By Lars Johnson

Some high school students have read whole Shakespearian sagas, while others are still struggling through the pages of Clifford the Big Red Dog. Here at Loy Norrix the type of literature students read has a very large spectrum. Some of the students have more advanced views on books than others.

One student appeared to have open disdain for reading, and did not seem to have very much respect for books.

“My favorite books are the ones I don’t have to read,” said freshman Marshall Mead.

Unfortunately, there are many teenagers that share similar beliefs to this. According to the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the average 15 to 24 year old spends about two hours watching television and only about seven minutes of leisure time reading per day.

Mead bluntly responded no to the question of whether or not he even liked to read. A constant decline in high school students’ interest in reading has become very evident recently. The NEA released a study that less than one-third of thirteen year olds are daily readers, a figure that dropped 14% from a study taken twenty years ago.

Some teenagers however do take interest in reading. Sierra Ritsema said that she read fiction, non-fiction, science fiction and anime.

“I read them because I like different styles of writing,” said Ritsema.

It should be kept in mind that by increasing your literary knowledge you will most likely get a better grade on standardized tests such as the SAT (according to www.sat-coach.com).

The novels assigned for school projects have a wide range, which span from classics such as Romeo and Juliet to slightly more unfamiliar books such as The Adventures of Ibn Battuta.  Many students enjoy reading and can handle these somewhat heavy works of literature. Others dislike having to read for school.

“It takes up too much time,” said Mead.

From this small sample of students who were interviewed, it can be seen that there is great diversity in the reading habits of students at Loy Norrix.