Are Women's Reading Habits Changing?

Saturday's Wall Street Journal had an article that interested me for two reasons: (1) It discussed one of my favorite authors, Lee Child; and (2) It made assertions about the reading habits of women.

I've written about Lee Child before; most notably when his previous novel, One Shot, came out in October (see blog dated October 15, 2005). At that time, I said, "Child's hero, Jack Reacher, is a modern day Shane, the loner who rides into a troubled situation, utilizes his special skills to bring about resolution and leaves. Jack Reacher has replaced the spot in my heart once held by Robert Parker's Spenser."

Well, apparently I'm not the only woman who feels that way about Reacher. In the WSJ article, Jeffrey Trachtenberg says, "[D]espite his brutish ways, Reacher is doing something surprising: winning the hearts of many women readers. Of the 20,000 fans world-wide that have joined the Reacher Creatures fan club, an estimated 65% are female."

Then, the article loses me. Trachtenberg writes that booksellers "say the 9/11 terrorist attacks, coupled with the war in Iraq, have changed what women are willing to read."

I don't know about other women, but I've been reading Lee Child since his first book (The Killing Floor) came out in 1998. Before that, I read the Spenser novels and Andrew Vachss who, if anything, is more violent than Child. I also read female thriller writers--when I could find them. Carol O'Connell leaps to mind.

I do agree with Trachtenberg that women are more accepting today of violence in their books, television and movies. However, far from associating it with the aftermath of terrorism, I believe it is part of a much larger trend in women's fiction. I would describe that trend as women's fiction broadening to include all of the options available to women today.

Thirty years ago, fiction for women was pretty much limited to bodice-ripper romances and the "true" magazine. Today, women's fiction includes such diverse genres as erotic romance, inspirationals, paranormals, fantasies, mysteries and thrillers.

Today's woman has many more choices in her life: professionally and personally. Why should we be surprised if she demands the same range of choice in her reading material?

That same dynamic that has women buying more violent thrillers also has women buying erotic romances. Both describe action in specific, graphic terms rather than using euphemisms to gloss over plot events.

On the opposite end of the literary scale, we also find more women buying inspirational novels--those with less graphic language and violence. I find it interesting that these two polar opposites in genre fiction are gaining in popularity at the same time. I can't help but compare this dynamic to the recent press about the chasm between the red states and the blue states--between conservatives and liberals. Perhaps it's no accident that fiction trends are mirroring social trends.

At any rate, the WSJ article does make one stop to think.