This report examines the everyday reading habits of my community of friends, which consists of university students who have different majors and minors. My primary aim is to determine the similarities and differences regarding their reading habits. Interviewee #1 is an English major with a Chinese minor in his second year at the University of Alberta. Interviewee #2 has an undeclared major and minor and is in her third year at MacEwan University. Interviewee #3 is studying speech pathology and American sign language, and has a special needs teaching minor. He is also studying at MacEwan. Interviewee #4 is studying pharmacy and is going onto her third year this fall at the University of Alberta. Interviewee #5 is an economics major and is in his fourth year at MacEwan University.
I first inquired what they read and asked where they bought their books, what genres they liked to read, and their favourite books. I then inquired about how they read with questions such as: When and where do they read? In what format do they like to read their books? I also asked them about their stance on recommending books and how their reading habits have changed since going to university. From the answers to these questions, I formulate a conclusion on the different reading habits of university students with varying majors and minors.
When asked whether they preferred borrowing or buying books, everyone answered they preferred buying them, and they liked buying them at either Cole’s or Chapters. Interviewee #3 mentioned that he liked buying them on Amazon as well, and interviewee #5 admitted he liked to pirate e-books to avoid paying for them. When asked why they preferred buying new books, Interviewee #4 pointed out that borrowing a book was tedious, and Interviewee #5 (who prefers reading e-books) agreed. Interviewee #2 told me she did not like borrowing books from the library because it was unsanitary and the books felt greasy.
I then asked about their favourite genres and their all-time favourite books. However, I chose to focus on why they like the books they read, rather than on specific titles. Interviewee #1 liked young adult books, as well as horror and fantasy. He liked being able to explore supernatural realms and to read intense and exciting plotlines. Interviewee #2 said that she loved reading manga, especially in the shounen-ai (stories about relationships between pubescent or pre-pubescent boys) and yaoi (stories on relationships between men or boys) categories. She found that mainstream books nowadays have overused heteronormative plotlines with recycled characters, and she wanted to get away from the books that seemed all the same to her. Interviewee #3 liked classical fiction because, while other people overlooked these texts, he appreciated them. Other people may not value what he liked, and this seemed to isolate him from the surrounding community, but that also seemed to be the reason why he liked these books. His solitary interest was what made him stand out. He also mentioned that he liked reading comedy adventure books for their entertainment value. Interviewee #4 enjoyed fantasy because she found it more entertaining than any other genre, especially with complex world building. She liked to read about characters with supernatural skills and powers. Interviewee #5 enjoyed science fiction for its complex world-building as well. He explained that authors of science fiction could creatively demonstrate how technology could change our lives in a futuristic fictional setting.
When asked about where and when they read, there were a few mixed responses, but some overlapped. Interviewee #1 liked to read wherever and whenever he had peace and quiet. Such places were mostly at any of the University of Alberta’s libraries, but surprisingly his list did not mention reading at home. Interviewee #2 liked to read when she got up in the mornings, while she bussed to school or to work, and before she went to bed. Reading at home only happened when she found a book that really grabbed her interest. When it came to recreational reading, Interviewee #3 preferred to read outside on a swing from dusk until dark. When it came to studying, he preferred the study spaces at MacEwan. Interviewee #4 said that she liked to study at the university library, and that she liked to read her recreational books before bed because she found it hard to stay awake during the day after the amount of homework and studying she has to do. Interviewee #5 replied that his time and places when it came to reading depended on his interest and motivation. If he really wanted to, he could read anywhere and at any time if he was free.
I then asked my friends what format they preferred. There seemed to be a tie between e-books and print reading. Interviewees #1 and #3 preferred reading in print because they wanted to read on something that felt concrete. Interviewee #4 liked both print and e-book formats for studying or recreational reading, though she commented that print was the best as she could highlight or write on necessary pages. Interviewees #2 and #5 agreed that the e-book was best due to the advantage of convenience.
When it came to asking about how reading habits have changed since junior and senior high school, many agreed they read more in junior high as they had more free time and the encouragement to read more recreational materials at school. In senior high, they tended to read a little bit less, but in university, they read far less due to the fact that their academic workload and employment take up so much time. The only exception was Interviewee #1, who said he read more and bought more books while studying at university.
When it came to recommending books, Interviewee #1 took suggestions from other people and sought out books on his own. He said he loved to recommend books to other people and talked about what he liked. Interviewee #2 echoed Interviewee #1’s response, saying that she also loved to share the books she enjoyed and discuss why she loved them. Her influences were mostly from social media. Interviewee #3 considered himself to be an independent reader and did not like to suggest books to others as most people do not like what he reads, or they have already read it. Interviewee #4 liked to get suggestions on what to read from friends, claiming that she trusts the people around her to tell her what is good to read. However, she is hesitant to give suggestions, as what someone reads should be their own personal choice. Interviewee #5 also claimed to be an independent reader, although the series he has been reading recently was influenced by YouTube. He liked talking about the material he enjoyed as well, but only when someone asked him what he liked to read.
Each interview showed there were more similarities than differences when it came to reading habits. Many people preferred paying for a new copy of a book rather than borrowing one from the library. Most agreed that convenience and motivation affected when and where they read. A lot of people preferred to read in quiet places, such as the library, and many did not like to read at home. The majority of people interviewed pointed out that being in university meant that there was less time to read recreationally. The interviewees’ reading habits also showed the advantages of technology. They could use social media to find reading recommendations, for example. E-book users also had the convenience of carrying around all the books and other reading materials that they needed in a light tablet, as opposed to having a large collection of books at home. Even then, reading more still seemed to be a challenge given the demands of university education. I thought there would have been more differences than similarities when it comes to reading habits, but my friends seemed to agree on many matters despite their differing individual backgrounds and academic pursuits.
