More than one in three consumers in London and south-east England admit having bought a book “solely to look intelligent”, a recent survey has found.
I wonder if it works? If only these surveys came with before and after photos, so we could judge the effects for ourselves.
The study also reported that one in every eight young people chose a book “simply to be seen with the latest shortlisted title”.
So getting on an award shortlist really is a great sales boost – but perhaps not always for developing an ongoing readership. Most of the respondents admitted they’d never finished reading the books.
Happily, the Guardian reports:

The biggest group, more than two in every five people, follows the traditional method of choosing their reading; relying on recommendations from close family and friends.

…or blogs.