how tiktok ruined reading + the 'booktok book' formula

booktok has been getting a lot of bad press recently, so i wanted to share my rebuttal lol

links:

social media:

FAQs:
😭 what happened to your intro? it got copyrighted ://///
🤠 how old are you? 25!
📆 when is your birthday? 18th october 1998 (libra)
🎓 where did you go to university? i studied english at durham!
🔎 where do you live? new york city
💼 what is your job? book critic
🎥 what do you film with? lumix gh5 + canon g7x
👾 what do you use to edit? final cut pro

Video Chapters
00:00 introduction
01:24 let's talk about booktok
03:50 the worlds biggest book club
04:46 so, did booktok ruin reading?
07:47 books that critique society
08:30 "literature that only makes sense to those who care"
08:43 poetry to analyse
08:54 my point is
9:17 booktok is performative
11:50 a study by YouGov
12:54 what makes a booktok book?
17:08 you are allowed to just enjoy art.
18:52 will books be written for booktok?
22:18 does booktok over simplify?
23:45 [ad] Squarespace
24:37 valid criticisms of booktok
27:07 the desire to create an aesthetic
30:20 intellectual snobbery
31:39 booktok is a net positive

sub count:
📊 1,343,128

[jack_edwards]

i think it'd be really nice to create a thread of booktok creators who share thought-provoking, diverse books!!! pls reply to comment with your favourite booktok creators ✨

[bdb]

I mean in 2024 BookTok is ruining reading and in 2006 it was Twilight and in 2001 it was Harry Potter. Something is always “ruining reading”.

[kelliboyer]

while i do love being a hater, this is a refreshing and neutral take to hear

[andthatsshannii]

As an English teacher, I’m just glad that people are reading. I mean, so many of my students complain about their attention span because of the overwhelming information they get all the time. It’s nice that there’s a space on TikTok — which is usually the culprit — that encourages any kind of reading.

I might not like most of the books I see recommended on TikTok, but once you start reading, it’s easy to guide you to better stuff

[Niyans]

“For you page is quite literally FOR YOU” preach!

[vanillarice]

this is like if people got mad at spotify because all the top hits playlists have drake and taylor swift on it

[graciegomes]

great stuff. i’m a staunch tik tok hater but people claiming that tik tok has “ruined” reading is giving the app way too much credit. just because smutty colleen hoover clones are the popular thing right now doesn’t mean they are the only books that exist ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ new great complex novels are being published all the time

[zamjed]

Calling someone a “performative sports fan” is not something I ever thought I’d hear irl but this is very much a thing that female fans of Formula 1 hear.

[cielrombouts]

Jack, your point about the underlying misogyny in hating 'being a reader' really got me thinking. Thank you for using your platform to educate me (and others) in such a casual and entertaining way. Well done!

[bttmfri]

The ghost of the Spanish love deception will continue to haunt jack until the end of time

[nuraykulzhambekova]

“just like any white guy with a podcast mic and some unsolicited opinions”😭😭😭

[lilou]

I am critical of booktok not because of the tiktok videos but because of what it does to the world of publishing. Bookstores are filled with shelves and shelves of Colleen Hoover and are focusing less and less on literary works. Authors now have to market themselves on social media to get a publishing deal and/or readers. We are not criticizing other people's for you pages but the real world impact of the majority of the booktok community.

[aob]

I read The Secret History in 1998 when I was 20 years old. I became obsessed with it, and started drinking scotch and writing poetry on a typewriter. It was all very silly and romantic, but I was completely alone and didn't know anyone that loved it, much less had even read it. I am SO HAPPY that Donna Tartt has gotten the recognition she was due and the fact that it's turned into a whole aesthetic makes my inner 20-year-old so freaking excited! When you say that BookTok has democratized the publishing industry, I am so HERE for it, because we are seeing feminist literature, and more diversity than we have ever seen before. I am so glad that you mentioned that the hate is likely coming from misogyny. Thank you for this incredibly well-thought out and nuanced video essay, I just love your work and it's a joy to hear you talk about books!

[Livee]

11:52 The only times I ever hear sports being “performative” is when women are involved (think only watching American Football because of Taylor Swift). Men are rarely perceived to be performative in their enjoyment of sports, even though they weren’t soccer fans until the World Cup…

[clairyairy]

This!!! 👏 Reading is a HOBBY! I think that those who judge others for “not engaging in this hobby correctly” should reflect on what their criticism says about them. I love “deep and poignant” literature too, but as a graduate student working a full time job, I notice that I almost exclusively gravitate toward romance or feel-good novels during the semester because I just want to relax, enjoy, and turn my brain off. People are allowed to enjoy what they enjoy and no one is forcing you to read a Booktok book that you don’t want to read or look down on!

[matthewthompson]

Honestly I read so many good books cause of tiktok. Also a couple of bad ones. But one book jumped out at me and I was shocked, the book is called - The Hidden Truths Of Wealth, It will reveal to you how today's business gurus actually manipulate and make money.

[verasteger]

YES! just because i don’t read every free hour of the day doesn’t mean i perform my love for reading. i’m just a tired girl, but whenever i do find the time, i find so much joy in it! calling it performative sets such weird expectations of how people should engage in their hobbies

[ryvns]

these videos where you just sit and talk are my favourite. it's just so cozy

[aaaamnaaaa]

I don't have tiktok and so by extension don't read booktok books but the level of passion and LOGICAL REASONING in this video? I thoroughly and profusely enjoyed this

[halenweller]

YES. YES. YES. I have thought very extensively about our hyperbolic language usage and how it creates a disconnect between us and the actual words that we use every day. It’s awesome to hear you describe it so eloquently.