A study by the Federación de Gremios de Editores de España reveals that 66% of the Spanish population reads for pleasure in 2025, the highest level ever recorded. The percentage of those aged 15-24 reading for pleasure rose to just over 76%, while 75.3% of those aged 14-24 read books in their free time—shattering the myth that young people don't read.

Spanish readers face the same digital pressures as elsewhere: social media, video and audio content, and generative AI. Academic contacts in Madrid confirm some deterioration in university-level skills similar to those observed in the United States. Nevertheless, Spain has not only avoided the reading decline seen in the United States but modestly increased readership across generations.

This contrast raises urgent questions. How have phones seemingly killed Anglo reading habits but not Spanish ones? Is cultural pessimism a factor? As Jeffrey Lawrence notes, the data suggests democracy remains safe in Spain—at least for now.