It can be, depending on the particular thread. I'll speak for myself, but I find it incredibly difficult to read technical/business/pop-nonfic/etc. books in my free time. After a long day programming the last thing I want to do is read the literary equivalent of a TED talk. My bookshelf is a place where the "red dragon" Compilers book can peacefully coexist with Cannery Row--it's just that, more often that not, I reach for the fiction.