ThriftBooks<\/a>, the survey found that readers actually opt to read a title they\u2019ve already read almost half the time (48%) when choosing their next book.<\/p>\nMore than seven in 10 (71%) also said they do nostalgic reading to purposely feel wistful, familiar and sentimental, which comes as no surprise since most readers (82%) labeled themselves as nostalgic people in general.<\/p>\n
But interestingly, Gen Z is the most likely out of all generations to do nostalgic reading (84%) and to confess to having nostalgic personalities (87%).<\/p>\n
Zita Chriszto, a licensed clinical psychologist, weighed in on the research and shined a light on why people gravitate toward the nostalgic, especially Gen Z, saying, “Reading nostalgically is an emotional coping strategy. It provides psychological safety by bringing readers back into a known emotional space with known characters, known outcomes and memories of earlier times in their lives.”<\/p>\n
\u201cNostalgia typically arises during times of stress, transition or instability and is more prevalent than ever. While Gen Z is young, they have been raised in a time characterized, at an astonishing pace, by change, digital clutter and global apprehension. Nostalgia for them is less about the past and more about regaining a sense of simplicity, safety and emotional connection in an increasingly fragmented world.”<\/p>\n
More than four in 10 respondents (45%) said they struggle to keep up with how quickly the world is evolving, with Gen Z being more likely than older generations to feel this way (52%).<\/p>\n
So to feel more secure in life, people said they turn to their favorite books (58%) and TV shows and movies (59%) to feel a bit more stable and familiar. Forty-five percent also like to cook to maintain a sense of peace and 39% exercise.<\/p>\n
And 80% of respondents make it a habit to read at the end of a bad day to feel better and end the day on a good note.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s nothing better than ending the day curled up with a good book, especially if it\u2019s been a hard day,\u201d said Barbara Hagen, vice president of marketing at ThriftBooks. \u201cIn this study, we found that readers are gravitating toward old favorite titles, and we wanted to see what those were, as well as the books that instilled their original love for reading.\u201d<\/p>\n
Looking at readers\u2019 all-time favorite books, there were differences between generations, as well as a few titles that were common among age groups.<\/p>\n
The Harry Potter series was favorited by Gen Z, millennials and Gen X, and \u201cTo Kill a Mockingbird\u201d was popular with millennials, Gen X and baby boomers. \u201cGone with the Wind\u201d was also cited as a top book by Gen X and baby boomer readers.<\/p>\n
Uncovering which titles sparked a love of literature in the first place, the survey also found similarities between age groups.<\/p>\n
The Harry Potter series was once again mentioned by Gen Z, millennials and Gen X as their first book love. Millennials and Gen X also said \u201cCharlotte\u2019s Web\u201d was one of their first favorites, and the Nancy Drew series was a common answer from Gen X and baby boomer respondents.<\/p>\n
But regardless of which books are currently their favorites or which titles began a love affair with reading, readers are still more in love with printed books (84%) than digital (28%) or audiobooks (20%).<\/p>\n
Reasons for this include enjoying the feeling of holding a book (62%) as well as the smell of books (36%).<\/p>\n
Readers also said they like reading printed books best because it feels cozy and familiar (58%) and induces a pleasant sense of nostalgia (36%).<\/p>\n
POPULAR FAVORITE BOOKS BY GENERATION<\/p>\n
Gen Z:
\u201cDiary of a Wimpy Kid\u201d
The Harry Potter series
The Hunger Games series<\/p>\n
Millennials:
The Harry Potter series
\u201cPride and Prejudice\u201d
\u201cTo Kill a Mockingbird\u201d<\/p>\n
Gen X:
\u201cTo Kill a Mockingbird\u201d
The Harry Potter series
\u201cGone With the Wind\u201d<\/p>\n
Baby boomers:
\u201cGone With the Wind\u201d
\u201cThe Stand\u201d
\u201cTo Kill a Mockingbird\u201d<\/p>\n
Survey methodology: Talker Research surveyed 2,000 American readers evenly split by generation (500 Gen Z, 500 millennials, 500 Gen X and 500 baby boomers); the survey was commissioned by ThriftBooks and administered and conducted online by Talker Research between July 29 and Aug 4, 2025.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The average reader has read their favorite book six times \u2014 and anticipates they\u2019ll read it another seven…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":119974,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[353,49,48,75],"class_list":["post-119973","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-books","tag-books","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-entertainment"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119973","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=119973"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119973\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/119974"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=119973"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=119973"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=119973"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}