Is BookTok Actually About Reading?
Is BookTok Actually About Reading?  
Podcast: Culture Study Podcast
Published On: Wed Oct 30 2024
Description: “Most people who complain about BookTok have never seen a BookTok.” Alyssa Morris drops that insight about two-thirds of the way through the episode, and it’s such a good point that I almost want to make it the title of the episode. Most people have an idea of what BookTok is (people talking about books on TikTok) but no real understanding of the immensity of BookTok. It’s talking about what you’ve read, sure, but it’s also about recommendations, and performance, and the aesthetics of reading culture — and the criticisms of it have a lot more to do with weird ideas about what reading (or talking about reading!) “should” look like.If you’re interested in reading culture, you’ll be interested in this episode — full stop. Let it surprise you! And make sure to check out Alyssa’s BookTok newsletter, which has quickly become one of my favorite reads of the week.Show Notes:Check out more of Alyssa Morris’s work here — and subscribe to Romancing the Phone!!!Alyssa breaks down a bunch of the different “genres” of Booktok here — it’s so goodOne of my favorite Alyssa pieces on the appeal of the hockey romanceThe Hinge “No Ordinary Love” Collection featuring Roxane GayThe Atlantic piece I reference re: “college kids can’t read books”The Rachel Cusk reading order TokThe VERY FALL Laurie Gilmore booksThe special edition Bridgerton hardbacksYes / No / MaybeUnderhyped / Appropriately Hyped / OverhypedHow Much I Read This Week (With a Full Time Job)Glen Powell in a White T-Shirt RecsSOME OF THE DAHLIA THINGS I MENTION: Kristine Albrecht’s Dahlias: From Seed to Bloom, Swan Island Dahlias, The Saran Wrap Method, The Dahlia Growers FB Group (which is absolutely full of gall pictures right now). And if you want to read the other things I’ve written about dahliasWe’re currently looking for your questions for future episodes about:THE STATE OF KIDS TOYS — what’s weird? What’s interesting? What doesn’t make sense?Why does it feel like thrifting sucks nowThe new Gladiator + Paul Mescal JUST GENERALLYAnything you need advice or want musings on for the AAA segmentYou can submit them (and ideas for future eps) here (this is the subscriber-only form!)For today’s discussion: What’s your relationship to BookTok? What are your thoughts on book recs as a popularity contest? Why do you think some people get so cranky about other people reading a lot?