How to Make Reading Fun Again

When market research firm Circana issued a report on the slump in the middle grade market in July, it was not so much a surprise as a continuation of disheartening news for the category, whose sales began trending downward in 2022. According to the research, print unit sales for middle grade books in the first half of 2024 slid by 5% compared to the same period in 2023 (amounting to 1.8 million fewer units sold)-a larger decrease than in the children's category as a whole, which had a 2% decline in the same period. Circana data shows that middle grade books remain the only category in children's that continues to underperform in comparison to 2019 numbers.

More disheartening was the company's consumer research, which indicates "a negative correlation between increased screentime and reading for fun." Professionals across the industry have been feeling the impact of this decline. "The reports don't lie, and I think it's important to acknowledge the data," says Cathy Berner, children's and young adult specialist and events coordinator at Blue Willow Bookshop in Houston and program director for Houston's Bookworm Festival, Tweens Read, and TeenBookCon.