Reading isn't the source of entertainment and information it used to be. It seems like people have gradually been reading less books every year. Adults only read an average of six books a year, and the main reason teens read more is because they're forced to in school. I firmly believe the internet has played a large part in the decline of reading. It's hard to make time to read when there are so many other fun things to do online, as well as places to look up needed information for school projects. Studies have shown that the internet makes people more "scatterbrained." They lose attention span to the point where they can't get past page ten in a book without losing interest.

Another factor in the demise of reading is the price of books. Not everyone has a library near them, and I know from experience book prices just keep rising higher and higher. I recently paid $20 for a paperback, and I'm sure there are pricier books than that. Teen books seem to be slightly cheaper, but not much. A teenager without a job would probably find it difficult to pay for books.

However, the greatest reason for the death of reading is, put simply, the death of literature. Even in school, teens are forced to read mass market paperback romance novels, with their uninteresting and pointless writing and predictable plots. The craft of writing quality fiction is dying slowly but surely. There were a few good novels out last year—Let the Great World Spin, Olive Kitteridge, Pride and Prejudice Zombies—but let's face it, most of the books out now are as worthy of notice as reality television.

Are there solutions for the demise of reading? Sure. Read entire articles on the internet to train yourself to do more than scan, buy books and resell them, borrow books, and read quality writing. If you read good writing, you'll write better, which brings us to the greatest solution to save reading: write. If teens write well today, tomorrow's books will be well written, too, and literature will come back to life.