International Study on Reading Preferences for April 23 World Book and Copyright Day Reveals What People Love to Read, Where They Read, and What Books They Want to Pass on to Their Kids
TORONTO, April 21, 2011 – From a cardboard baby book to a digital novel on a sleek electronic reader, literature can be a life-long pleasure. In celebration of World Book and Copyright Day on April 23rd, Sony of Canada today announced the findings of an international reading survey conducted in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.
The survey was conducted in March by RKM Research and Communications, Inc., and polled 500 readers in each country to discover the books that have had the most profound effect, the literary characters readers relate to and which celebrity book picks would be the most influential.
“While April 23rd marks World Book and Copyright Day, for many literature lovers every day is a book day. The Sony Reader allows any one to carry more than 1,000 books with them wherever they go,” said Tim Algate, Marketing Manager of Reader Digital Books at Sony Canada. “The international Reader survey illustrates the important role books play in our lives.”
Canadian Media Book Picks Hold Sway
According to the study, when Canadian respondents were asked “Whose book picks would you most want to read?” Canadians indicated interest in recommendations from Canadian broadcaster and news anchor Peter Mansbridge. Twenty-six percent of French Canadian respondents said they would be most swayed by songstress Celine Dion’s choices. Other in-demand sources for book recommendations include actor Jim Carrey (20 percent), ‘Sex and the City' star Kim Cattrall (10 percent), former Canadian professional ice hockey player Mario Lemieux (9 percent), The Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean (9 percent), The Right Honourable Adrienne Louise Clarkson (4 percent), essayist and novelist John Ralston Saul (4 percent), host and co-creator of the Q on CBC Radio One Jian Ghomeshi (4 percent), best-selling author Malcolm Gladwell (4 percent), and Canadian pop sensation Justin Bieber (2 percent).
Comedians top the list as literary influencers for Brits and Australians. In the United Kingdom, 29 percent of respondents would read books recommended by funny man Ricky Gervais. Down under, 31 percent of Aussies responded that they would read books recommended by native comic Andrew Denton.
Treasured Books Passed Onto Kids
The survey also found that when asked, “What classic book would you like to pass on to your children?” One in four Canadian parents cited Dr. Seuss’ Winnie the Pooh at the top of their list, followed by classics including Cat in the Hat (18 percent), Robert Munsch’s Love You Forever (18 percent), and Anne of Green Gables (16 percent).
When asked the same question, Americans, Brits, and Australians unanimously agreed that Winnie the Pooh would be at the top of their respective lists as the book of choice to pass down to their kids.
Readers Can Relate
Canada’s favourite character is “elementary” – when asked, “Which literary character do you relate to the most?” Nineteen percent of Canadians chose Sherlock Holmes. Americans (17 percent) and Australians (14 percent) felt the same way about the treasured detective, while 14 percent of Brits responded that they most related to James Bond.
Other survey findings
- Books in bedrooms - When asked where they read most often, more than three in four Canadians take their books to bed with them. The living room is second, with 70 percent, followed by 38 percent who like to read on vacation. Eight percent of total respondents report taking a book on their commute to work.
- The Bible’s effect – Canadian respondents claim to have been impacted by the Bible. Over one in five (11 percent) named the Bible as the book that “had the most profound effect on you,” versus 21 percent of Americans, 9 percent of Australians and 8 percent of Brits.
- Harry Potter’s power - While the Bible is tops overall, the next most influential literature cited by respondents is the Harry Potter series. Amongst younger respondents age 18-24, Harry Potter topped the Bible with 8 percent versus 5 percent.
Methodology
The results of this report are based on an international online survey commissioned by Sony Electronics. The research was conducted as part of Sony’s support of World Reading and Copyright Day.
The survey was conducted by RKM Research and Communications, March 11-21, 2011. The survey is based on a sample of 500 randomly selected consumers in: 1) the United States; 2) the United Kingdom; 3) Australia; and 4) Canada. The Canadian sample included 122 consumers who self-identified as French Canadian.
The survey is fully representative of adults in each of the four countries under investigation. Online panels were used to select respondents, and invitations to participate in the survey were systematically balanced to match the demographic characteristics (gender, age, education and income) of respondents within each country to known census information. Each country panel was also balanced by region to ensure the representativeness of each sample.
About the Reader™ Digital Book
Sony of Canada’s line of beautifully-designed Reader digital books include the Reader Pocket Edition™ and Reader Touch Edition™. Reader digital books feature a host of design and technology enhancements that make them the perfect device for any reader’s lifestyle. Reader brings a fresh level of flare to e-reading with colourful, elegant aluminum designs and highly responsive full touch screens designed specifically for digital reading. The new, first-to-market technology improves response time and increases reading clarity, creating a natural, immersive reading experience. Since its inception in September 2006, Sony's Reader Store has included a wide offering of new releases and bestselling eBook titles for book lovers of all kinds. Today it features access to more than two million titles and links to borrow eBooks from local public libraries nationwide.
Note from poster: yes, I realize there's an error in it, but as the work is not originally mine, I did not feel comfortable changing it.
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