In January, a man prophesied the future of the American literary landscape. Steve Jobs, Apple’s chief executive and cofounder, declared that most Americans don’t read. As college students with packed bookshelves, we should have been appalled.
In his statement, Jobs was referencing a controversial and possibly erroneous 2004 study from the National Endowment for the Arts, which concluded that 40 percent of Americans read one book or fewer per year.
And just a few weeks later, an L.A. book monument quietly declared its demise. Dutton’s Brentwood Books, a national book lover’s icon, announced that it will see its last day April 30.
For me, this meant one last ceremonious trip to the landmark to simply graze the spines of novels and take advantage of the inventory sale.
I reminisced about the time I met Jonathan Safran Foer, author of the novel-turned-movie “Everything is Illuminated.” I got a coffee from the cafe. I took deep breaths of the heavy, dust-filled air.
Other than the person I dragged along with me, however, I haven’t heard a single word of protest or even slight disappointment from my peers. I suppose we could attribute this to the Westwood bubble.
Dutton’s is, after all, a whole five-minute trip to Brentwood. Maybe we could even blame it on our lack of funds. Then again, every quarter we pour hundreds of dollars into textbooks and school supplies, so what’s 10 more dollars for our personal intellectual fulfillment?
But, oh no, the problem is much more deep-seated than this. The problem is born out of the struggling industry of bookmaking itself.
In February, I found myself at a book conference called MEGA Book Marketing University. The conference, hosted by one of the cofounders of the “Chicken Soup for the Soul” series of sappy, uplifting stories, is a kind of pyramid-scheme-meets-bad-literature convention.
I spent most of my day avoiding the numerous weirdos who had convinced themselves they would be on at least one of America’s 135 best-seller lists. Take Linda, who wrote a book on how to be happy. She must be an expert; she printed business cards that gave her the title of “Happiness Coach.”
About halfway through the day, Bill Phillips, the author of the New York Times best-selling workout book “Body for Life” took the stage wearing tight, white jeans. He was much better looking on his book cover.
Then the man opened his mouth. “We don’t want to be in the business of providing people with more information. People don’t want more information,” he said.
Wait. What is a book’s purpose if not to enlighten us to new ways of thinking? Then again, Phillips did write a book printed in 14-point font that explains the importance of forming a firm chest region.
Of course, Bill also pumped up all the wannabe authors by shouting that writing is the “thought-forming of society,” quite a lofty term for someone who doesn’t think authors should provide readers with information.
Where, then, does Bill’s paradox leave the educated reader? We are, as a whole, an unmotivated bunch.
We need professors to threaten us with percentage points to pick up anything written by James Joyce. Newspapers, publishing houses and magazines are all facing decreasing sales figures. The only books that sell well these days seem to be those listed by Oprah’s Book Club.
But it’s a self-propelling cycle. We read bad writing because there are such huge amounts of it. Then the publishing industry adds to the garbage heap simply because it thinks that’s what we like to read. And with the current move to self-publishing and e-books, the quality of published writing is quickly declining.
Publishers should now focus on how to revive the print medium. The shape and feel of a book have cultural significance that no blog or Web site could ever replace.
And it is up to us college students, a new generation of prolific readers, to take back what has been kicked repeatedly to the curb. Even if you’re a biologist or an engineer, there is a book for you that contains words that will change your life.
The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is just around the corner. It’s two sunny days of free samples, author congratulations and writing workshops. If you aren’t too busy being ambivalent, do take the five-minute walk onto our own campus to check it out.
But if you’ve even made it this far, you’re in a better place than most Americans, at least according to Steve Jobs. And he brought us the cultural explosion that is the iPhone.
He should know.
If you need help reading this column, e-mail Jones at cjones@media.ucla.edu. Send general comments to viewpoint@media.ucla.edu.