From character edits to book reviews, romance novels to murder mysteries, fan theories to reading challenges, BookTok has resurged the interest in literature.
BookTok, a combination of short TikTok videos and books, is a niche community of authors and bookworms on TikTok. BookTok refers to the part of TikTok where creators post about books, and it has risen to popularity since 2020.
Whether people love it or hate it, it is undeniable: BookTok has transformed the way the reading community functions in the 21st century.
With more than 28.1 million posts and 217.3 billion views under the hashtag BookTok, the community on TikTok has become an entity of its own. On BookTok, creators are able to provide recommendations, share ideas, and unite readers based on their favorite and least favorite books.
Senior Yuvika Vaishnav began creating for BookTok in 2020. On her account, which boasts more than 7,000 followers, Vaishnav posts book recommendations and quotes.
BookTok has removed the stigma of reading being “uncool”, which has allowed the reading community to grow.
“A lot of people are comfortable with saying, ‘Yeah, I like reading’, instead of being like, ‘Oh, I don’t know about reading’,” Vaishnav said.
This rise of interest can also be seen in Cal High’s library.
Librarian Jessie Bailey said genres such as dark academia and fantasy, which are currently trending on BookTok, are constantly being checked out by students at the library.
Books such as “Normal People” and “The Song of Achilles”, and authors such as Colleen Hoover and Sarah J. Mass, have risen to prominence through the power of BookTok.
Senior Rookia Alam is a viewer in the BookTok community and loves being able to relate to other people’s thoughts and perspectives. She said she’s enjoyed many books that she discovered on BookTok.
“Most of the books I read come from BookTok,” Alam said. “I used to read a lot of historical fiction, but now I read a lot more fantasy, romance, and contemporary books.”
Despite the positives of BookTok, many people question whether it is beneficial.
Sophomore Aubrey Chan, who has been viewing videos on BookTok since 2020, believes BookTok has encouraged inappropriate books as well as bad writing.
“Authors are just trying to put out books that get popular on TikTok,” Chan said. “[The books] are usually super inappropriate and badly written with repetitive plots and bad grammar.”
Vaishnav agreed with this sentiment, believing authors attempt to appeal to readers by including inappropriate scenes in their books, taking attention away from good writing.
“Sometimes you don’t get any good recommendations, and they’re all just basic books which have no actual plot,” Vaishnav said.
Many people see both the negatives and positives of BookTok, as though literary standards may be falling. Many believe anything that inspires people to read is a good thing.
“I think anything that gets people reading is absolutely a win, I think it’s also a nice way for people to
connect
with
books that they might not otherwise pick up,” Bailey said. “That said, I think it’s always good to know the motivations behind it, like are they being promoted or paid to sponsor [books].”
