Even if you don't use TikTok, you've likely at least heard of the phenomenon known as BookTok. Individual videos sometimes get millions of views, and the combined hashtags for these videos on TikTok have had hundreds of billions of views. The publishing industry is paying attention - and so are we!  Is BookTok really driving book sales? Or is it just creating yet another thing for people to envy online and feel bad about in their real lives? Is it lowering the quality of writing in books, turning them into fast fashion? And how is it affecting indie authors? Is it truly something new, or is it a new version of an old trend? And if it's encouraging young people to read more and see reading as something that's cool - does anything else really matter? Join us! ----------------------- Books we're reading in this episode:    The Uncharted Flight of Olivia West by Sara Ackerman Clara Reads Proust by Stephane Carlier The Gentleman's Gambit by Evie Dunmore -----------------------  Sources:  https://www.economist.com/culture/2023/09/21/tiktok-is-changing-the-way-books-are-recommended-and-soldhttps://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/01/books/tiktok-books-booktok.htmlhttps://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/aug/06/i-cant-stress-how-much-booktok-sells-teen-literary-influencers-swaying-publishershttps://www.thebookseller.com/news/more-than-half-of-young-readers-credit-booktok-with-sparking-passion-for-reading-pa-findshttps://www.ala.org/advocacy/sites/ala.org.advocacy/files/content/tools/Gen-Z-and-Millennials-Report%20%281%29.pdf Brookbank, E. 2023. “It makes you feel like more of a person:” The leisure reading habits of university students in the US and UK and how academic libraries can support them, College & Undergraduate Libraries, 30:3, 53-94, DOI: 10.1080/10691316.2023.2261918https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bookselling/article/93201-booksellers-add-tiktok-to-the-toolbox.html https://bookriot.com/tiktok-publishing-company/ ----------------------- Intro and outro music: "The Chase," by Aves. Do you have thoughts, questions, or ideas for future episodes? Email us at [email protected]. And if you want to learn more about the podcast, visit our website at allbooksaloudpod.com. If you liked this episode, please consider leaving us a review to help us reach more listeners. And if you'd like to see more bookish content from Martha & Elizabeth, follow us on Instagram and TikTok @allbooksaloudpod. Read on!