BookTok builds a new community for readers
One might wonder how readers find new books to read. Some people may say Goodreads or Barnes & Noble’s display tables, and that is true. However, in this age of technology, many readers will say BookTok.
BookTok is a popular subcommunity of content on TikTok that is meant for readers, writers and all fans of literature. BookTok creators post reviews and recommendations for readers as well as additional videos about books, characters and authors.
Coming up with new tactics to keep books and series in the current trends includes posting on social media platforms including X, Instagram and TikTok. Authors and publishers post new content about books and series on these media platforms and often have influencers discuss those works themselves.
BookTok’s influence took off during the COVID-19 pandemic because people were trapped in their houses and reading more than usual. It grew as an internet sensation through 2020 and 2021, and publishers began reaching out and asking creators to read and review their upcoming works.
BookTok became a huge influence in 2023 and 2024, inspiring the birth of a new genre, romantasy. Romantasy is a combination of fantasy and romance with a little “spice,” a BookTok term for books with adult content. Books within the genre include “Throne of Glass” by Sarah J. Maas and “Fourth Wing” by Rebecca Yarros. For fans of young adult and dystopian literature who are now in their early or late 20s, romantasy is the hot new genre.
BookTok also has smaller sub-communities for books focused on the LGBTQ+ community and books with adult romance. Books in this romance genre include “Icebreaker” by Hannah Grace and “The Love Hypothesis” by Ali Hazelwood. What seems like simple romance books with the normal enemies-to-lovers trope are actually full of much more intimate relationships. For LGBTQ+ book recommendations, the “Heartstopper” series by Alice Oseman is in almost every video BookTok has to offer on the category. “One Last Stop” by Casey McQuiston is another popular recommendation for readers.
All these works became popular due to the social media content created around the stories. The works are a couple of years old now but are still mainstream within BookTok content and recommendations.
Booktok is typically filled with book recommendations, hauls and bookcase setups. Many BookTokers show off their color-coordinated bookcases, decorated with string lights or other things that hang between the shelves. Other BookTokers post videos with captions like “If you’re a fan of this book, check out these books” and so forth.
TikTok’s main demographic is people between the ages of 18 and 25, which causes a focus on readers in that age group on BookTok. This can include young adult fiction, but it also includes the newer genre of new adult fiction. New adult is a genre commonly meant for readers who “graduate,” per se, from reading young adult fiction.
In brick-and-mortar stores such as Barnes & Noble or Target, there are frequently displays of BookTok books. The most popular works on those displays are new adult books and authors, which gain popularity due to the large BookTok community.
BookTok videos are entertaining, but once they all recommend the same books over and over, it can become a problem. Books that are oversaturated on BookTok can turn readers away and cause an overhype that certain books don’t necessarily deserve.
BookTok has become a useful way to promote and pull readers into new genres and to get them to read new books and series. This allows for new readers to easily find a book put forth by one of the influencers and to further promote reading in a technological age.
