Used Books Blog

Perhaps the title of O.J. Simpson’s If I Did It should be Will You Buy It?

Barnes and Noble has already decided not to stock the title, while Border’s will stock it but “will not promote or market the book in any way.” Though, clearly the media controversy will do the promotion for the book.

The Current Events editor at Vizu thought this was a good topic and ran a poll that asked the following question:

How likely are you to buy OJ Simpson’s “If I Did It” book when it hits stores?

The results (with over 100 responses and counting) indicate that 4 out of 5 polled will ‘definitely not’ buy the Simpson book. I’m guessing Barnes and Noble may have done similar research and decided that the potential demand (low) wasn’t worth the potential consumer backlash (high).

However, what people say and what they do are often very different. I’m guessing there would be a big difference between action and deed surrounding Nicholson Baker’s Vox. Usually I’d say that anything that gets folks to read is a good thing, but I’m hoping this goes into the remainder bin right away.

What about you? Will you buy Simpson’s If I Did It?

More and more movies seem to be based on books. I take this as a good sign in many respects, but I often wonder if people are actually reading these books. Did everyone read Ludlum’s Bourne Ultimatum before scurrying to the theater last weekend to see Matt Damon? (As an aside, could the careers of Matt Damon and Ben Affleck be any different?!) Now, I haven’t seen the newest Bourne, but then again I rarely see things in the theater now that I have a toddler. However, I haven’t read any of the Bourne series thus far, and can’t see myself doing so prior to seeing the latest installment.

But that doesn’t mean that I don’t see the merit in reading a book before seeing the movie. There are a number of books that you simply must read before you see the movie. It would be a crime if you watched Breakfast of Champions before reading the book. Actually, it might be a crime to simply watch that movie. Look at what Kevin Costner did to David Brin’s The Postman … if you can. And what of any of the Philip K. Dick movie translations?

There are some movies which can stand on their own, that you wouldn’t need to read the book to enjoy. The House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus, III jumps to mind, but I’d be one of those who would annoy theatergoers and say ‘but the book was better.’ I’d be right though.

So as the editor of the lifestyle category for the Vizu network, I ran a poll that asked the question: If based on a novel, do you like to read the book before seeing the movie?

• 45% said it would depend on the book/movie
• 31% said yes
• 19% said no, they’d just see the movie
• 5% said no, they’d just read the book

I was pleased that only 19% said they’d just see the movie, and think it bodes well for the continuing power of the written word. Out of nearly 500 responses, 4 out of 5 indicated that they would read or consider reading the book before seeing the movie.

I’d fall squarely in the ‘it depends’ category since I wouldn’t read a Grisham before seeing a movie adaptation, but would certainly read Everything is Illuminated prior to seeing that film. I’ d like to see Jarhead, but won’t until I read the book. Some, I won’t even see the movie because I don’t want the version I’ve created in my head to be in any way changed. A recent example of this would be The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

So let’s get some chatter going, what movie adaptations would you never see? Which ones would you need to read the book prior to seeing the movie?

Is reading going the way of the do-do bird? Are we becoming a culture enthralled only with gadgets and gizmos, iPods and YouTube? I often hear alarming factoids that indicate that books and reading are on a severe decline. According to the following undated statistics from the Jenkins Group, you’d think the dark ages were returning and that every precaution should be taken to preserve our tomes.

• 1/3 of high school graduates never read another book for the rest of their lives.
• 42 percent of college graduates never read another book after college.
• 80 percent of U.S. families did not buy or read a book last year.
• 70 percent of U.S. adults have not been in a bookstore in the last five years.

On the other hand, you can’t help but notice that bookstores, once small and cozy have been transformed into two and three story palaces, installed in every half-way decent mall. Or what about Oprah’s Book Club and the incredible success of Harry Potter? Something just doesn’t cotton here!

Thankfully I’m in a position to do a bit of research and launched a poll across a network of 100+ sites and blogs. The question: Do you read books for pleasure? A whopping 82% said yes, which is both promising and comforting.

However, as with any research or statistic there are caveats and ways to interpret the numbers. The biggest one here is that the online population is skewed toward those with higher education and income. So, it’s not cut and dry, just like a great poem.