People often complain about the cost of paperback books in Australia, and it is true that we do seem to pay more for our reading material than other countries. Since becoming an author I have learned that there are several reasons for this, but that isn't really the point of this post. What I want to talk about is how we value the entertainment gained from books as opposed to movies. For the purposes of this article I am only talking about the cost of paperbacks and going to see a movie at a cinema or purchasing a physical DVD as opposed to any digital downloads of ebooks or movies.
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I am going to generalise quite widely here when I say the average person might take eight hours to read a book (obviously this will vary widely person to person but I think it's a fair average). If you pay between $15 - $30 for the paperback book (again just an average), that equates to around $1.50 - $3.75 per hour. A movie ticket ranges between $10 - $19 for about 1.75 hours which makes between $5.75 - $10.75 per hour (and many less hours than a book). A new release DVD averages around $25 for about 2.5 hours (including extras) so that is $10 per hour. You could also factor in the extra costs associated with seeing a movie at the cinema - petrol/fare to and from, snacks etc.
So, my point is that a book (even at the higher end of the price scale) is much better value for money than seeing a movie. Not to mention that a book can be picked up and put down, favourite passages re-read and can be taken to any number of places - a book is the ultimate in portable entertainment. A book can be shared, loaned and re-read any number of times over it's lifetime for a one-off purchase price. And, let's face it, with the increasing lack of quality movies, we need the humble book as it remains one of the cheapest and most satisfying forms of entertainment around. Please consider this the next time you pass up buying a new paperback because it seems too expensive.
So, my point is that a book (even at the higher end of the price scale) is much better value for money than seeing a movie. Not to mention that a book can be picked up and put down, favourite passages re-read and can be taken to any number of places - a book is the ultimate in portable entertainment. A book can be shared, loaned and re-read any number of times over it's lifetime for a one-off purchase price. And, let's face it, with the increasing lack of quality movies, we need the humble book as it remains one of the cheapest and most satisfying forms of entertainment around. Please consider this the next time you pass up buying a new paperback because it seems too expensive.
