Italians read more in spring

With the arrival of spring, the days grow longer, and nature awakens, bringing with it a desire to go outside and enjoy the fresh air. After long winter months spent indoors, many people take advantage of the first sunshine to relax in parks, on terraces, or in gardens – and this good mood also improves the habits of many Italians who, with the warmer season, pick up books again. On the occasion of the spring equinox, Rakuten Kobo, one of the leading companies in the digital reading sector, conducted a survey to discover if and how reading habits change with the arrival of the beautiful season. The survey, conducted with a sample of 148 respondents in the first fifteen days of March 2025, revealed interesting data on how the good weather makes Italians rediscover the pleasure of dedicating themselves to books. According to the survey, on average, 51% of respondents dedicate about 3 hours per week to reading, while 25% read between 30 minutes and an hour per week. 16% of respondents read less than 30 minutes weekly, and only 8% exceed 5 hours per week. But with the arrival of spring, many readers seem eager to dedicate more time to reading. In fact, almost half of the respondents (49%) stated that they increase their reading time, with 11% claiming to read much more with the sun.

While during the winter, 73% of readers tend to read primarily inside their homes, with the arrival of spring, 61% of readers expressed the desire to change locations, preferring outdoor spaces such as parks, terraces, or beaches. The spring season invites readers to enjoy books outdoors, taking advantage of the rebirth of nature. Furthermore, in addition to changing reading locations, spring also brings a shift in the genres being read. The survey showed a decrease in reading of crime and thriller books, which dropped from 51% to 37%. On the other hand, romance novels saw a significant increase, rising from 36% to 43%. Also, travel guides gained popularity, rising from 13% to 20%. This could indicate a growing interest in planning upcoming summer vacations. The reading of essays, historical novels, and fantasy/sci-fi, however, remained largely unchanged, suggesting that these genres maintain their appeal throughout the year, without significant seasonal variations. However, this doesn't change the fact that Italians are not particularly strong readers in Europe.

In 2024, Italy recorded a decline in the quality of reading, with a 30% increase in readers who engage in fragmented reading, reading only sporadically throughout the year. The average weekly reading time dropped to 2 hours and 47 minutes, compared to 3 hours and 16 minutes in 2023 and 3 hours and 32 minutes in 2022, according to data from the Observatory of the Italian Publishers Association (AIE) presented in December 2024 at the Più libri più liberi fair, in collaboration with Pepe Research and published by ANSA. Although 73% of Italians between the ages of 15 and 74 claim to have read at least one book in the last year (a decrease from 74% in 2023), there is a noticeable decline in reading printed books only, which involves 66% of the population, compared to 68% in 2023. Women continue to read more, with 72%, compared to 60% of men, while the age groups with the highest percentage of printed book readers are 18-24-year-olds (74%), followed by 15-17-year-olds (73%) and 35-44-year-olds (71%). The data also confirms a persistent divide between the North and South. The North-West accounts for 35.8% of book sales in the trade market, while the South and Islands account for only 19.3%. Additionally, the number of bookstores per capita is significantly lower in the South, with 30% fewer than the national average, while the North-West is 11% above average. Furthermore, estimates of readers vary: AIE indicates 73% of the population as readers, while Istat reports only 39% of the population over the age of six. Various studies, such as those from Doxa and Swg, estimate a higher reading rate, with 79% and 80% respectively for the 18-75 age group. In short, it’s unclear just how little Italians read – but it’s clear that they should read a lot more.