Is Book Tok toxic?

3:03 am. Pitch dark. Insomnia had its cutting claws in me. I was minding my own business just doom scrolling on TikTok when I came across a TikTok that made me stop. Just stop, right there and then. I stared at my phone. I pulled out my laptop and start writing. Not out of inspiration but annoyance and irritation. 

I often get annoyed by the internet; my housemate thinks it isn’t good for me. It's like when I watch tv and someone is being annoying, and I yell profanities at the screen. Nine times out of ten my flat mate will turn and say to me “You know they can’t hear you right?”  

As a budding writer I understand that my writing may not be to everyone’s personal taste. I will never publicly negatively comment on another writer’s writing, it would feel unprofessional. I do not mean to say that I cannot engage in a spirited debate, but I think it isn’t useful or kind to go around saying someone’s writing is shit or rubbish or should never be published. Say it privately to your friends. Fine, lovely, grand. I am seeing a lot of book Tokers saying nonconstructive things online. I am all for public opinion and freedom of speech, however, if all you have to say is that someone’s work or lifelong passion is shite. Shut up. It isn’t needed and it isn’t nice. There are PLENTY of authors out there, that I do not enjoy the writing of. I will not publicly slate them because who gave me the right? If it is a wider issue of hate crimes or discrimination, then absolutely this should be called out. If it is just the case that the book feels like a wattpad book on crack, then shush.  

I saw a TikTok of a girl slating a certain author. I feel like this author is like marmite you either love them or hate them. Collen Hoover. Personally, her books are not for me, not my vibe. This person filmed a TikTok for over two minutes and was just nasty. Not just to the author but to their readers. I spoke about this in another article. 

I myself enjoy classics and crime. I love books that intellectually push me and drive me. I also read a lot of Austen, and I mean a lot. I read it under a lot of contexts, understanding history, regency economics and feminism. But ultimately, I read it for joy. Persuasion is my favourite; it breaks my heart every time and heals it every time. I have about five copies, and I will keep buying more of them. I feel Austen’s writing in my soul. I also love heartless by Marissa Meyer, it is a great retelling of another favourite book of mine, Alice in wonderland. These are two very different writing styles, but I love both. I actually wish I would read more sweet love stories, but I don’t think I am fun enough.

I do struggle with some of the fantasy and romance books. They either feel very fake or pandering. These are the books that are most popular, so I feel an innate need to enjoy them. The number of times I have tried to read a fantasy book and found to my dismay it is a bastardisation of my culture. The Celtics, the Scottish, The Welsh and The Irish are treated as make believe. Runes have become magic symbols instead of divination and Germanic language. The Gaelic or Gaeilge language is butchered or confused. Tales of my history told to me when I was small are twisted. It completely puts me off the books. I feel oddly dirty. Like I am being mocked. There is a small discussion about this online but not enough. I do not mind people who borrow from the Celtic world as long as they are respectful. But it's the people who treat them as something mythical. Our history is not properly taught and therefore not taken seriously. I think my culture and history is rich and beautiful and should be shared. Maybe if it was shared more appropriately it would not be such an issue.   

I was part of a book club. I struggled to get into every single book we read. I didn’t finish any of them. I felt a little like an outsider because my tastes are different. My main issue with the book club is how isolating it is. I ended up leaving it. There were a couple of conversations that made me uncomfortable. Some of the women in the group said they do not like reading anything that isn’t by an English author. Even the usage of American British is too jarring for them. This made me uncomfortable. I felt for sure someone would say something, anything. Instead, everyone started agreeing. One of my favourite things about reading is how it introduces me to new cultures and ideas I wouldn’t have access to. If you ever want a good cry read the Kite Runner by Kahlid Hosseini. Heartbreaking book. Within this book club I brought up my issue with books using Celtic languages and I was not taken seriously. One well-meaning individual even recommended one of the worst books when it came to my issue. 

Growing up reading was like a superpower for me. I thrived off watching the astonishment on adult faces when I would tell them I had read Jane Eyre before I went to secondary school. I could read anything and understand it. As I have gotten older my bookish ways made me slightly aloof as I preferred books to people. I have enjoyed seeing people take to reading more because of books like the Christmas tree farm and Powerless. I know a lot of people hate reading because in most schools across the world books are forced upon us. These books that are seen as “not real literature” are opening such a wonderful world to people.  

I do not think booktok as a whole is toxic as it is varied. I feel as if I either must be on the intellectual side of reading or the smut side of reading. I wish there was more of a middle ground. Do not get me wrong, I have read my fair share of smut. Your gal has been reading fan-fiction since I was tweleve.

Please leave any recs in the comments.