(library display from the Wellington Library in Berkshire, UK)
Since the rise in social media usage, there has been a corresponding book community connected to it. One of the first was Booktube which began roughly around the early 2010s on youtube with a main focus on YA literature though in later years this has expanded into many different age levels and genres (Doulami 2015). This isn’t to say that Booktube is nonexisitent today, quite the contrary. It however is a very different landscape from what it once was, it has changed and for the better. For example much of the current recommendations coming from booktube and booktubers are more diverse and intersectional. To demonstrate I have two reviews one from one of the OG booktubers around the early 2010s focused on a YA fantasy novel and one from a new booktuber released within the past five years focused on an YA urban fantasy.
Now onto the scene of video book recs, we have the most recent community booktok which has its positives and negatives. The positives of booktok is how the platform overall has influenced the library system and book retailers through use of either display or reading recommendation. Unlike booktube in the past, booktok’s focus is not necessarily focused on the newest releases instead they can highlight backlisted items that have peaked readers interests such as We Were Liars (Jensen 2022).
@annapenbrooke Who else is always buying books??? #booktok #books #readersoftiktok #reading #bookbuddies #bookish #bookgirlies #bookstore #bookbuying #bookrecommendations #bookreview
I hadn’t really considered the positives of booktok before reading the article for class as much of what I heard was a lot of negative around it such as promoting over-consuming (buying books and never reading for example). However it seems booktok has a staying power that librarians should be taking note of.
Works Cited
Adri. (2020, September 23). 5 Reasons to read: “Cemetery Boys” by aiden thomas [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-IXMo5ZobU
Anna and Brooke. [@annapenbrooke]. (2023, August 22). Who else is always buying books???#booktok #readersoftiktok [Video]. TikTok. https://www.tiktok.com/@annapenbrooke/video/7270130407276875054
Doulami , M.-C. (2015, July 3). A new digital phenomenon: the rise of the Booktubers. Cafe Babel. https://web.archive.org/web/20180321181229/http://www.cafebabel.co.uk/culture/article/a-new-digital-phenomenon-the-rise-of-the-booktubers.html
Jensen, K. (2022, February 10). As seen on BookTok: Inspiring young readers, TikTok is a boon for books. School Library Journal. https://www.slj.com/story/as-seen-on-booktok-inspiring-young-readers-tiktok-is-a-boon-for-books-libraries
Riccio, C. (2014, March 29). Cinder by marissa meyer | booktalk with xtinemay [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xV9x32PTVZU
Wellington Library [@Welly_Library]. (2022, January 20). Thank you to the many school libraries who’ve shared this idea. View: https://twitter.com/Welly_Library/status/1484248273661661184
Hello Kathleen,
This is a great analysis of the influence of BookTok on engaging hyperlinked communities! I have also heard a lot of negatives regarding the promotion of over-consumption and consumerism related to BookTok. Many influencers encourage their viewers to purchase the books rather than borrow them from a library. Some BookTok influencers benefit monetarily from their audience purchasing new copies of popular books, such as through an Amazon storefront, which does promote overconsumption.
Another issues readers encounter that may deter them from borrowing from the library is long wait times for popular titles. When books ‘blow up’ on social media, libraries may struggle to keep up with this inflated demand. I have heard people complain about excessively long wait time for eBooks and audiobooks as well. I am curious about the steps libraries can take to combat the challenge of long wait times to better serve their users and encourage them to borrow instead of buy!
@kmg333 I am fascinated by the BookTok space and all the sharing taking place. It might be interesting to see if collection development librarians are monitoring social channels like this as they order titles.