Survey: eBook Readership Rises Sharply

Readership of traditional printed books slightly down

The number of Americans reading electronic books rose sharply over the last year while the population of printed book readers slightly declined, according to a survey.

The trend highlights the massive popularity of e-readers and tablets that have flooded homes and schools in the past year. About 33 percent of Americans 16 and older now own an e-reading device such as a Kindle or iPad, up from 18 percent last year, according to Pew Research.