>Personally, I find the lore and the universe of Hobbit / LOTR a bit dull

that's fine. it's not necessary to like every single popular book.

> I haven't read the books

"There is a principle which is a bar against all information, which is proof against all arguments, and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting ignorance - that principle is contempt prior to investigation." ― William Paley

Films are a good adaptation on their own, but very different to the books.

I encourage you to try reading them. It's hard to review a book that you haven't read.

They can’t be that popular. I’ve never heard of those books and don’t know what booktok is aside from seeing it referenced here.

Some people like different things than you! They’re not faking it because they want to be part of a trend, they just have different preferences and interests.

I always think it’s funny that people on r/books like to feel so superior to people on booktok, because they’re really very similar: communities that are largely but not entirely homogenous, with the same few books put on a pedestal but other books often discussed as well, using social media to find and discuss literature.

It's the same as to ask why some TV series get much more attention and wider audience compared to others, even if they are not necessarily that good. They just appease to the wider audience. Same with Booktok. Most books are easy to read which means they attract people who aren't generally so much into reading overall or that specific genre. But also people who are maybe avid readers but are looking for something light. And well..some will read them simply to see what is all the buzz about.

In some other cases, books become popular because most accounts (as far as I have seen) are dedicated to specific-genres or even qualities (smutty, cozy, etc). So it is likely that followers will enjoy the recommendations because they are in a way tailored to them, which in return means that they will be more proned to suggest them to others as well.

And well..some authors are great at creating social media content. I have seen several books becoming popular because author managed to create the hype. For example, Alex Aster and her Lightlark.

Daytime television is TikTok for people that still use landlines, nobody's winning here

Take AP. You'll be fine. It's harder to do well when there's no challenge.

absolutely. try and recognize when you're having those thoughts, and saying "ok. i am reading now" is a mindfulness-oriented recognition of what's occurring without passing judgement that you arent doing enough/are falling behind. most of all, be gentle with yourself.

op, if it's worth anything, none of the books you read in high school are going to be books that other people havent already read and written up exhaustive summaries or papers on. when i was really struggling, i would try to read sections of the book, and if i was really having trouble with a stretch, i would let myself move ahead 5 pages. at the end, i thought about the plot and themes of the book, then reviewed a summary to make sure i understood it as it had actually happened.

This is why I don’t hate on Booktok. My best friend of 45 years has never been a reader, and in the last year, she’s read more than I have all because of Booktok and the impromptu CoHo book club that started in her office because of it.

people like to spout their brilliant takes - or be assholes - or both. read what you want and ignore tiktoxic

People love trends. They crave to fit in. Everyone loves reading certain books, I need to read certain books. Everyone is saying “based” (which I have no idea what that means), I need to say based.

It’s keeping up with the Jones’ and keeping up with the times. You don’t want to be left out, do you?

Personally, it’s not for me. I read what I want NOT what’s trending but to each their own.

This is exactly my experience as well. I keep getting pulled out by my thoughts, go back to the text. Overtime as a reader, it gets easier but if the book doesn't interest me that much, it gets funky

This is a weird question. You can't understand why people like something that a bunch of their peers like, it's not a really hard concept to wrap your head around. What I don't understand is why people in this sub feel the need to throw shade and feel superior to other readers because of their book choices.

Some people read like 4 books a year. So they like to be told what to read

bc books that are trending on booktok are just books that are liked be a lot of people and if you keep seeing them, you will think that they must be good and so you give it a try. Booktok just means its a popular book and hence gets recommended a lot on tiktok. You also have to keep in mind that just bc you didnt like a book,it doesnt mean others cant enjoy it. I also read "It ends with us" and i liked it but i k ow that the author is greatly hated on in the booktok communtiy, so its kind of funny that you mentioned her.

This was definitely me. stopped following bookstagrams after years because I just thought about what books or things I ‘needed’ to buy. I just follow authors and publishing houses now

20, 30 years ago, heavy readers would join book clubs so they could be a part of a community and talk about the books they were reading with a receptive audience. Today, people turn to social media for the same reason. They want a sense of community and BookTok/BookTube/whatever provides that for them.

Different situation…I couldn’t read fiction after a certain event in 2016. It was severe anxiety. I could read non-fiction but even then not much “just for fun” reading for a long time. Also, I was on social media too much and shouldn’t have been. I hope you get better with the therapy you’re receiving. It’s a really frustrating problem.

I don't pay attention to books all over tik tok but I do tend to gravitate towards them without even knowing. It's not an obsession. People just like the books they like especially if the blurb sounds interesting. It just ends up being a good book that many people just happen to enjoy.

And btw, It Ends With Us is relatable for those of us who have been through DV situations. If you haven't been through it then ya you probably won't enjoy the book because you don't relate and that's fine.

Fair enough.

I would trust Oprah’s book club a lot more over booktok

Being focused while reading does not come naturally to human beings. It is a skill that requires practice. At least in my experience this is true. I start by turning off the TV and putting my phone on the other side of the room so I won't reach for it every few minutes. If I listen to music, it has to be quiet and non-vocal. Then I really try to focus on the story that's being told to me. My mind naturally wanders but I keep pulling it back. Trust me It gets easier over time.

People like to feel included in something.

I watch a number of booktok channels, but mostly out of curiosity. I still read what I please, and most of the books I read never appear on booktok.

For the same reason that people went crazy over the books that got chosen for Oprah‘s book club. People like feeling like they’re part of something and if you’re reading a book that a bunch of other people that you like are also reading you get to talk about it with them.