I watched a bit of the Academy Awards show-enough to 1) decide that host Jon Stewart is very funny because otherwise his movie-star good looks would make him just another pretty Hollywood face and 2) be surprised by Larry McMurtry's brief homage to booksellers and book culture upon accepting his award for best adapted screenplay (along with co-writer Diana Ossana) for Brokeback Mountain, based on the book of that name by Annie Proulx.

McMurtry, author of Lonesome Dove and other western novels, reminded the star-studded audience not to forget about books, and his words did not get a big applause. Perhaps, like me, people were caught off-guard-surprised to hear something besides "Wow! This is great! I'd like to thank my producer…"-and so had no apparent reaction. Or, I think more likely, the audience had completely forgotten about books, because they don't really care about books.

Reading is a dying pastime. Reading has been defined by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) as "three pages of anything read by a person without a gun pointed at their head."

A report by the NEA tells that fewer than half of American adults read literature. The report documents an overall decline, between 1982 and 2002, of 10 percent in readers of fiction, or a loss of 20 million potential readers. The rate of decline is increasing, nearly tripling in the last decade. Although there was a drop in readership in all groups studied, the steepest rate of decline-28 percent-was among the youngest adults, those aged 18 to 24. This decline was 55 percent greater than that in the total adult population. 

When announcing this report at the New York Public Library on July 8, 2004, NEA chairman Dana Gioia said, "This report documents a national crisis. The decline in reading among every segment of the adult population reflects a general collapse in advanced literacy. To lose this human capacity-and all the diverse benefits it fosters-impoverishes both cultural and civic life."

The report was a recap and analysis of a survey that asked more than 17,000 adults if, during the previous 12 months, they had read any literary works that were not required for work or school. The report shows that women read more literature than men, but literary reading by both genders is declining, with slightly more than one-third of adult males now reading literature. 

Education and income level affect the reading rate; those with the least amount of education and lowest income level read the least. The study also indicates that reading correlates with other life activities. Readers of literature are much more likely to be involved in cultural, sports and volunteer activities than are nonreaders.

The report also related a correlation between reading and television.

Surveyed readers watched an average of 2.7 hours of television each day, while surveyed respondents who do not read watched an average of 3.1 hours daily. The report tells that adults who do not watch TV in a typical day are 48 percent more likely to be frequent readers-consuming from 12 to 49 books each year-than are those who watch one to three hours daily.

The decline in the numbers of readers is very bad news for publishers, yet ever greater numbers of books are being published since the report came out. Between 1993 and 2003, the number of published books per year increased 58 percent. And this trend has continued to the present day. 

Why not become more selective with regard to publishing, especially if readers are switching over in greater numbers and hours to electronic media for entertainment?

Accompanying this decline in readership has been an increase in the numbers of people listening to audiobooks, whether in cassette, compact disc, or downloadable formats. A report by the Audio Publishers Association (APA) shows a steady growth of 12 percent a year over the past few years. According to Mary Beth Roche, president of APA, among today's audiobook listeners, 50 percent are listening for the first time.

I decided to be among the 50 percent of virgin audiobook listeners and tried to settle down with My Life, Bill Clinton, read by the author. This best-selling audiobook consists of six CDs that total to approximately 6½ hours of Clinton's journey from Hope, Arkansas, to the White House.

Somewhere in the 6½ hours are Clinton's words on "the cost, both public and private, of the scandal that threatened the presidency," a flirty come-on bit I could read on the attractive packaging of the CD set.

I would have liked to have heard him talk about that (I did not listen to the entire 6½ hours), but I think I could more easily find that section using the index at the back of the published book.

I've never been much of a public policy/political wonk myself, preferring to spend my life thinking about art-the striving for perfection in expression of an idea or feeling, rather than the compromising and schmoozing of Beltway politics.

Um, that is a lie. The way I spend most of my time is the middle-age equivalent of "oh no, a zit, and right before the prom!"-and to prove it, I'll confess to my favorite book review, which was written (I'm nearly certain) by a reviewer (I'm sorry I can't provide a name) for the San Francisco Chronicle book section. This reviewer called the Kenneth Starr Report "pornography," for the way it goes on and on-in the most boring way-then is interrupted by something exciting about a cigar or stained blue dress, then back to long stretches of the blah, blah blah.

I know. This isn't fair. But remember that all readers are different, and the best-selling books appeal to a broad spectrum. So some of us will read-or listen to-Clinton's My Life for one reason, and others for another reason. I'm for whatever gets people reading, including the experiencing of a fine memoir through audio. 

Newcomers to audiobooks should start with a known voice. This factor enhances the experience, and it is good to get hooked on books. I highly recommend listening to Bill Clinton. You know his voice. As you listen, you can imagine he's talking just to you. His is a plain-spoken and quickly delivered account of an amazing life-amazing in part because he reminds you of his humble beginnings. Aside from enjoying the content of the memoir and hearing Clinton's voice, I also found I could iron clothes while listening. Most importantly, listening to him made me miss him, dearly.

You can find the audiobook My Life, Bill Clinton in the Biblioteca Pública's audiobook section. The library also has two printed copies of Clinton's best-selling memoir, one of which is in large print. (The Biblioteca also has a copy of the Kenneth Starr report.)