To investigate why the central portion of the visual field is normally the optimal region for pattern recognition. The study uses a reading paradigm in which the text can only be seen with rod vision. Reading rates were measured as the text was positioned in different parts of the visual field. Observers obtained the highest reading rates when rod-generated images were viewed at or near the fovea. The superiority of the central field for reading is neither linked to some exclusive property of the cone visual system, nor is it primarily related to visual sensitivity or spatiotemporal resolution. The superiority of reading in the central field is associated with some aspect of the visual cortical processes.