In summer 2023, I went to my local Barnes and Noble and picked up a copy of Jennette McCurdy’s memoir, “I’m Glad My Mom Died.” While I was in fact interested in the material within the book’s pages, it was a series of TikTok videos that appeared on my feed that fully cemented my desire to read this book, as well as numerous others.

However, I know for a fact that I’m not the only one who’s experienced this phenomenon. A phenomenon that started with a small online community called “BookTok.”

BookTok, by definition, is a subcommunity on the app TikTok that focuses on books and literature. Creators make videos reviewing, discussing and joking about the books they read. These books range in genre, but many creators tend to focus on young adult fiction, young adult fantasy and romance. 

Since this emergence, bookstores like Barnes and Noble have created entire sections dedicated to this side of the internet. There has also been an increase in online influencers discussing and promoting books in YouTube videos. Some influencers who are called “BookTubers” are entirely literature focused, while others incorporate them into their differently-focused videos, much like internet personality Brittany Broski, who has over two million followers.  

In an episode of Broski’s podcast, “The Broski Report,” she spent a large chunk of the episode talking about the fantasy book series, “A Court of Thorns and Roses,” and discussing her favorite books from her youth, such as “The Da Vinci Code.” Broski even has an entire 18-minute-long YouTube video called, “I am officially on BookTok,” where she talks about BookTok’s influence on her, her favorite recent reads and why her audience should read them. 

Broski’s followers are mostly young adults and teenagers, which are also the target demographic for the TikTok app. With all of these things combined, there has been a large surge in book sales and literature consumption among young people within the last few years. 

BookTok helped sell around 20 million books in 2021, which represent over 2.4 percent of the total book sales for the year. This represents nearly half of the book purchases from social media in 2021. The platform helped sell over 2.2 million copies in the United States in the first quarter of 2022 alone. 

The most notable “protégé” of BookTok is Colleen Hoover’s “It Ends With Us.” Originally published in 2016, it was an unknown book until BookTok propelled it to the best-selling adult fiction book in 2021. As of 2023, the book has sold over 4 million copies worldwide, almost all exclusively credited to BookTok. 

Another similar success was seen with Adam Silvera’s “They Both Die at the End,” which sold over 650,000 copies in 2021 and an additional 100,000 in 2022. As of September 2023, “BookTok” has over 181.7 billion viewers. 

These same observations can be made for those who actually read books. In a survey conducted among TikTok users from the U.S. People reported an increase in their reading activity due to the exposure to BookTok, as 48 percent of TikTok users read more books than before using BookTok. 

We live in an ever-evolving world, and I believe that it’s really good to use technology for literary promotion and discussion. This not only helps authors, but today’s children as well. Kids nowadays are exposed to so much technology that they become disconnected from the real world. There’s no doubt that reading books not only helps reconnect with the world, but also strengthens IQ and emotional presence.

So, go ahead. Buy that book. I promise it’ll be fun.

Nick Keller is an opinion writer. Contact him at [email protected].