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The analysis between the two countries shows similar trends, with a rather low number of readers. In both cases, reading habits reflect existing inequalities at the socio-economic level
Holding the latest book by prolific author Lena Manta in her hands, a young girl in flowing aquamarine dress strolls the cobbled streets of a typical Greek island. Alluding to a legendary scene from a 1960s Greek cinema classic, Mermaids and Rascals, the girl playfully wanders among the picturesque white stone houses, catching the eye of a young man who is reading a novel by Agatha Christie. “So many summers, so many books”, reads the punchline on the screen.
This is the plot of the latest TV commercial launched by Psichogios , one of the main Greek publishers, leader in the commercial fiction market. Despite being based on the popular cliché that Greeks tend to read more in the summer and, in particular, on the beach, the advertisement offers a rather precise visual representation of the findings of a 13-month research on reading habits in Greece, conducted by the Greek Collecting Society for Literary Works (OSDEL), a non-profit organization which mainly deals with the protection of the copyright of writers and publishers.
Greeks prefer fiction, but also enjoy other literary genres, such as history books and detective novels. Fiction and self-help books seem to be more popular among women, while male readers are apparently more interested in ancient philosophy, social and political sciences, travelling, and arts. Book format preferences also vary by genre and age: e-books are more popular among young men, while women - of all ages - tend to choose paper books with hard covers.
Data on the reading habits of Greeks is rather scarce. The results of the aforementioned survey, almost unique in its kind, had been released in 2022, twelve years after the publication of a similar survey conducted by the National Book Center of Greece (EKEBI).
Juxtaposing the two surveys, a positive trend emerges: in 2021, 65% of those interviewed said they had read at least one book in a year (including e-books and audiobooks), compared to 43% in 2010 and 38% in 2004.
Despite this remarkable increase, Greece is still lagging behind other EU member states. The most recent data published by Eurostat is disappointing. Regarding money spent per capita on literature in EU member states, Greece ranks second to last (only Cyprus fares worse). The majority of the OSDEL survey respondents have attributed this decline primarily to limited free time throughout the year. This might explain why Greeks read mainly on their summer holidays. Nevertheless, the OSDEL research team traces deeper reasons, connected with the existence (or absence) of reading habits that start in the family. Also socio-economic inequalities have a significant impact on access to books.
The cultural factor must also be taken into account. The data shows that some social groups rtend to devalue or even reject the practice of reading books on a regular basis. The OSDEL research concludes by noting that the reading habits in Greece are closely linked to the idea and values of democracy. The authorss suggest a realistic process aimed at democratising reading by taking into account the cultural values and ideological stances of those who read, but also of those who consciously choose not to.
In Croatia, a dynamic book market?
On the other hand, Croatians appear to be among the biggest European readers. According to Eurostat , Croatia is one of the EU member states with the highest share of households’ budget spent on books, newspapers, and stationery. In 2022 (as well as in 2021) Croatian families spent 1,8% of their budget on oaper products. In comparision, Germany and France recorded a percentage above 1% (1,4% and 1,1% respectively), while Italian families spent just 0,9% and Greek families 0,5%.
Does this mean that Croatians read more than most EU citizens? Let’s find out.
In March 2024 the company Karika koja nedostaje [The Missing Link] conducted a atudy on reading habits in Croatia on behalf of the Association of Croatian Publishers and Booksellers and the Croatian Chamber of Commerce. The study found that only 38% of Croatians read at least one book a year, a decrease compared to 2023 (40%) and 2022 (42%). In fact, a negative trend has been observed since 2020.
The percentage of readers is higher among highly educatrd people (61%), members of a household with a monthly income of more than 2200 Euros per month (49%), and women (45%). Croatians prefer to buy books (40%) or borrow them from the library (37%). Only 20% of respondents bought at least one book in the three months before the survey. Those who did not do so are not interested in books (61%, an increase of 18 percentage ppints compared to 2020), cannot afford them (16%), or prefer to borrow them from the library (10%).
“The Eurostat data surprises me”, says Ivan Sršen, a writer and publisher from Zagreb. “My perception is that Croatia does not stand out from other countries in terms of readership. The same trends are observed here as in the rest of the world. Statistics show that the number of readers is decreasing year after year and that young people are less and less interested in books. Perhaps Croatians read a lot of newspapers, which Eurostat includes in the same product category”, comments Sršen.
“On the other hand, it is true that the book market in Croatia is dynamic - continues Ivan - in a country with less than four million inhabitants, there are about a hundred active publishing houses and a network of around 400 libraries, present even in the smallest villages”.
In 2008 Sršen founded the Sandorf publishing house in Zagreb, which currently employs seven people and publishes 20-25 books a year, both fiction and non-fiction. Then in 2020 Sršen launched Sandorf Passage, a non profit organization based in the United States that publishes fiction along the same lines as the Zagreb publishing house.terature books in the Sandorf style. Sršen thus has a unique vantage point on the Croatian and U.S book markets.
“In Croatia foreign literature is widely read, especially that translated from English. This is a coommon dynamic in countries where less widespread languages are spoken. In Croatia approximately 50 percent of books sold are translations. In the United States this percentage is around 3-5%, in France 7-8%, and in Germany 10-11%”, explainds the publisher.
High book prices, low salaries
Another distinctive feature of the Croatian publishing market is its small size, which determines the high price of books. “The average print run is about 500 copies. Books that sell well have a print run of three or four thousand copies. Th e average price of a book is between 20 and 25 Euros, which is quite a lot considering that the average salary is about 900 Euros”, comments Ivan Sršen.
At the time of Yugoslavia, the situation was quite different. Back then, “the average print run was 5,000 copies and books cost two or three times less”.
High prices appear to be a deterrent for Greek readers as well. In a country where the minimum wage is 830 Euros (following an increase of 50 Euros applied starting from April 2024), the average price of a book is 15,25 Euros, according to data released in 2023 figures by the Quality Assurance Unit of Academic Libraries, an agency housed in the Library and Information Centre of the University of Ioannina.
Anna Kiouptsidou works in a bookshop in Thessaloniki. In her experience, given the high prices of books - 17 to 22 Euros for a new release - Greeks tend to prioritise their children’s needs.
“I can say with certainty that children’s books sell better than those for adults. Greeks are willing to spend money on their children. On all other occasions, Greek readers wait for sales, hoping to buy books at rock-bottom prices”, concludes the bookseller.
This article was produced within the framework of the Collaborative and Investigative Journalism Initiative (CIJI ), a project co-funded by the European Commission. Responsibility for the contents of this article lies with Osservatorio Balcani Caucaso Transeuropa and does not in any way reflect the opinion of the European Union. Go to the project page
