-person sales dropped by more than 33% in March, according to the New York Times. Many stores were forced to close down for good; others are worried that the continued restrictions are keeping customers away.
“Sales are down across channels, and the cost of business is going up,” Allison Hill, the chief executive of the American Booksellers Association, said in a statement earlier this summer.
But if the recent binge-reading trend is any indication, bookstores won’t be going anywhere any time soon.
