Physical books poll spikes

A March 4 post asking whether anyone still prefers physical books over e-books drew thousands of likes and hundreds of replies, turning a simple question into a live snapshot of print loyalty online. (substack.com) The post came from Ravi Shah, who uses the handle @readswithravi, and the archived note shows 2,825 likes, 352 replies and 101 restacks on Substack’s embedded version of the thread. Search results tied to the post match the wording about favoring physical books in 2026. (substack.com) Replies under the post leaned heavily toward print, with readers citing note-taking, “heft,” home libraries and less screen time as reasons they still buy paper books. Shah replied that he also prefers physical books and is building a home library. (substack.com) The exchange landed as new survey data showed print still leads digital formats in the United States. Pew Research Center said on April 9 that 64% of U.S. adults had read a print book in the previous 12 months, compared with 31% who read an e-book and 26% who listened to an audiobook. (pewresearch.org) Pew’s October 2025 survey also found that 75% of U.S. adults read at least part of a book in the past year, which puts the online replies in line with a broader market where print remains the only format used by a majority of adults. E-books and audiobooks have grown over the past decade, but neither has displaced print. (pewresearch.org) That preference is still showing up in sales. Circana BookScan data reported by Publishers Weekly said U.S. print unit sales rose 0.3% in 2025 to 762.4 million copies, the second straight annual increase, with BookScan covering about 85% of trade print sales. (publishersweekly.com) (circana.com) Independent bookstores are also using that demand as a public event. Publishers Weekly reported on April 15 that about 2,000 American Booksellers Association stores are expected to take part in Independent Bookstore Day on April 25, up from 1,600 stores in 2025. (publishersweekly.com) The post did not settle the print-versus-digital argument, and some replies described hybrid habits such as reading on Kindle first and buying a physical copy later. But the numbers around the thread and the market both point the same way: in 2026, readers are still arguing for paper with plenty of company. (substack.com) (pewresearch.org)