Turks read less as they get older

In Turkey the reading ratio is lowest in the Aegean, Black Sea and the Mediterranean.

We have learned this information from Libonet's research on readers' profiles and book-purchasing behaviors.

According to research, the Marmara region tops the list with 34 percent, while Central Anatolia follows at 17 percent. Then comes Southeast Anatolia at 15 percent and East Anatolia at 10 percent.

The Black Sea and the Aegean region come next at 9 percent, with the Mediterranean finishing last at 6 percent.

The numbers are very surprising because we expect those living in the coastal areas to be more advanced in the cultural and economic sphere, more open to the world and more intellectual.

But the results contradict this assumption.

Feeling the need for an expert's view, I talked with S?rma Köksal, the editor-in-chief of Can Publications.

She said the results surprised her, too. "The touristic life might have a role to play. Perhaps people there are fonder of daily entertainment and pleasures. ?zmir and Antalya are cities with universities where the young population is high. But in a weird way, they have an inward-looking life."

Turks read less as they get older

Another finding in the research is the reading ratios according to age groups. My dream for retirement is to read books that I did not have time to read while working.

Köksal laughed at that and said, "You know the dream of reading in retirement is like finishing reading all books on your vacation. But usually you get back from holidays having finished only a few books."

The reading ratio for the age group 18-35 is 61 percent, according to the research.

Köksal finds the high reading ratio for young ages...