BookTok is a well-known community that originated on TikTok and is loved by many, but there are issues at hand that need to be addressed. Generally, this platform offers a variety of books targeted toward teenagers and young adults, but some of the books are problematic and need to be called out. Overrated, problematic books are taking the place of books intended for younger audiences. Some of the books that are taking over bookstores glorify and normalize topics such as abuse, toxic relationships, and stalking. The problem doesn’t lie in the fact that it discusses those topics; it’s the fact that they label them as “romance.” They need to be targeted toward people who are not vulnerable to believing that these actions are okay instead of teenagers on social media. With this in mind, BookTok has its pros and cons and is still liable to change. 

 The Cons: 

Problematic Books  

To start off, one of the major issues with BookTok is some of the books they recommend for younger readers. Some of these people are between the ages of 14- 18, and some of the books should not be recommended to them. The problem is that they have finally reached the age where they may be interested in dating, and books like Colleen Hoover’s should not be the first romance they read or serve as an example of what romance is. Colleen Hoover is one of the most heavily promoted authors on BookTok and needs to be addressed. If you do not know her, she has written multiple books; her most popular ones are Ugly Love, It Ends With Us, and November 9^th. 

 So how are her books problematic? Well, a main example is November 9^th. This book has one of the most problematic tropes she has come up with and shouldn’t be promoted on any social platform whatsoever. The main issue with this book is the two characters’ entire relationship. Fallon, the main character, was burned in a fire and is left with lifelong scars. She is dating Ben, her love interest. However, throughout the book, it is revealed that Ben was responsible for the fire and scars, and she leaves him. But here comes Colleen Hoover, making Ben learn and reveal to Fallon that his mother had committed suicide, guilt-tripping her into taking him back. This is an issue that could cause toxic patterns to develop within these readers. Alongside that, the normalization could lead someone to think that mental health is something trendy, or they could not realize the true dangers of a toxic relationship and get involved with the wrong person. Her book is so heavily promoted that these young girls could start thinking that relationships must be toxic in order to work since they are at the age where they are interested in them aka, they have to be “fixable” in order to work. Colleen covers up the underlying issues by stating the fact that it is a work of fiction and labeling them as “romance.” However, a work of fiction should not glorify crimes, gaslighting, or guilt-tripping, and most of all, it should not be promoted towards younger readers. 

The Community: 

An issue that lies within the community is the entire fandom based on Colleen Hoover. As mentioned before, she is loved for her books and writing style being easier to read, hence why she is so popular with younger people. Some people on BookTok will form arguments over whether or not to read her books. This problem is not about Colleen, but it is about how bad the fandoms over certain authors get so toxic and problematic. Why does it matter who or what you read when the whole purpose is to let people read? 

Now moving on, the community on BookTok also needs to be talked about. A majority of the people on there will shame others if they read certain books, or do not read certain ones. A huge argument that has been on there is the argument between people who read Classics and people who modern-day books. Some will argue that Classics are better or that people who don’t read them are not as educated or intelligent. On the other hand, some argue against classics and say that modern-day books are more relevant and easier to read. Both have valid arguments, however, the whole goal of BookTok was to get the younger generations back into reading. Each type of book is suited to one’s own personal preferences, not what is trendy. 

The Pros: 

However, even with the downsides and the problems that have risen on BookTok, they still have pros that outweigh the negatives. 

Mental Health Advocates:

Although multiple problematic books are the face of BookTok, there are some out there that should be recommended to these younger readers. Instead of traumatizing the readers like Colleen Hoover’s books, these books advocate for mental health awareness and give them a new perspective on mental health. Most books either romanticize mental illness or don’t understand the true depth of it, however, some books promoted on BookTok advocate for it perfectly and give the readers a sense of reality.   

One of the books was, I’m Glad My Mom Died, a memoir by the famous child actor, Jennette McCurdy who is now a best-selling author. This book includes two sections, “Before,” and “After.” The section under, “Before” allows the reader to walk through her childhood and talks about how she got into acting, was assaulted by her mom, had eating disorders, and her mental health as a kid. When she was younger, it was her mother’s dream to be an actor and she pushed those dreams onto Jennette, forcing her to be in the spotlight. However, in order to stay relevant in the kid’s industry, she had to keep looking “childlike.” In order for her to do that, her mom introduced “restricting” or in other words, she enabled her daughter’s anorexia. Moving on to the section “After,” this is set after her mother passed away from breast cancer. Within this time period, Jennette is older and not as into acting as she was. After facing her mother’s death, Jennette begins to go to therapy in order to get better for her boyfriend at the time. Things with him do not end up working out due to a variety of reasons, yet she is still determined to get better. After multiple relapses with her eating disorders, she decides that it is finally time for her to recover once and for all without falling back into it. The book ends up with her visiting her mom’s grave and coming to the realization that she is glad her mom died, hence the name. Without her mom dying, she wouldn’t have been pursuing her dreams of being an author, she would’ve still been stuck in her mother’s verbal abuse, and most of all, would’ve most likely been consumed by these mental illnesses. This book in no way, shape, or form romanticizes any mental illnesses and provides a raw, vulnerable, emotional telling of the dangers of each and every single one.  

These kinds of books being promoted on BookTok are more beneficial to younger readers rather than a romanticized version that hides the dangers of it. Her book provided an in-depth telling of grief, loss, depression, eating disorders, and much more without glorifying it. She makes sure to emphasize the fact that they are dangerous and that you need to seek help if you are struggling with any of them. Her book doesn’t have the ability to lead someone into thinking it’s normal with her in-depth storytelling and how descriptive it was. 

Romance Books To Read: 

Although Colleen Hoover is the face of the Romance section, there are genuine Romance books out there that aren’t problematic. Since this entire section on TikTok is aimed towards younger readers, having good examples of what romance is, is crucial. A heavily promoted book on there is called,The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, by Taylor Jenkins Reid, and is a great romance set in the Old Hollywood era. This one provided insight into some issues such as homophobia and lets you explore each and every single one of Evelyn’s love interests. 

Overall, BookTok has such a wide selection of books for younger readers to enjoy, but we need to start calling out some of them. If we don’t bring awareness to them now, then people are going to have messed-up ideas of romance, mental health, and books themselves. With arguments spiraling on BookTok, people will start losing interest in reading or feel that what they’re reading isn’t good enough or trendy. However, as mentioned previously, BookTok is still subject to change.