Men More Likely Than Women To Buy Books For Their Kids

A recent survey of 2,000 parents with school-age kids found 71% that parents think their child is more creative than they were at their age — and books may be the driving force.

Half of the parents said they purchase books for their child once or a few times a month.

And when it comes to books, it seems father knows best. Men are more likely than women to buy their kids' books once or a few times a month (54% vs. 44%).

The average child has about 26 books, 21 of which are their own choosing. Only 6% of the average kid’s book collection is made up of required reading for school.

Sixty-two percent of kids have their own bookshelf, and nearly half of it (48%) is full.

The survey also found parents were most likely to enjoy sharing their favourite books with their kids (58%), more so than TV shows (50%), toys (47%) and places or experiences (44%).

The average parent and child each devote about five hours a week to reading.

As for favourite genres, about a third (32%) of parents said their kids enjoy adventure books. Other popular picks included fantasy (27%), fiction (27%) and mystery (27%).