During an analysis of whether or not Americans have read the books behind recent movies such as The Hobbit, The Hunger Games, and Twilight, the Barna Group found some interesting stats on who reads the most popular book of all: the Bible.
In its latest study, The Books Americans Are Reading—And What that Reveals About Us, Barna notes:
One in five of all American adults have read the Bible from start to finish. While it might not be shocking to discover well over half (61%) of evangelical Christians have read the Bible from start to finish, it may be surprising that nearly one in six (18%) of people with a faith other than Christianity and about one in eleven (9%) people with no faith claimed to have done the same.
Approximately one-third of politically conservative adults say they have read the Bible, compared with one-tenth of political liberals. Nearly one-third (29%) of black adults say they’ve read the Bible from start to finish, more than Hispanic adults (22%) and white adults (19%). Boomers are the group with the highest likelihood to have read the Bible from start to finish, with nearly one-quarter (23%) reporting they had done so.
Barna also examined the demographics of readers of popular books that have become (or are becoming) movies and TV shows, and found the following percentages of readers that are practicing Christians (per Barna’s definition):
Life of Pi: 37%
Twilight: 22%
The Hunger Games: 21%
50 Shades of Grey: 19%
Game of Thrones: 18%
The Hobbit: 16%
CT offers other stories on Bible reading, as well as many reviews of books and movies, including the links above.
