Watching the decline of literacy at the youngest ages feels like watching an iceberg slowly approach the Titanic. What’s happening to middle-grades is also coming for YA and adult books as this demographic ages. The publishing industry itself could collapse.
Been feeling bleak for the past week after I read an essay saying the market for middle-grade books has collapsed because kids can no longer read them. Two long-time publishers of middle-grades have shuttered, with more to come. We don’t appreciate what a crisis this is.