NEA Study Finds Small Dip in Adult Reading

While not going into detail on reading, the new report does provide some breakdown on who is reading what. In what is likely the biggest surprise among its findings, the percentage of adults reading poetry rose between 2012 and 2017, marking the first time poetry reading has increased in the history of the NEA's survey of participation in the arts. In 2017, 11.7% of adults said they read some poetry in the prior year, up from 6.7% in 2012. And although the report does not list reasons why interest in poetry rose, it does give some evidence that the boom in interest in Instagram poets such as Rupi Kaur is an important factor in the increase. The report found that between 2012 and 2017, the share of adults ages 18-24 who read poetry more than doubled, placing that age group above all others when it comes to poetry reading rates. The report also found that nonwhite groups, including African-Americans and Asian-Americans, read poetry at the highest rates overall.