I'm interested in this. I also have rather negative feelings about booktok although I'm glad if it helps get people into reading. It just really bugs me when instead of a description of what a book is actually about I get told it's big on booktok or 'great for fans of X!' Why do I care about that? I just want to know what the plot is. It ties into this whole thing which frustrates me in the publishing industry where we're expected to care about the author as a person and how they'd be fun to have coffee with or whatever. Why isn't the focus on the story instead of the person who wrote it? And do male authors get this kind of pressure?
This is so interesting! BookTok-ers actually often describe themselves as mood readers - they aren't as much plot-driven readers as they are interested in reading a book that suits their current mood. This is part of why tropes and seasonality are such a big part of book descriptions on the platform. Also, BookTok-ers tend to read a lot more than the average reader, and I think that leads to them being more open to trying things based on connections to other books they've read and liked.
I think I saw somewhere that some booktok-ers skip dialogue because it's less interesting than the setting or something. I don't get the sense that books about or written by men are given this treatment - not to say that their books are more serious, but it seems that they are taken more seriously by default. And books by women are expected to follow hetero normative romance storylines. I don't know how broadly LBGTQA+ books are covered in booktok, but the publishing industry seems conservative in this sense. I also don't know why so many romance books seem to be about sports, but I'll have to listen to the episode! I fucking hate sports, including but not limited to hockey.
Sports are just one sub-genre of romance and they are partially popular because you can have a series or series of interconnected standalones that follow members of the team.
Looking forward to listening to this one! I admit to feeling a bit negative about Book Tok. I see the Book Tok tables at Target, Barnes and Noble etc and it’s kind of weird what is there. I enjoy romance but I often haven’t heard of a lot of these authors. I guess Colleen Hoover is the most famous and that was particularly odd since no one I read in Romancelandia talked about her. I also feel like there is little diversity in Book Tok. We’ll see if I change my mind with this podcast!
I'm a Youth Services librarian, and one of the things I think is so interesting is any time young people are reading anything and instead of celebrating that fact, people need to know if they're reading "good" books. This debate is always happening with graphic novels. Who cares what people are reading? So many folks don't read any books at all! If someone is reading a book, I count it as a win. No matter what.
I'm so glad you brought up the Atlantic article about how college kids are not reading books in conjunction with booktok. My aunt, who is a college professor, sent me the article and I found it a bit alarmist in juxtaposition with booktok. If kids are not reading...why are they driving content on booktok? I understand a lot of booktok is not high schoolers or college kids, but some of it must be? I can somewhat believe that high schoolers may not be assigned full books to read as much as they used to, but I think it's a big jump to decide they've never read a full book. I also thought the most interesting part of the article was where kids felt so much pressure to perform well in school and get "good" jobs, that they were not reading whole books if they could do the work faster. It was hard for them to sit down and read a book that they are assigned, the whole way through, without a clear line to how it would ultimately benefit their education or outcomes. Perhaps we have pressured them too far and they cannot enjoy books for the sake of enjoying them? Or we have taken the joy out of learning all together?
Not to be the world’s biggest weirdo, but my favorite part of this (still otherwise great!) episode was the noise Melody made when Anne said some people incorporate their dog’s name into their new dahlia names. A true sound of love and joy from a true dog lover! Thanks for the smile.
I'm interested in this. I also have rather negative feelings about booktok although I'm glad if it helps get people into reading. It just really bugs me when instead of a description of what a book is actually about I get told it's big on booktok or 'great for fans of X!' Why do I care about that? I just want to know what the plot is. It ties into this whole thing which frustrates me in the publishing industry where we're expected to care about the author as a person and how they'd be fun to have coffee with or whatever. Why isn't the focus on the story instead of the person who wrote it? And do male authors get this kind of pressure?
This is so interesting! BookTok-ers actually often describe themselves as mood readers - they aren't as much plot-driven readers as they are interested in reading a book that suits their current mood. This is part of why tropes and seasonality are such a big part of book descriptions on the platform. Also, BookTok-ers tend to read a lot more than the average reader, and I think that leads to them being more open to trying things based on connections to other books they've read and liked.
I think I saw somewhere that some booktok-ers skip dialogue because it's less interesting than the setting or something. I don't get the sense that books about or written by men are given this treatment - not to say that their books are more serious, but it seems that they are taken more seriously by default. And books by women are expected to follow hetero normative romance storylines. I don't know how broadly LBGTQA+ books are covered in booktok, but the publishing industry seems conservative in this sense. I also don't know why so many romance books seem to be about sports, but I'll have to listen to the episode! I fucking hate sports, including but not limited to hockey.
Sports are just one sub-genre of romance and they are partially popular because you can have a series or series of interconnected standalones that follow members of the team.
Looking forward to listening to this one! I admit to feeling a bit negative about Book Tok. I see the Book Tok tables at Target, Barnes and Noble etc and it’s kind of weird what is there. I enjoy romance but I often haven’t heard of a lot of these authors. I guess Colleen Hoover is the most famous and that was particularly odd since no one I read in Romancelandia talked about her. I also feel like there is little diversity in Book Tok. We’ll see if I change my mind with this podcast!
Idk why but finding out that Rachel Cusk is on booktok made my day.
the world of BookTok is vast!
The female psyche is vast and precocious. What a delight that BookTok is starting to give us a map of its landscapes.
I'm a Youth Services librarian, and one of the things I think is so interesting is any time young people are reading anything and instead of celebrating that fact, people need to know if they're reading "good" books. This debate is always happening with graphic novels. Who cares what people are reading? So many folks don't read any books at all! If someone is reading a book, I count it as a win. No matter what.
I'm so glad you brought up the Atlantic article about how college kids are not reading books in conjunction with booktok. My aunt, who is a college professor, sent me the article and I found it a bit alarmist in juxtaposition with booktok. If kids are not reading...why are they driving content on booktok? I understand a lot of booktok is not high schoolers or college kids, but some of it must be? I can somewhat believe that high schoolers may not be assigned full books to read as much as they used to, but I think it's a big jump to decide they've never read a full book. I also thought the most interesting part of the article was where kids felt so much pressure to perform well in school and get "good" jobs, that they were not reading whole books if they could do the work faster. It was hard for them to sit down and read a book that they are assigned, the whole way through, without a clear line to how it would ultimately benefit their education or outcomes. Perhaps we have pressured them too far and they cannot enjoy books for the sake of enjoying them? Or we have taken the joy out of learning all together?
Not to be the world’s biggest weirdo, but my favorite part of this (still otherwise great!) episode was the noise Melody made when Anne said some people incorporate their dog’s name into their new dahlia names. A true sound of love and joy from a true dog lover! Thanks for the smile.
LOLLL I wasn't even aware of the noise
“Maybe I’m a dahlia” is something I felt deeply.
Dahlia question if it’s not too late! Can I reuse my vermiculite or should you purchase new each year?