Reading Portraits In Brazil

279 Pages·2016·7.465 MB·English

by  Zoara Failla

Reading

PoR tRaits iN
- 4
Brazil th
edition

Zoara Faillaorganizing
Reading

PoRtRaits iN
Brazil - 4th
edition
Zoara Failla organizing
Reading

PoR tRaits iN
- 4
Brazil th
edition

Zoara Faillaorganizing
Copyright © 2016 by Instituto Pró-Livro
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any existing
means without written permission of the editors.
arrange of original texts: Liane Mufarrej
proofreading: Hermínia Totti, Juliana Souza and Ana Grillo
cover, graphic project and text formatting: Miriam Lerner | Equatorium
cover image Design: ©blackred/istock.com
tables and inside graphics: IBOPE Inteligência and Retratos da Leitura research
graphic design adapted to english: Solo Studio Design
printing and finishing: Lis Gráfica e Editora Ltda.
CIP-BRASIL. CATALOGAÇÃO NA PUBLICAÇÃO
SINDICATO NACIONAL DOS EDITORES DE LIVROS, RJ
____________________________________________________
R345
Retratos da leitura no Brasil 4/ organized by Zoara Failla. Rio de Janeiro:
Sextante, 2016.
296 p. : il.; 16 x 23 cm.
Includes graphs, tables
ISBN 978-85-431-0414-0
1. Books and literature - Brazil. 2. Interests in literature - Brazil. 3. Reading -
Brazil - Statistics. I. Failla, Zoara.
16-35066 CDD: 028.90981
CDU: 028(81)
____________________________________________________
All rights reserved, in Brazil,
by GMT Editores Ltda.
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Transforming the reading portrait in Brazil
– a challenge for Brazilian society
“Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready
man; and writing an exact man.” – Francis Bacon

O
n the path which brought us where we are today, it is with great
satisfaction that the Instituto Pró-Livro (Pro-Book Institute)
presents the 4th edition of the Retratos da Leitura no Brasil (Reading
Portraits in Brazil) research. The data collected by IBOPE (the Brazilian
Institute of Public Opinion and Statistics) in 2015 invite us to reflect
on the progress and challenges facing our country in order to create an
effectively reading society.
Aside from the unquestionable thruster that is knowledge, the
book needs to be deemed as an important source of personal growth and
entertainment. These factors also help create leeway for a humanized
and critical formation which, along with the quality of education, may
lead to progress under a collective perspective.
It is necessary to focus efforts on increasing the number of
readers from an essential tripod formed by the family, the state and
civil society. In the first case, by the way, in response to a new question
added to this year’s survey, the mother figure emerges as the main
influencer in the taste for reading.
The state has to be responsible for the long-term investments
in education, the commitment to the training of teachers and reading
mediators, the efforts to implement the Plano Nacional do Livro e Leitura
- PNLL (National Book and Reading Plan) and the strengthening
of the public library system. The last of which is known by 55% of
respondents, but highly unattended (only 20% of respondents).
In the civil society, companies, NGOs and schools have been
developing projects, events and awards in order to encourage reading
and aiming to provide book access for people of different ages and
literacy levels. All of these aspects help make the use of available
production of Brazilian publishers more practical and inviting.
A union of forces causes the spread and strengthening of reading
to be a general commitment. To turn Brazil into a reading country
player is the central mission of the Instituto Pró-Livro. Although we
highlight a positive result, the contents disclosed in this fourth edition
of the survey are still far from satisfactory for a nation which is among
the top-ten world economic powers and, at the same time, presents
social, educational and cultural inequalities that demand challenges
proportional to its continental dimensions.
It is no coincidence the sensitive direction we choose emphasize
in this presentation, which goes beyond the permanent battle for
effective public policies for the book publishing industry and the
demand and assessing of improvements in education rates.
The pillar of social responsibility is of great importance to our
work and materializes in actions promoted on events, communities
and fairs – such as the recent project named Céu de Histórias (Sky of
Stories), which integrates literature and games, creating kites that tell
stories - and researches that seek to understand and examine the reader
behavior and provide basis for improving indicators of the reading
quality for Brazilians.
Some of them can already be pointed out here: the increase in the
average schooling of the population, the reduction of a high concentration
of readers from ages 5 to 24 and the influence of reading on the individual’s
well-being. The survey indicates that 73% of the population enjoys
reading. Among the answers about the meaning of reading, we highlight
that 22% of respondents said: “It teaches me to live better.”
When talking about literary works that have marked his life,
it is difficult, after all, for a regular reader not to reminisce emotional
memories, sometimes from childhood. Furthermore, it is equally
difficult to be optimistic when you know that many potential readers
will not have those memories, and that others will belatedly still try to
be deemed as actual readers.
At the same time, it highlights the need to act in the production
of future literary memories of thousands of Brazilians, represented by the
44% of non-readers that this study reveals. These memories will become
habitual, reflecting the intimacy with words. And finally, they will
materialize into knowledge and into an example which can be perpetuated.
In other words, reading – for study and leisure purposes – is able
to generate well-being, which results in more active and productive
individuals. A portion of the study below that presents the preferences
of respondents during their free time attests to the inference above:
according to the results, who has the habit of reading writes more,
visits more parks and squares, practices more sports and gathers more
with family and friends than those who do not read. There is nothing
romantic, therefore, to say that those who read are happier.
In addition to featuring in this edition of Reading Portraits, such
ascertainment was widely studied in the research named The Happiness
of Reading, from the University of Rome, produced in 2015. After further
investigating the sensitive and cognitive advantages of those who read,
the conclusion reached was that readers are happier than non-readers.
In a country like Brazil, however, it is an infinitely greater complexity to
talk about happiness when there is such a lack of basic rights.
Spreading the habit of reading among the Brazilian population
can and should be viewed under a much broader spectrum and
the consequences of this maintenance will be noticeably more
transformative, as regards to citizenship, experience and cultural
background obtained. In the immortal words of José Mindlin: “Literacy
is not enough, we need to teach reading.”
Reading is transformative.

Marcos da Veiga Pereira
President at Instituto Pró-Livro
Advances in reading: the path for
the formation of active citizens

T
he common purpose to insert culture, science and education
into the basis of a fairer and more prosperous society unites
Abrelivros (Brazilian Association of School Books), CBL (Brazilian
Book Chamber) and SNEL (National Union of Book Editors) around
the support for the Reading Portraits research in Brazil.
In this context, the 4th edition of the study promoted by the
Instituto Pró-Livro contributes highly – as did the previous three – to
diagnose who and where are the readers of our country and understand
their expectations and demands.
We celebrated the result of this year’s survey, which indicates
the percentage of growth of the reading population in Brazil to 56%,
against the 50% indicated in the previous study.
Undoubtedly, the gains related to Brazilian education in recent
decades have an important role in this expansion. Despite the recurrent
quality problems, results such as the inclusion of children and young
people in school, increase of years of schooling among the population
and the reduction in the illiteracy rate have strong correlation with the
enlargement of the readers’ universe in the country. Although necessary,
this improvement in educational indicators is not yet sufficient for the
diffusion of reading in Brazil.
Beyond formal education, specific and intentional policies and
actions developed and implemented by the public, private and non-
governmental sectors, are and will continue to be necessary, both for
the dissemination of the reading habit and to the inclusion of the
other 44% of the population in the universe of readers. So it is equally
important the fact that this study identifies, among non-readers, the
reasons that the distance them from familiarizing with reading and,
therefore, from a full exercise of citizenship.
The literary entities represented here undertake to continue
working in this sense. We defend the joint efforts of all sectors to
collaborate in building a nation of readers, socially and productively
active citizens, adapted to the knowledge society and able to lead the
country into socio-economic prosperity.
This work presents the results of the 4th edition of the Retratos
da Leitura research in Brazil, combined with a set of articles written by
experts who know the publishing market, the national reality and the
challenges ahead. Gathering data and analysis, the content provides
elements for the design of strategies and policies in order to overcome
the obstacles towards the formation of a reading country with wide
access to knowledge.
Antonio Luiz Rios,
president at Abrelivros
Luís Antonio Torelli,
president at CBL
Marcos da Veiga Pereira,
president at SNEL
SUMMARY
PART I
Introduction – Portraits: Studies on the Brazilian reader behavior – ZOARA FAILLA
(content organizer)............................................................................................17
Chapter 1 – Dazzle and understanding – CRISTOVAM BUARQUE............................................41
Chapter 2 – A love story - From reader to author – WALCYR ARRASCO................................44

Chapter 3 – Retratos da Leitura no Brasil (Reading Portraits in Brazil) and the public policies
– To increase reading while swimming against the flow – revelations, challenges and
some results – JOSÉ CASTILHO MARQUES NETO......................................................55
Chapter 4 – The library, a necessary noise from inside out – VOLNEI CANÔNICA. ..............72

Chapter 5 – A lie that looks like the truth: young people don’t read and don’t enjoy reading
– JOÃO LUÍS CECCANTINI. ..................................................................................................81

Chapter 6 – What do digital books represent in relation to an increase in Reading?
What does Reading Portraits have to say about who reads through such devices?
– CARLO CARRENHO ..........................................................................................................96

Chapter 7 – Numbers and letters in the book world – MARISA LAJOLO ...........................110

Chapter 8 – Reading and book Market in Brazil: the results of two different surveys
– LEDA MARIA PAULANI .................................................................................................125

Chapter 9 – Reader behavior and access to books in Brazil compared with other Latin
American countries – BERNARDO JARAMILLO H. E LENIN MONAK SALINAS ...........139