Books, will never die
Every where on social media an out cry to save the book. Since, policies have in acted to ban books for “inappropriate reasons”, the collective have admittedly expressed disappointment in the policies. Policies impacting creative expression to suppress minority voices. Every expression over the years have modeled and inspired the next generation, and the generation after that. Books have and still are where we all get our information from including AI. Especially, AI,online books and articles are training alongside human hands. This makes information accessible; enlightening,guiding the new generation of the world. This would be perfect if authorities wouldn’t try to control and silence because the highest bidder told them to do so. The manipulation and misinformation being spread out into mainstream has turned people trust into skepticism of the source. A physical book is where people will revert to for a quality source of information. While AI is working out its moral, ethical and factual issues the book will still remain supreme. A article published by Midland Paper ( Midland paper) January 13,2025 “Though unit sales of print books rose by less than 1% in 2024 over 2023, it was the first annual increase in three years at outlets that report to Circana BookScan. Unit sales totaled 782.7 million in the year ended Dec. 28, 2024, compared to 778.3 million in 2023.” For libraries there’s been a significant acceleration in usage, pre-pandemic levels. Due to open access to equipment,internet and digitization of books has opened the door for more reading. According to the American Library Association.
People’s insatiable appetite for facts and information leading to answers aka the truth will drive usage in an upward trend over the next couple of years.
Music, especially Hip-Hop now will propel more youth to read books. Lyrical rhymes- figurative language metaphors, onomatopoeia, hyperbole, alliteration, personification, imagery, rhyme along with several others wouldn’t have happened without a good book. From Nas to Jay-z to Kendrick to J.Cole alongside so many others speak about reading a book, including a book in their music videos. lyricist, are historians writing about the cultural’s history and present circumstances. Jay-Z had his work honored at the Brooklyn Public Library with an exhibition- The Book of Hov at their central location. Each hip-hop artist is a writer and writers read. The ones who don’t the collective audience are more aware than they use to be. Banning books, restricting books only push people into good trouble, trouble that protest injustice laws to silence or limit the creative, information, and facts from the world.
What one does in darkness will always come to the light. The current darkness is the silencing and manipulation of information through technological means. The light are people seeing the truth of the matter.
The book is and always will be king; it doesn’t matter how many times silencers emerge and attack information it will keep the world wanting more, going after the ‘why is this bad and I want to see it for myself’, behavior; AI, won’t push out the book neither. The gravitational pull of the truth with detailed accounts and in depth storytelling is why the book will continue to remain supreme because information being presented forces skepticism.
