In around 2020, a part of social media called BookTok started to gain popularity within many young adults and teens.
BookTok is a segment of many social media platforms, including Tiktok, Youtube, and Instagram, where readers can connect with other readers.
BookTok has such a huge impact on book popularity that most reading websites even have a section dedicated to BookTok, including Goodreads and Barnes & Nobles.
Emery Lepsch, an eighth-grader on the Dolphins team, agrees that BookTok recommends many good books.
“It gives some really good book recommendations,” she said.
You can find book recommendations, reviews, and more. BookTok is widely popular, with over 200 billion views on TikTok. Many books that are advertised on BookTok quickly gain popularity especially with teens and young adults, the demographic BookTok is mostly aimed at.
Ronav Chenna, a seventh-grader on the Majestics team, said that BookTok could be improved.
“I do think that they have more room to expand and become better, but for now, I think that it is a good platform to use for recommendations,” he said.
Ms. Elizabeth Donovan, one of the librarians at Rachel Carson MS, also has some critiques for BookTok.
“I would love it if there were more targeted towards middle grade books,” she said.
There are a few sections of BookTok, which include books meant for younger teens and young adults. However, a large number of these books are meant for an older audience, and may not be appropriate for middle schoolers.
Ms. Allen said that she thinks teens should have parental consent before using BookTok.
“I think minors should definitely have their parents’ consent,” she said.
These select books may have an unwanted impact on young teens, including negatively influencing their reading habits. However, BookTok is shown to have a more positive effect on teens when compared to the negative effects. According to Australia Reads, 68% of teens say that BookTok has inspired them to read new books that they wouldn’t have read otherwise, and 19% say that BookTok has helped them find a community. Another 16% of teens said they made new friends through BookTok.
Nandini Patankar, an eighth-grader on the Wolves team, said that Booktok is a good way for readers to find others with similar interests in books.
“It’s actually a really good way for readers to connect to each other,” she said.
Ms. Allen, an English teacher in Dream Team, agrees with this statement.
“Books open up your mind to a whole bunch of other opportunities,” she said
Some of the most popular young adult books on BookTok include:
- “Six of Crows” by Leigh Bardugo
- “Heartstopper” by Alice Oseman
- “One of Us is Lying” by Karen McManus
- “They Both Die at the End” by Adam Silvera
- “The Inheritance Games” by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
- “Powerless” by Lauren Roberts
- “Divine Rivals” by Rebecca Ross
- “A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder” by Holly Jackson
- “The Cruel Price” by Holly Black
- “The Summer I Turned Pretty” by Jenny Han
- “Caraval” by Stephanie Garber
- “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins
- “Where the Crawdads Sing” by Delia Owens
- “These Violent Delights” by Chloe Gong
Nandini added that BookTok could have both positive and negative effects.
“There’s a possibility that it might have teens reading more, but the books might not be what they want them to read,” she said.
