I read 2 books a month and I’m not ashamed of it. I’m a human with a life. Work, school etc. Reading is time consuming... like it can even be worse than Netflix🤣
That’s so true. I don’t know when I started putting all this pressure on myself tbh. Reading is definitely more time consuming than netflix...well, unless you binge watch all the time like me 🤣
@@BookedWithJameelah Exactly 🤣 also, reading should be fun! And when you start pushing yourself to read a lot and also fast, you’re not really enjoying and/or absorbing the story. So I’m glad you realized that! Happy reading❤️
No shit, I agree! This isn't a contest- I read books to enjoy them. Not to mention that some of the books I like reading are long so I don't get the "I read 15 books a month" bragging rights. I work full time and overtime every week and I'm reading Lonesome Dove, which is like, 900 pages. I don't understand why reading an extremely high number of books in a certain time period can be seen as an accomplishment
“It can be worse than Netflix” has to be the stupidest take on reading I’ve heard in a long time. You could be reading 50 shades of grey and 10/10 times that’s still going to be better for your brain than binging stranger things.
Great video!! I think booktubers ‘read’ such excessive amounts because: 1) read YA books. Which are great but if you’re an adult in your mid 20s YA fic is easy and quick to read 2) listen to audiobooks. Not saying that shouldn’t count but it’s objectively easier to squeeze in 1 book a day if you’re listening to it while doing other things 3) they skim through or speed read. Which defeats the purpose of gaining something from a story. How do you even appreciate books when you don’t stop and think while reading it
Completely agree with you that booktube cancel culture is exhausting. To me a lot of it feels like some people trying to overly control everyone else’s reading according to their own biased reasoning. Start a conversation, but stop with the power tripping ahah
what I think is most problematic about cancelling is assuming that everyone is up to speed on everything problematic with authors/books and so their approach is to always attack first
Completely agree! I'm older and we never had this kind of gossipy cancel stuff when I was young, this is brand new. The way I chose books for decades was just: go to a bookstore, look at covers, pick up books and read the blurb, if blurb sounds interesting read the first few pages. Then I just made an autonomous decision all by myself and bought it. I certainly didn't check with all the cool kids first too see if they approved of my choice!
I get so much of what you're saying, I stopped using twitter a lot because of the many arguments about what books suck, faerie smut, only showing snippets of a book and everyone canceling that book then you discover months or even weeks later what the context of those lines were. I never actually have interest in the books I've seen discussed heavily on the topic of them being problematic but it does get overwhelming and makes me super anxious about whether or not I'm out here supporting problematic authors. So I just started researching and approaching books more consciously when I see a book that interests me. And as you said, if an author has done something that many ppl find and know to be problematic, it's only fair to address that when you speak highly of their book or something.
Yes I think i’m about to leave twitter because i’m realizing it stresses me out and brings lots of negativity at times that i don’t need when i already have it in my real life. For a while I was so quick to jump on the cancelling bandwagon until i realized sometimes people were actually wrong about the author and what they were trying to portray. But by then the damage was done to the new author and couldn’t really be reversed. I’m hoping I can reach a point where I take more care in the books I pick up the way you are. Sometimes it’s frustrating because I research and still end up messing it up some how lol 😆 But I’ll definitely try to still mention important controversy surrounding the books I talk about if I’m aware of it.
12:23 - Yes! And there have been times when I'll hear in every other video "I refuse to read this author because we all know what they did." But then when I try to search the internet to figure out what it was that they did, all I find is more videos of people saying that author is problematic without actually explaining why and it's just like ugh. It's not worth the energy sometimes.
This constant demand to stay up-to-date with who is currently on the sh*t list is also particularly hard for foreign booktubers/fans, because it's is a very US American thing, and it then tries to force itself on everyone across the whole world. Suddenly, it's not good enough anymore that I read a few books in English to improve my vocabulary and just for fun because they sound interesting. Suddenly I have to be intimately familiar with every nuance and hot topic the US media comes up with, and who's on which side of it, and I just don't want to. I've got my own country, and we've got our own hot topics, and I just want to read some fantasy for fun. In terms of "supporting": my average ebook costs around 1-3 bucks here, the author will maybe get at most 80 Cents: so the worst case scenario is that some author who once had an unpopular or wrong opinion on something can buy themselves a banana. They're welcome to it! Besides, from my perspective, most Americans have pretty uninformed opinions on a lot of things, including most authors. Keeping track of who has the currently accepted "right" uninformed opinions and who's got the wrong ones: no thanks. Especially when it often turns out to have been much ado about nothing! When I buy a croissant, do I interrogate the local baker about all of their various political opinions first to see if they baked the croissant while being ideologically perfectly aligned with me? No, I just buy the croissant and allow them to be right or wrong or have whatever perspective they like. Nor do I follow the baker on social media to check exactly if they ever like something I disapprove of: that's just creepy, I leave them alone. And I just do the same thing with authors. It's called allowing people to be free, including free to not have to be perfect and not have to always be in agreement with what I think is right. Besides, what if it later turns out *I* was wrong, and they actually had a good point? Then I would have cancelled all the wrong people. Better to just relax about it: also much better for one's mental health.
The analogy with the croissant was on spot. I agree very much with your points, I'm not American/English either and it's very annoying and hypocritical when people are canceling a book because of the author.
There are very few authors on any shit list to be honest mate... most authors are fucking great people! It sounds like you either had some bad luck with some of the authors you read or you're blowing it out of proportion 🤣 Also, read whatever you want! It doesnt matter, youre not a bad person cuz you read Harry Potter or whatever 🤣
Most readers don't even watch booktubers and do not follow them (or authors) on IG or Twitter so they don't know anything about dramas in this community. They just read books. I'm from an Eastern-Europe country. How many people here, do you think, watch English-speaking booktubers to know about all problematic books and authors? Not that much. And we don't have that many native-speaking booktubers to talk about these issues. Most of my friends didn't know that J.K. Rowling is a transphobe before I told them about that. The majority of the people in my country do not know what cultural appropriation is so they don't know that Jay Kristoff is a problematic author and read his books and like them a lot. My best friend doesn't know anything about Goodreads, for example, but she's an active reader. Booktube is a very US-centric place and many creators forget that not all readers live in the USA or Canada or other English-speaking countries.
Just wondering- when you told ur friends about jk Rowling and jay kristoff (I gotta look him up idk who that is, lol! I wonder if I’ll agree that he’s problematic)- did you tell them this with the intention to get them to stop reading these people? Or did you just want them to know? Basically I guess I’m curious if you think people should stop consuming the art (books, music, movies, etc) of people who are “problematic” in whatever way, especially when that way is minor- “cultural appropriation” is way different than if someone was like a racist white or black supremacist and was full of hate... hope that makes sense, lol Something irks me about people judging others on these things, like for example with music- I know a lot of artists are problematic but the music is too good not to listen to! I also think a lot of it is created in a flow state where it’s basically being channeled through the artist- u can hear interviews with Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney and they speak of how they don’t feel like they even write their songs, they just come out of nowhere and pop into their head and they just write it down... literally channeling it from a higher power, lol... Anyway, if Paul McCartney was exposed for being like a pedo or something horrible, I truly don’t think I would stop listening to the Beatles, although I would def have a period of time where it would be weird and gross to hear his voice Maybe this is a controversial opinion, idk. “Separate the artist from the art” type thing... we are all humans, but a piece of art lives forever and it kinda becomes a standalone thing with a life of its own
Just looked up jay kristoff and am confused- it says he writes fantasy... but yet somehow people expect his books to accurately depict Japanese people? It’s not historical fiction lol it’s fantasy! And it’s literally a fictional world, only inspired by Japan... this is where I feel like people have too much time on their hands- if that’s what someone is worrying about or choosing to waste energy on, it makes me feel like they’ve never experienced real life shit, like death, trauma, illness, etc.. cuz if they have, they would see how petty and inconsequential that is... like why don’t we focus on people who have bad intentions and want to harm others? Instead of trying to cancel some dude who wrote literal fiction and incorporated elements of imperial japan into a fantasy novel... it just sets really bad precedent... like freedom of speech type shit... authors shouldn’t be scared to express themselves
I definitely agree with you about the canceling books and authors thing. It really just comes off as fake woke to me. If you search for a problem you will most definitely find it in any form of media including your fav shows/brands. Someone involved most likely has done something problematic.
Yes! A lot of the time people don't even do thorough research and just jump on the bandwagon. It's so unfortunate that so many of the books we read have problematic authors but as humans, most of us end up being problematic in some way. As long as we learn and evolve from our mistakes, I think that is the most important thing.
to add on to that, I'll see some people call someone "problematic" without actually explaining what said person did that was problematic. I saw this one post about an author doing racist stuff and I was like "well yeah that sounds pretty bad so I won't support them" and then they went on to say "and this other author is problematic" and I'm like ok well what did they do? i need more info than that.
I am a very slow reader, but that's ok. I agreed when you said you want to read slowly to remember what the book is about. It's annoying to watch some booktubers do a monthly wrap-up, and they can't even remember what the books are about.
I definitely think booktube has made me feel bad about my reading habits... I read solely for fun and don't really keep track of how many books I read, but I'm feeling compelled to start doing it now, and I'm not sure I like that
I love your glasses! ✨ Also didn't realize this was the video I'd been waiting for...when I hear about people reading 30 books in 30 days, all I can say is HOW??
I mean it's not impossible. When I was in HS and had more time I actually ready 6 books in a series in 7 days. I remember pulling a 72 hr all nighter because I was just hooked (which I definitely don't recommend). And then after I was done I was kind of caught up in a book hangover or post series depression and took a break from reading. So I didn't read 30 books in the 30 days lol, but I think it's possible if a person doesn't feel that way at the end of every series or standalone book. I think the real downside to people doing that is that they focus more on the quantity rather than actually soaking in what they read and enjoying it, the actual quality of it. I was lucky enough that I didn't go through that when I was binge reading. But I also think that it's just kind of unhealthy to not take breaks in between or to keep up with oneself, or like what I did which was not sleep for 3 days straight.
THIS! I feel like sometimes it’s better to read controversial books to form a proper opinion on them separate from others influence, otherwise why speak about books you don’t actually read? If you know what is problematic, you can better articulate your thoughts to your viewers/peers and start a conversation versus just shutting it down. I feel like your points are also applicable to so much of pop culture - movies, music, etc.
I don’t have a Twitter so I sometimes find out an author did something *months* after it happens. I would hate to see someone “canceled” because they simply didn’t know.
I'm honestly terrified of book twitter, I had horrible experiences with twitter and I have a twitter now only to follow mostly gamers I want to keep up with. And only a couple authors/book people who I really love and they don't have any other social media.
lol 3-5 books a month is low?! damn, what am I doing on booktube then :P LOL but for real, some people are just amazing at how much they read! I totally get the pressure to read more and the pressure to read certain books/levels which I also don't enjoy - but just trying to push through and read what I like!
This video is everything ❤️ I very much agree with everything you say, but more than that. Truly, statement of the year “I just want reading to be fun again”.
I totally agree. I started watching booktube in like 2013/2014 and it severely changed how I interact with books and reading for the worse. It’s to the point where I won’t even bother reading a book if I haven’t heard someone on RUclips recommend it. When I was younger the books I chose to read were entirely my own and now they aren’t. Don’t know how to get back to that place honestly.
I love this conversation! I definitely agree that I want to read more books that I find by myself. Since I discovered booktube years ago pretty much all the books I read are books I've heard about somewhere online. I miss the days of just finding a book at a bookstore/library and reading it. Also, booktube has lead me to purchase more books. Before I started watching booktube I had one tiny shelf and now I have a big shelf that's overflowing with books.
I completely agree with all of your points. Honestly, just let people read what they want to read, and let people buy books or not. Like, let people live their own lives, please.
I’ve noticed that since I’ve started BookTube, I’ve been pushing myself to read a lot more and it’s not great. I tell myself I gotta read, bring up the number of books I read in a month and now I’m getting to the point where that pressure is killin my buzz. I’m getting slumpy because I’m putting so much pressure on myself during a time when I need to focus on others aspects of my life for a bit. I’m trying to reframe my mind and remember that if I read a smaller amount of books in a month, I get to go into more depth about them in my wrap-ups. I love to critically engage with a good number of my books, not all, some are fluff or for the fun reads, but reading a smaller amount makes that possible. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
i agree with you, being an avid consumer of booktube content i've noticed that i've been forcing myself to read a lot more than i used to until reading starts to feel like a task.
Yes! I totally agree and I like this more relaxed way of reading and interacting with books/other readers. This expectation to constantly be online and up to date on everything is not healthy, I don't think. That said, I am glad people are talking about problematic authers and hope that we can promote the kind of industry we want to read from. I'm not on booktube and I still feel the pressure to read a high number of books each month. One of my goals this year is to read less and to be more present (take my time) with everything I'm reading. ♥️
I’m planning to start up my own channel soon! I’m super nervous but excited for it. I really hope that by finally joining this community I can share my love books but not change my reading habits in order to stay relevant. We need people with different book tastes, reading rates etc. if we did we wouldn’t discover new books to enjoy. Love your vid! 🥰
First time viewer, subscribed at once. All your points are so true for me. Especially cancel culture. I'm not on Twitter, so half the time I have no idea what is going on and who gets cancelled for what is so random. It seems to me that the authors who are still in the midst of publishing popular/anticipated books get a lot more leniency. It just seems hypocritical at times. Plus, if an author says something offensive, it might just be due to a lack of education on an issue. And calmly and compassionatly explaining why what they said/did was hurtful is going to be a lot more helpful than online hate.
Yes yes yes! I absolutely agree with a lot of points here. Everyone is human, everyone makes mistakes, everyone will be “problematic” at one stage or another because we’re all always learning (obviously some people refuse to learn or apologise for their actions, but they’re often in the minority). It sometimes feels that if you miss one important conversation on social media about an author or a book, you’re suddenly reading a problematic book. There’s SO MUCH to keep track of at all times, it’s exhausting. Readers are doing the best they can to find and read books that speak to them. Let’s just all take a deep breath and chill. Thanks for such a fantastic video!
I agreed with everything you were saying, obviously it's important to stay informed about what's going on around the world, but we're all human and we all have our limits. Especially with social media (specifically Twitter), I think everyone, myself included, has spread themselves so thin by trying to know everything about everything, and it's so detrimental to mental health. If you want reading to be fun escapism with no deeper meaning, great! If you want to read critically and do a deep dive on what you're reading about, great! Obviously being informed and educating yourself is extremely important and shouldn't be completely abandoned, but your mental health shouldn't be abandoned either. It can be a hard needle to thread.
YES!! I agree with everything you said about cancelling authors left and right on booktube! Also I am not on booktube as a creator, or even on social media at all, but thanks to watching booktube, the pressure of reading more really got to me last year. I read more than twice my normal amount of books last year to the point where I felt like I couldn't get a breath between stories. This new year I plan on taking it more slowly, not feeling competitive or pressured to read more than is enjoyable, just because other people on RUclips read more.
Oh my god yes to this whole video. literally reading was already hard for me and now with all the criticism of literally everything it’s so much harder then it has to be. Like my main platform isn’t even booktube, it’s bookstagram but I feel like all the book platforms at this point have just gotten competitive or toxic and it’s ruining everything I joined for. When I first started reading I read literally everything but then I came on bookstagram and now I just don’t read the books I want (or any at this point) or post. Like maybe id read a couple books a month but I used to read so much more and it’s literally just because of all the pressure and being scared of being cancelled for reading a certain author. Anyway to summarize all that. Judgement is never fun🤩
First time viewer, new Booktuber and I don't even get involved in all this drama about canceling people/authors/things. If you don't like something, move on. Don't feel pressured to read anything or a certain amount of books. I like when I'm watching videos and a person only read 5 books. It makes it more manageable as a viewer to watch too. I just did "A book a day in May" and that ONLY happened because I read a ton of middle grade, listened to a lot of audios and pushed myself. That was to challenge myself. That is definitely not setting the bar for me going forward. Also new to Twitter. I know how to like and retweet. I don't even look at anything in my feed because I don't need drama or to be aggravated. Great video, BTW. Cute glasses! Sorry for the long comment!
I’m late to watching this but I definitely agree with you! Book tube/booktok have kind of put me in a competitive mindset with my reading. I’ve noticed it’s less about enjoying the content of a book and more about getting to hit “read” on my goodreads. It’s also altered what I read content-wise as well I find I’m picking up books based on recs and trends instead of my own curiosity and I end up hating them/feeling like I wasted my time. Also, your right about people not knowing about authors. The truth is most people don’t know or care about the author when they pick up the book. Most ppl care about the cover and the description and unless that has a big “PROBLEMATIC” sticker on it, no one will know.
thank you for the takes on cancellation on booktube. as a black girl too, i also want to add i think the cancellation is 100% more intense and targeted at women, as well as POC. i've literally seen female authors get more or less blacklisted from the booktube world over twitter likes... people need to touch grass and stop sleuthing to find dirt they can hold over women's heads, it's getting weird. there's no attempt to teach, to educate, to reform, to explain, just attack attack attack. i literally just got done watching a video of someone hauling a massive collection from an author who has said things ppl feel is homophobic, and they didn't say a peep, but in the vid sent sly digs at other common punching bags of the booktube world. it's soooo performative, like if you're in the 'let's police and censor' then do it all the way, at least i can respect the standing by your convictions, but if you just attack the common punching bags, it's tired af, time to hang it up.
This whole comment ♥️✨ I definitely agree with everything you said. It’s getting extremely weird and comes off very performative and hypocritical at times. At this point, I am starting to be too exhausted to care about anything and I feel so bad 😩
Does this mean there's a male foil to Coho who's even worse but just continues to get away with it? (I'm sure there is, but can't think of him offhand)
I appreciate you so much! More Booktubers need to be open and genuine. You have very valid points and one that I struggle with the most is with the Harry Potter series. They were my LIFE growing up: standing in line for the midnight release of the Movies & the Books, Halloween costumes, etc... I have such fond memories that it’s hard to detach from it. And then I got my kids into it, and they love the books too. But I made the decision to not buy any new books that are put out going forward. Love your content and your personality, you’re just so awesome 🤩💕
As someone with a husband, a full-time job, and other hobbies I like to indulge in, 3-5 books a month is perfectly acceptable. I'm in two different book clubs right now, so I usually read those, and then one or two other things that I want to just because. The pressure toward speed-reading and consumerism is something I struggle with since starting to watch Booktube, and I don't even make content on here.
I’ve been a reader my whole life. And the amount I’ve read has always waxed and waned depending on what’s going on in my life. I didn’t discover book tube until recently and I was so shocked at the cancel culture epidemic in the community. I read for enjoyment. I don’t have the time or inclination to deep dive into an authors personal life to determine if they are problematic or not. I see a book and I read the synopsis and if I like it I read it. I rarely even look at the author. There is literally something in every persons past that can be seen as problematic to someone. It sucks the joy out of life to always look for the negative in everything. ETA: to speak to problematic content in the books themselves. It’s fiction. It’s not reality. And context is key. Even if you aren’t critically examining the book you should be able to use common sense that it has some sort of context in the grand scheme of the book. And you should be able to use your big adult brain to know that if you see that behavior in real life it’s not ok (I.e. abusive partners in romance novels etc.)
100% agree with the cancel culture around books. It’s so weird to me and it’s definitely something about the bookish community that i wish we as a group would be better about. It’s interesting too to look through the literature degree side of separating the author and then see quite frankly how that’s difficult to do at times. Definitely a complicated issue that deserves more time and discussion than just a comment 🙈
I have to take book twitter with a grain of salt. I think it’s important to understand the controversy and give up on books that aren’t great for their mental health. But at the same time nobody is going to have the same set of values and I think that canceling everyone outside of that set of values is shortsighted. Discussion and thoughtful consideration is great.
Really happy I found your channel. I love your personality. But your viewpoint on eliminating pressure from the reading experience and particularly your mature view on cancel culture in the Bookverse earned you an instant sub. PS- m ok with u discussing other content :)
i think the worst thing about current booktube culture is that people (me included) would love to start casual booktube channels but theres so much drama it feels like it isnt even worth it. ive seen people get cancelled into the ground over harmless jokes and ive seen fanbases send death threats to authors over character horoscope lore. i wouldnt want to want to hide my face if i did booktube either- but thats the sad reality if you dont want your identity doxxed over book drama.
U said all the right things... and its all truth.. thanks for sharing.... cause im one of those persons who'll read whatever, despite whatever comments they received.
As I start my channel, I will definitely keep these things in mind! 💕 I knew from the beginning I wanted to remain authentic to my own interests, patterns, etc so I can’t wait to see my evolution as well! Thank you for these bits of wisdom.
As I child I was an avid reader who could fly through a book in an afternoon, then I got into a teenage reading slump that didn’t end until I was almost 20, now I finish a book in 1-3 days depending on how long it is and how much free time I have. Recommendations have had minimal impact on my reading as I have limited resources for new books but the impact is still clear. I’m pretty good at ignoring booktube drama
Great video. I'm kind of in the middle on this topic. I never shame anyone for reading an author's books, unless I know that they are deliberately promoting something harmful (which I have never actually seen happen, thankfully).
I absolutely agree with you on all points! I think we tend to take cancellation on here a bit too far. Especially with the whole incident with JKR. I heard there were people being bullied off their channels because it was based around HP? They aren't the bad people in that situation? and in that case in particular that series helped and saved a lot of ppl so to just simply say "kick your nostalgia to the curb and find something else" I think is a bit thoughtless, heartless, and crude. I want us to have more thoughtful conversations where we can all be nice to each other. (I'm not condoning JKR's actions btw, she said some disgusting things) I'm just saying I've seen ppl make a whole big show of cancelling someone in the book community just because they were following JKR... the incident had just happened, not everyone sees everything and maybe they were following to keep up to date and respond accordingly. You JUST DON'T KNOW! As for reading slowly, me too! My friends read audiobooks on like 3x speed. I refuse, I won't go past 1.75x and that's when the author is just reading realllly slow. I want to enjoy the story, not "get through it". Thanks for making this video! Many valid points were made :)
Totally agree with audio book speed. How can you hear the emotion the narrator adds to the words at 3x speed. You can’t review a book with integrity if you never take the time, to enjoy the experience.
I totally agree that booktube has made me feel like i need to read more, but this is sometjing i started to work on this january. I want to read the books i want and when i want to, if i go 1-2 months without reading a single book, that is equally fine as when i read 5-6 books in a month. And one thing I have found that has changed my reading in a positive way because of booktube, is that i now read more diverse books not just to read diverse books, but because i have realized all the new content reading diverse books brings to you. Just the tiny elements that are different from authors from all over the world is such a joy to read!
Great points! Also, this is the first I'm seeing of your channel so hi! :) I have had issues with the pressure BookTube pushes for quantity over quality, and I'm doing the same thing this year as you did in 2021 by reevaluating how I want to read. I completely agree about all the outrage on "problematic" stories or authors. I mean, seriously, what are they going to do? Go up to someone reading a book and say, "Hey! This book personally offends me (or someone told me I should be offended) and even though you don't know me, you better stop reading this book right now!" Again, such a great video!
this is my favorite video on booktube. I keep coming back to it whenever I feel pressured to read certain books and it reminds me that reading should be fun. everyone has something unique to bring to the table, not to try to be a copy of the person who came before them. I feel like there will always be days when you don't get to read and months where your goals will not be reached and that's fine! also it's okay to read for enjoyment and it's okay to read critically. also it's okay to collect books and it's okay to be minimalist. you do you. booktube shouldn't feel stressful
This comment literally makes me so happy I made this video 💕💕💕 Thank you so much. I'm so glad it's able to benefit you so much friend 💕 And you're absolutely right!
Oh yes! I can't with the judgements and pressure. I left that bullying behind in school. I read what I want, when I want, how I want. I pay for these books. I spend my time searching for these books. I spend my day reading these books. It's like when people criticize my job or life-style...like you don't pay any bills in this house, Susan! You don't cook, clean, or take out the trash. Who are you to have the final say in what I bloody decide? My autonomy isn't a democracy. Everyone isn't getting a vote in what I do. Reading helps strengthen my creativity; no way am I putting that spark in the hands of another to dictate to me what is and isn't okay FOR ME. Side-note: I saw those glasses in the thumbnail and was really geek'd up to see them and go find me some. Then I realized they weren't prescription glasses, just frames, and it hurt me so much. 🤣 They are so cute. I need contacts so I can cop me a pair. Side-side-note: I seriously thought you were around 16, until the bio said 24 and I opp!
One thing I will say about booktube is that if someone sees ONE negative review they'll be like "oh no I was looking forward to that one" like just because they saw one negative review they can't read that book or make the decision for themselves to read that book. I love that people review books, but I honestly don't pay attention to books if I can help it. Also TikTok has ruined booktube for me. I don't like the majority of TikTok books and a lot of them are "spicy", and I don't like having romance and s*x shoved in my face all the time. I already have to deal with it in music and real life, I don't want it in my books either. I used to not mind it once in a while, but recently I've decided that I don't want to read anything spicy at all anymore because it's just ruined it for me. Also I've probably like a total of 2 TikTok books and hated the rest of them. And I'm not even a picky reader, at least I didn't think I was. Not to mention they're boycotting YA books now, which I'm not sure what that has to do with reading TikTok books. My mom was a literature major and would tell me all the time how much she hated that I read YA, and it sucks that I now see that same condescending attitude in the booktube community. Thank you for the video!
I definitely agree with a lot of the things you said. I put a huge amount of pressure on myself to read more and to read the books other people like since I started booktube/book blogging. It means that sometimes I force myself to read when I don't want to.
I can definitely relate. I literally am trying so hard to break out of this cycle and mindset and get back to doing what I enjoy. It’s so hard sometimes not to fall into the pressure ✨ I wish you the best with your reading journey ♥️
booktube and booktok got me thinking popular/viral novels must be rlly good when actually some of them just suck and the writing is mediocre 😂 they also got me thinking libraries are bad and i should be buying every single book i read when in reality i'm only gonna read it once and never again
New subscriber and totally agree. I don't always come to booktube but I frequent bookclubs on FB and Instagram. I feel so bad for a poster saying "ooh I love this book" then comes the onslaught of people informing this poor person why they should cancel the author. Now what's the chances this person will want to publicly participate in the group again? It so sad to see.
I am definitely learning more about cancel culture since joining bookstal/booktube, and generally I am doing my own research before making my own opinion, but it's true that it is hard to know everything problematic/foolish happening in the book community, and I was definitely not aware before joining the book community despite reading books 🤷🏽♀️
Well, I followed you over here from your other channel...I normally don't say much, Actually I'm usually the one sitting in the back with the popcorn, watching all the Tea...But Guuurl, I was snapping my fingers with you today...There are so many books I've read that I didn't even know who the Author was until after I read it. I personally don't do background checks on the authors before I read their books 🤷🏾♀️... It might just be me, but I would rather see you read less books and give more character and story info like you use to do. I really miss that 💜...Guuurl, I'm OLD, LOL...less is more,at least for me. I use to feel like I could keep up, especially when you would go over many of your tabs and stuff 🙂
I make TV show edits on my other channel and I've realized that it affected the way I watch shows in good and bad ways. Sometimes I force myself to watch a show just because I like the aesthetic of it and think it would be a good (and popular) edit even though I don't actually like the show all that much. I've stopped doing that so much now that I work full time, but I also still feel the pressure of watching the shows that everybody's doing edits of. I actually have so many shows on my to-watch list that I stopped watching them because I was getting mentally overwhelmed by all the choices. I'm very new to Booktube and not even sure if my content qualifies as Booktube so I haven't run into that problem with books yet, but that's definitely something to keep in mind. I want to monetize this channel at some point because I'm broke lol, but I don't want to turn something I'm passionate about into a hustle. While I think some cancellations are warranted, I agree that it's gone way too far. I don't pay attention unless it's something actually substantial like JK Rowling spreading harmful messages about trans people. I don't care what individual readers like, I care what people with huge platforms do with the power they have.
I loved this. I honestly feel the amount of reading some prolific booktubers do is incredibly intimidating. I honestly don't care about the numbers. I think it's more about inspiration and connecting over a love for books.
I love this take. That’s so true! It’s all about the connection you have with books 🥰💕✨It’s so intimidating to focus on the numbers and what everyone else is doing.
I relate so much to what you've said, especially your first two points about feeling pressured to read more and about reading books only based on recommendations, not by just discovering them by chance. So many of my reading habits are now influenced by how quickly I can finish a book, whether i can add it towards my reading challenge etc. and it honestly takes so much joy out of reading (for example, I will put off reading classics because i know they'll take me a long time). as for reading books based on recommendations, that has definitely made my reading more diverse (in terms of genre as well as reading stories about LGBTQ+, POC, disabled etc. characters). But I also miss just stumbling upon books by chance. As for reading books by "problematic authors", this is such a difficult topic, and there's a thin line to walk between wanting to hold people accountable and not supporting problematic authors, while also acknowledging that we're all just imperfect humans and that many people read for escapism and might not always want to keep up with everything coming up about every author.
I can't not believe how childish some of these booktubers are with the cancel culture! Whole videos just listing off all these 'problematic authors' as if their slanderous content isn't problematic. People think they are so superior. Im so disgusted with that part of booktube.
How is it even possible for people to read that much in a month? Girl I got 2 kids, a day job and a husband to please + don't get me started on the housework. Audiobooks have been a lifesaver to listen to during the day or while driving so thats been the main way I've been able to consume stories. I hope you've been able to enjoy reading more this last year. This is the first video I've watched of yours but yay for finding more booktubers to follow. Also so true, I don't pay any attention to what people bitch about at authors. I don't care about their personal life, we can still enjoy a book they wrote 🤷♀️ P.S love your glasses 😍
I don’t comment much but I watch all your videos from the beginning when you were only at 100 subscribers but everything you said I can understand and agree with as well. I used to be an avid reader then I went down to reading a book a month. I’ve gotten back into reading but I got more audiobooks and ebooks then physical books since they’re easier to read in a sense. How are you though? How’s your family?
Omg thank you so much for supporting me this long 😭♥️ Definitely switching up my book formats has helped so much, especially with a baby. Reading sometimes is so hard to do now even though i’m falling back in love with it.
Ur skin is glowing and gorgeous and I love those glasses! Did u put the crystals on urself? And speaking of other content, I would LOVE a skincare routine lol... this is my first video of yours I’ve seen but I like ur vibe, and ur skin is gorgeous... I know lighting plays a part and there are beauty filters, but also I heard that pregnancy can give u glowy skin... I wanna know ur secretssss lol
I can definitely relate. It’s a lot of pressure and it can become exhausting very quickly. You’re gonna do great though 🥰 don’t let the pressure burn you out.
I agree with a lot if what you said in this video. When I was reading The Love and Lies of Rukshana Ali so many white reviewers were cancelling it but a lot of them hadn’t read it and took into account the cultural context.
booktok and booktube actually really got me into reading this year! i read 200 books last year but that was because I wanted to get back into reading after starting high school, and it wasn't really a habit or something I did for fun so much. this year, I found a compilation of booktok videos on youtube and that completely got me into reading. I've already read heaps of books this year and I put that down to getting so many good recommendations and having more time. also because everyone talks lots about their favourite books and all of the tropes i am like hungry to read more of them if that makes sense! however, I do feel a fair bit of pressure on myself to read more when I see people who have already read like 150+ books already this year, even though no one is telling me that I should be reading more, and I also feel a bit "lesser" if that makes sense for not buying the books that I want to read (I utilise the library a lot) and not having as many books. idk a bit of a rant.
I read half a book a month. that's right. I have university, work, and a personal life, and on top of that because of my neurodevelopmental disorder I'm not able to read books and have to listen to audiobooks who obviously take more time to get through. and its okay! as long as we're enjoying what we're reading, why would it be wrong to do it slowly?
Totally agree on the 'reading for leisure' thing! I spent 5 years having to read critically for college and uni doing a literature degree - so 95% of the time now I read just to enjoy the story because I want to read for fun and not constantly try to interpret the intention of an author, which is something we can only guess at anyway, or digging through real or imagined layers of subtext 😂
OMG THIS COMMENT lol If only I could heart it a million times. That was exactly me after I got out of school. I want to relax and enjoy my reads as much as possible.
@@BookedWithJameelah I'm glad its not just meeee 🤣 I still read critically sometimes as I'm a writer myself but otherwise someone can be like 'so what did you think of the underlying themes of This Book' and I'm like... 'themes? What themes? But that fight scene was coooool. Oh look MAGIC YAY!' 😂 (I promise my degree wasn't a waste and I'm still capable of sophisticated thoughts)
for some reason I'm super late to this party 🙃 I'm a booktube viewer, not creator, and booktube has had a huge impact on reading both for better and for worse. I started watching booktube in 2019 and it reignited my love for reading. wonderful positive. additionally, booktube has caused me to start judging my reading behavior as 'bad' or 'good.' a reading month with 3 books is now a 'bad' job or fail in my mind, whereas a 20-book month is awesome/good job. I want to let go of that part. one final thing I appreciate about booktube is staying informed about book 'news' bc I def don't want to support authors with my money if they are out there spewing hate on Twitter and I like hearing about highly anticipated new releases. loved this video! ❤
The Gatorade 😂 This discussion was great! I literally feel the same and it’s so much pressure 😭 I am NOT a critical reader for books I read for FUN and booktube... Like Francina Simone’s book for instance....why was that book cancelled before the book even came out? 🙃
I’m so glad I’m not the only one. I was sweating a little uploading this 🤣 OMG yesss, I don’t even remember why Francina’s book was cancelled but I remember there been a big stink over some picture of a couple lines from the book. I really still want to read it for myself.
Reading is a very personal and cathartic experience for me. I can't buy this whole "author canceling" thing, especially because I think it's crucial to differentiate the person from their work. Nobody's perfect. It's not fair when we judge a work of art not for its objective and subjective merit but from the person who created it.
New subscriber. I’m just getting out of a reading slump because I was trying to read a lot of books in a moth span. But, I’m like a lot of people count audiobooks in their books read count. Don’t get me wrong, I like my audiobooks but does it really count as books read?! I mean you listen to it 😆
I wish Booktubers would not all review the same popular books, like go to the bookstore and get a book that is extremely unpopular and review it. Likewise reviewing books of the same genre, I get it can be their comfort zone but expand yourself into different genres. Lastly, a lot of the Booktubers that review the most recent popular books that have just come out, need to understand that in 3rd world countries people don't have access to those books or if it is sold it is EXTREMELY expensive to purchase... (sorry that is my 2 cents🙈)
6:20 YES! Thank you. One of the most annoying things about booktube recently... 🙄 Thanks for this video. Agree with basically all of it. 😂 Especially the point of not always reading critically. Look at Robinson Crusoe: for some people a childhood memory of an adventure story; for my English lit professor a story about colonialism. It‘s okay to read it both ways. Books are there to help us escape from reality from time to time and that’s enough and ok.
When someone tries to tell you that there is only one way to interpret or understand a book, they have forgotten that the core purpose of reading, for most people, is to develop their own personal connection (or not, if the book sucks for them!) with the text.
I wish I could remember who did this video a year or so ago but it was all about how cancelling people disproportionately effected minorities. Like if your a minority you must be perfect in your “minority-ness”??? It was an excellent video. And yeah as someone not on Twitter I never know about authors being problematic lol Edit: the video may have been by Sarah Z
The sheer amount of reading that is expected has caused me to burn out more often. It’s a shame, and it is put out there that you don’t have to read as much as others, but the pressure is there nonetheless.
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I read 2 books a month and I’m not ashamed of it. I’m a human with a life. Work, school etc. Reading is time consuming... like it can even be worse than Netflix🤣
That’s so true. I don’t know when I started putting all this pressure on myself tbh. Reading is definitely more time consuming than netflix...well, unless you binge watch all the time like me 🤣
@@BookedWithJameelah Exactly 🤣 also, reading should be fun! And when you start pushing yourself to read a lot and also fast, you’re not really enjoying and/or absorbing the story. So I’m glad you realized that! Happy reading❤️
Happy reading to you too ☺️✨
No shit, I agree! This isn't a contest- I read books to enjoy them. Not to mention that some of the books I like reading are long so I don't get the "I read 15 books a month" bragging rights. I work full time and overtime every week and I'm reading Lonesome Dove, which is like, 900 pages. I don't understand why reading an extremely high number of books in a certain time period can be seen as an accomplishment
“It can be worse than Netflix” has to be the stupidest take on reading I’ve heard in a long time. You could be reading 50 shades of grey and 10/10 times that’s still going to be better for your brain than binging stranger things.
Great video!! I think booktubers ‘read’ such excessive amounts because:
1) read YA books. Which are great but if you’re an adult in your mid 20s YA fic is easy and quick to read
2) listen to audiobooks. Not saying that shouldn’t count but it’s objectively easier to squeeze in 1 book a day if you’re listening to it while doing other things
3) they skim through or speed read. Which defeats the purpose of gaining something from a story. How do you even appreciate books when you don’t stop and think while reading it
3-5 books a month is a book every week! 50 books a year? That's goals for me. Booktube needs to chill smh
Completely agree with you that booktube cancel culture is exhausting. To me a lot of it feels like some people trying to overly control everyone else’s reading according to their own biased reasoning. Start a conversation, but stop with the power tripping ahah
what I think is most problematic about cancelling is assuming that everyone is up to speed on everything problematic with authors/books and so their approach is to always attack first
The attacking first logic and acting like everyone is always aware is absolutely ridiculous to me. It just so sad to me.
Completely agree! I'm older and we never had this kind of gossipy cancel stuff when I was young, this is brand new. The way I chose books for decades was just: go to a bookstore, look at covers, pick up books and read the blurb, if blurb sounds interesting read the first few pages. Then I just made an autonomous decision all by myself and bought it. I certainly didn't check with all the cool kids first too see if they approved of my choice!
I get so much of what you're saying, I stopped using twitter a lot because of the many arguments about what books suck, faerie smut, only showing snippets of a book and everyone canceling that book then you discover months or even weeks later what the context of those lines were.
I never actually have interest in the books I've seen discussed heavily on the topic of them being problematic but it does get overwhelming and makes me super anxious about whether or not I'm out here supporting problematic authors. So I just started researching and approaching books more consciously when I see a book that interests me. And as you said, if an author has done something that many ppl find and know to be problematic, it's only fair to address that when you speak highly of their book or something.
Yes I think i’m about to leave twitter because i’m realizing it stresses me out and brings lots of negativity at times that i don’t need when i already have it in my real life.
For a while I was so quick to jump on the cancelling bandwagon until i realized sometimes people were actually wrong about the author and what they were trying to portray. But by then the damage was done to the new author and couldn’t really be reversed.
I’m hoping I can reach a point where I take more care in the books I pick up the way you are. Sometimes it’s frustrating because I research and still end up messing it up some how lol 😆 But I’ll definitely try to still mention important controversy surrounding the books I talk about if I’m aware of it.
12:23 - Yes! And there have been times when I'll hear in every other video "I refuse to read this author because we all know what they did." But then when I try to search the internet to figure out what it was that they did, all I find is more videos of people saying that author is problematic without actually explaining why and it's just like ugh. It's not worth the energy sometimes.
THIS
This constant demand to stay up-to-date with who is currently on the sh*t list is also particularly hard for foreign booktubers/fans, because it's is a very US American thing, and it then tries to force itself on everyone across the whole world. Suddenly, it's not good enough anymore that I read a few books in English to improve my vocabulary and just for fun because they sound interesting. Suddenly I have to be intimately familiar with every nuance and hot topic the US media comes up with, and who's on which side of it, and I just don't want to. I've got my own country, and we've got our own hot topics, and I just want to read some fantasy for fun.
In terms of "supporting": my average ebook costs around 1-3 bucks here, the author will maybe get at most 80 Cents: so the worst case scenario is that some author who once had an unpopular or wrong opinion on something can buy themselves a banana. They're welcome to it! Besides, from my perspective, most Americans have pretty uninformed opinions on a lot of things, including most authors. Keeping track of who has the currently accepted "right" uninformed opinions and who's got the wrong ones: no thanks. Especially when it often turns out to have been much ado about nothing!
When I buy a croissant, do I interrogate the local baker about all of their various political opinions first to see if they baked the croissant while being ideologically perfectly aligned with me? No, I just buy the croissant and allow them to be right or wrong or have whatever perspective they like. Nor do I follow the baker on social media to check exactly if they ever like something I disapprove of: that's just creepy, I leave them alone. And I just do the same thing with authors. It's called allowing people to be free, including free to not have to be perfect and not have to always be in agreement with what I think is right. Besides, what if it later turns out *I* was wrong, and they actually had a good point? Then I would have cancelled all the wrong people. Better to just relax about it: also much better for one's mental health.
The analogy with the croissant was on spot. I agree very much with your points, I'm not American/English either and it's very annoying and hypocritical when people are canceling a book because of the author.
There are very few authors on any shit list to be honest mate... most authors are fucking great people!
It sounds like you either had some bad luck with some of the authors you read or you're blowing it out of proportion 🤣
Also, read whatever you want! It doesnt matter, youre not a bad person cuz you read Harry Potter or whatever 🤣
Well said, really made me want a croissant though.
Most readers don't even watch booktubers and do not follow them (or authors) on IG or Twitter so they don't know anything about dramas in this community. They just read books. I'm from an Eastern-Europe country. How many people here, do you think, watch English-speaking booktubers to know about all problematic books and authors? Not that much. And we don't have that many native-speaking booktubers to talk about these issues. Most of my friends didn't know that J.K. Rowling is a transphobe before I told them about that. The majority of the people in my country do not know what cultural appropriation is so they don't know that Jay Kristoff is a problematic author and read his books and like them a lot. My best friend doesn't know anything about Goodreads, for example, but she's an active reader. Booktube is a very US-centric place and many creators forget that not all readers live in the USA or Canada or other English-speaking countries.
Just wondering- when you told ur friends about jk Rowling and jay kristoff (I gotta look him up idk who that is, lol! I wonder if I’ll agree that he’s problematic)- did you tell them this with the intention to get them to stop reading these people?
Or did you just want them to know?
Basically I guess I’m curious if you think people should stop consuming the art (books, music, movies, etc) of people who are “problematic” in whatever way, especially when that way is minor- “cultural appropriation” is way different than if someone was like a racist white or black supremacist and was full of hate... hope that makes sense, lol
Something irks me about people judging others on these things, like for example with music- I know a lot of artists are problematic but the music is too good not to listen to! I also think a lot of it is created in a flow state where it’s basically being channeled through the artist- u can hear interviews with Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney and they speak of how they don’t feel like they even write their songs, they just come out of nowhere and pop into their head and they just write it down... literally channeling it from a higher power, lol...
Anyway, if Paul McCartney was exposed for being like a pedo or something horrible, I truly don’t think I would stop listening to the Beatles, although I would def have a period of time where it would be weird and gross to hear his voice
Maybe this is a controversial opinion, idk. “Separate the artist from the art” type thing... we are all humans, but a piece of art lives forever and it kinda becomes a standalone thing with a life of its own
Just looked up jay kristoff and am confused- it says he writes fantasy... but yet somehow people expect his books to accurately depict Japanese people? It’s not historical fiction lol it’s fantasy! And it’s literally a fictional world, only inspired by Japan... this is where I feel like people have too much time on their hands- if that’s what someone is worrying about or choosing to waste energy on, it makes me feel like they’ve never experienced real life shit, like death, trauma, illness, etc.. cuz if they have, they would see how petty and inconsequential that is... like why don’t we focus on people who have bad intentions and want to harm others? Instead of trying to cancel some dude who wrote literal fiction and incorporated elements of imperial japan into a fantasy novel... it just sets really bad precedent... like freedom of speech type shit... authors shouldn’t be scared to express themselves
facts
that's so so true
I definitely agree with you about the canceling books and authors thing. It really just comes off as fake woke to me. If you search for a problem you will most definitely find it in any form of media including your fav shows/brands. Someone involved most likely has done something problematic.
Yes! A lot of the time people don't even do thorough research and just jump on the bandwagon. It's so unfortunate that so many of the books we read have problematic authors but as humans, most of us end up being problematic in some way. As long as we learn and evolve from our mistakes, I think that is the most important thing.
@@BookedWithJameelah I agree. I’m very glad I found this channel. I look forward to more insightful videos like this one.
to add on to that, I'll see some people call someone "problematic" without actually explaining what said person did that was problematic. I saw this one post about an author doing racist stuff and I was like "well yeah that sounds pretty bad so I won't support them" and then they went on to say "and this other author is problematic" and I'm like ok well what did they do? i need more info than that.
I love this video!
I am a very slow reader, but that's ok. I agreed when you said you want to read slowly to remember what the book is about. It's annoying to watch some booktubers do a monthly wrap-up, and they can't even remember what the books are about.
I definitely think booktube has made me feel bad about my reading habits... I read solely for fun and don't really keep track of how many books I read, but I'm feeling compelled to start doing it now, and I'm not sure I like that
I love your glasses! ✨ Also didn't realize this was the video I'd been waiting for...when I hear about people reading 30 books in 30 days, all I can say is HOW??
I mean it's not impossible. When I was in HS and had more time I actually ready 6 books in a series in 7 days. I remember pulling a 72 hr all nighter because I was just hooked (which I definitely don't recommend). And then after I was done I was kind of caught up in a book hangover or post series depression and took a break from reading. So I didn't read 30 books in the 30 days lol, but I think it's possible if a person doesn't feel that way at the end of every series or standalone book. I think the real downside to people doing that is that they focus more on the quantity rather than actually soaking in what they read and enjoying it, the actual quality of it. I was lucky enough that I didn't go through that when I was binge reading. But I also think that it's just kind of unhealthy to not take breaks in between or to keep up with oneself, or like what I did which was not sleep for 3 days straight.
THIS! I feel like sometimes it’s better to read controversial books to form a proper opinion on them separate from others influence, otherwise why speak about books you don’t actually read? If you know what is problematic, you can better articulate your thoughts to your viewers/peers and start a conversation versus just shutting it down. I feel like your points are also applicable to so much of pop culture - movies, music, etc.
I don’t have a Twitter so I sometimes find out an author did something *months* after it happens. I would hate to see someone “canceled” because they simply didn’t know.
I'm honestly terrified of book twitter, I had horrible experiences with twitter and I have a twitter now only to follow mostly gamers I want to keep up with. And only a couple authors/book people who I really love and they don't have any other social media.
lol 3-5 books a month is low?! damn, what am I doing on booktube then :P
LOL but for real, some people are just amazing at how much they read! I totally get the pressure to read more and the pressure to read certain books/levels which I also don't enjoy - but just trying to push through and read what I like!
This video is everything ❤️ I very much agree with everything you say, but more than that. Truly, statement of the year “I just want reading to be fun again”.
Thank you 🥰
I totally agree. I started watching booktube in like 2013/2014 and it severely changed how I interact with books and reading for the worse. It’s to the point where I won’t even bother reading a book if I haven’t heard someone on RUclips recommend it. When I was younger the books I chose to read were entirely my own and now they aren’t. Don’t know how to get back to that place honestly.
I love this conversation! I definitely agree that I want to read more books that I find by myself. Since I discovered booktube years ago pretty much all the books I read are books I've heard about somewhere online. I miss the days of just finding a book at a bookstore/library and reading it. Also, booktube has lead me to purchase more books. Before I started watching booktube I had one tiny shelf and now I have a big shelf that's overflowing with books.
I completely agree with all of your points. Honestly, just let people read what they want to read, and let people buy books or not. Like, let people live their own lives, please.
YES! THIS!
I’ve noticed that since I’ve started BookTube, I’ve been pushing myself to read a lot more and it’s not great. I tell myself I gotta read, bring up the number of books I read in a month and now I’m getting to the point where that pressure is killin my buzz. I’m getting slumpy because I’m putting so much pressure on myself during a time when I need to focus on others aspects of my life for a bit.
I’m trying to reframe my mind and remember that if I read a smaller amount of books in a month, I get to go into more depth about them in my wrap-ups. I love to critically engage with a good number of my books, not all, some are fluff or for the fun reads, but reading a smaller amount makes that possible.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
i agree with you, being an avid consumer of booktube content i've noticed that i've been forcing myself to read a lot more than i used to until reading starts to feel like a task.
Yes! I totally agree and I like this more relaxed way of reading and interacting with books/other readers. This expectation to constantly be online and up to date on everything is not healthy, I don't think. That said, I am glad people are talking about problematic authers and hope that we can promote the kind of industry we want to read from. I'm not on booktube and I still feel the pressure to read a high number of books each month. One of my goals this year is to read less and to be more present (take my time) with everything I'm reading. ♥️
I’m planning to start up my own channel soon! I’m super nervous but excited for it. I really hope that by finally joining this community I can share my love books but not change my reading habits in order to stay relevant.
We need people with different book tastes, reading rates etc. if we did we wouldn’t discover new books to enjoy. Love your vid! 🥰
First time viewer, subscribed at once. All your points are so true for me. Especially cancel culture. I'm not on Twitter, so half the time I have no idea what is going on and who gets cancelled for what is so random. It seems to me that the authors who are still in the midst of publishing popular/anticipated books get a lot more leniency. It just seems hypocritical at times. Plus, if an author says something offensive, it might just be due to a lack of education on an issue. And calmly and compassionatly explaining why what they said/did was hurtful is going to be a lot more helpful than online hate.
Yes yes yes! I absolutely agree with a lot of points here. Everyone is human, everyone makes mistakes, everyone will be “problematic” at one stage or another because we’re all always learning (obviously some people refuse to learn or apologise for their actions, but they’re often in the minority). It sometimes feels that if you miss one important conversation on social media about an author or a book, you’re suddenly reading a problematic book. There’s SO MUCH to keep track of at all times, it’s exhausting. Readers are doing the best they can to find and read books that speak to them. Let’s just all take a deep breath and chill. Thanks for such a fantastic video!
I agreed with everything you were saying, obviously it's important to stay informed about what's going on around the world, but we're all human and we all have our limits. Especially with social media (specifically Twitter), I think everyone, myself included, has spread themselves so thin by trying to know everything about everything, and it's so detrimental to mental health. If you want reading to be fun escapism with no deeper meaning, great! If you want to read critically and do a deep dive on what you're reading about, great! Obviously being informed and educating yourself is extremely important and shouldn't be completely abandoned, but your mental health shouldn't be abandoned either. It can be a hard needle to thread.
This is my first video of yours and YESSS to everything! Thank you!
Aww thank you so much for watching 💕
YES!! I agree with everything you said about cancelling authors left and right on booktube! Also I am not on booktube as a creator, or even on social media at all, but thanks to watching booktube, the pressure of reading more really got to me last year. I read more than twice my normal amount of books last year to the point where I felt like I couldn't get a breath between stories. This new year I plan on taking it more slowly, not feeling competitive or pressured to read more than is enjoyable, just because other people on RUclips read more.
Oh my god yes to this whole video. literally reading was already hard for me and now with all the criticism of literally everything it’s so much harder then it has to be. Like my main platform isn’t even booktube, it’s bookstagram but I feel like all the book platforms at this point have just gotten competitive or toxic and it’s ruining everything I joined for. When I first started reading I read literally everything but then I came on bookstagram and now I just don’t read the books I want (or any at this point) or post. Like maybe id read a couple books a month but I used to read so much more and it’s literally just because of all the pressure and being scared of being cancelled for reading a certain author. Anyway to summarize all that. Judgement is never fun🤩
First time viewer, new Booktuber and I don't even get involved in all this drama about canceling people/authors/things. If you don't like something, move on.
Don't feel pressured to read anything or a certain amount of books. I like when I'm watching videos and a person only read 5 books. It makes it more manageable as a viewer to watch too.
I just did "A book a day in May" and that ONLY happened because I read a ton of middle grade, listened to a lot of audios and pushed myself. That was to challenge myself. That is definitely not setting the bar for me going forward.
Also new to Twitter. I know how to like and retweet. I don't even look at anything in my feed because I don't need drama or to be aggravated.
Great video, BTW. Cute glasses! Sorry for the long comment!
I’m late to watching this but I definitely agree with you! Book tube/booktok have kind of put me in a competitive mindset with my reading. I’ve noticed it’s less about enjoying the content of a book and more about getting to hit “read” on my goodreads. It’s also altered what I read content-wise as well I find I’m picking up books based on recs and trends instead of my own curiosity and I end up hating them/feeling like I wasted my time. Also, your right about people not knowing about authors. The truth is most people don’t know or care about the author when they pick up the book. Most ppl care about the cover and the description and unless that has a big “PROBLEMATIC” sticker on it, no one will know.
thank you for the takes on cancellation on booktube. as a black girl too, i also want to add i think the cancellation is 100% more intense and targeted at women, as well as POC. i've literally seen female authors get more or less blacklisted from the booktube world over twitter likes... people need to touch grass and stop sleuthing to find dirt they can hold over women's heads, it's getting weird. there's no attempt to teach, to educate, to reform, to explain, just attack attack attack.
i literally just got done watching a video of someone hauling a massive collection from an author who has said things ppl feel is homophobic, and they didn't say a peep, but in the vid sent sly digs at other common punching bags of the booktube world. it's soooo performative, like if you're in the 'let's police and censor' then do it all the way, at least i can respect the standing by your convictions, but if you just attack the common punching bags, it's tired af, time to hang it up.
This whole comment ♥️✨ I definitely agree with everything you said. It’s getting extremely weird and comes off very performative and hypocritical at times. At this point, I am starting to be too exhausted to care about anything and I feel so bad 😩
Does this mean there's a male foil to Coho who's even worse but just continues to get away with it? (I'm sure there is, but can't think of him offhand)
Subbed because of this video. Love the honesty.
I appreciate you so much! More Booktubers need to be open and genuine.
You have very valid points and one that I struggle with the most is with the Harry Potter series. They were my LIFE growing up: standing in line for the midnight release of the Movies & the Books, Halloween costumes, etc... I have such fond memories that it’s hard to detach from it. And then I got my kids into it, and they love the books too. But I made the decision to not buy any new books that are put out going forward.
Love your content and your personality, you’re just so awesome 🤩💕
As someone with a husband, a full-time job, and other hobbies I like to indulge in, 3-5 books a month is perfectly acceptable. I'm in two different book clubs right now, so I usually read those, and then one or two other things that I want to just because. The pressure toward speed-reading and consumerism is something I struggle with since starting to watch Booktube, and I don't even make content on here.
I’ve been a reader my whole life. And the amount I’ve read has always waxed and waned depending on what’s going on in my life. I didn’t discover book tube until recently and I was so shocked at the cancel culture epidemic in the community. I read for enjoyment. I don’t have the time or inclination to deep dive into an authors personal life to determine if they are problematic or not. I see a book and I read the synopsis and if I like it I read it. I rarely even look at the author. There is literally something in every persons past that can be seen as problematic to someone. It sucks the joy out of life to always look for the negative in everything.
ETA: to speak to problematic content in the books themselves. It’s fiction. It’s not reality. And context is key. Even if you aren’t critically examining the book you should be able to use common sense that it has some sort of context in the grand scheme of the book. And you should be able to use your big adult brain to know that if you see that behavior in real life it’s not ok (I.e. abusive partners in romance novels etc.)
100% agree with the cancel culture around books. It’s so weird to me and it’s definitely something about the bookish community that i wish we as a group would be better about. It’s interesting too to look through the literature degree side of separating the author and then see quite frankly how that’s difficult to do at times. Definitely a complicated issue that deserves more time and discussion than just a comment 🙈
love this discussion. great points!
thank you 😊💕
I have to take book twitter with a grain of salt. I think it’s important to understand the controversy and give up on books that aren’t great for their mental health. But at the same time nobody is going to have the same set of values and I think that canceling everyone outside of that set of values is shortsighted. Discussion and thoughtful consideration is great.
Really happy I found your channel. I love your personality. But your viewpoint on eliminating pressure from the reading experience and particularly your mature view on cancel culture in the Bookverse earned you an instant sub. PS- m ok with u discussing other content :)
i think the worst thing about current booktube culture is that people (me included) would love to start casual booktube channels but theres so much drama it feels like it isnt even worth it. ive seen people get cancelled into the ground over harmless jokes and ive seen fanbases send death threats to authors over character horoscope lore. i wouldnt want to want to hide my face if i did booktube either- but thats the sad reality if you dont want your identity doxxed over book drama.
U said all the right things... and its all truth.. thanks for sharing.... cause im one of those persons who'll read whatever, despite whatever comments they received.
i'm new to booktube but have been on bookstagram for 3 years and i can totallyy relate!
2022 and this video is still very much relevant! I’m not on toxic twitter so I have no clue what goes on there.
As I start my channel, I will definitely keep these things in mind! 💕 I knew from the beginning I wanted to remain authentic to my own interests, patterns, etc so I can’t wait to see my evolution as well! Thank you for these bits of wisdom.
You're welcome, so happy to help 💕 Thanks so much for watching!
As I child I was an avid reader who could fly through a book in an afternoon, then I got into a teenage reading slump that didn’t end until I was almost 20, now I finish a book in 1-3 days depending on how long it is and how much free time I have. Recommendations have had minimal impact on my reading as I have limited resources for new books but the impact is still clear. I’m pretty good at ignoring booktube drama
Great video. I'm kind of in the middle on this topic. I never shame anyone for reading an author's books, unless I know that they are deliberately promoting something harmful (which I have never actually seen happen, thankfully).
I absolutely agree with you on all points! I think we tend to take cancellation on here a bit too far. Especially with the whole incident with JKR. I heard there were people being bullied off their channels because it was based around HP? They aren't the bad people in that situation? and in that case in particular that series helped and saved a lot of ppl so to just simply say "kick your nostalgia to the curb and find something else" I think is a bit thoughtless, heartless, and crude. I want us to have more thoughtful conversations where we can all be nice to each other. (I'm not condoning JKR's actions btw, she said some disgusting things) I'm just saying I've seen ppl make a whole big show of cancelling someone in the book community just because they were following JKR... the incident had just happened, not everyone sees everything and maybe they were following to keep up to date and respond accordingly. You JUST DON'T KNOW! As for reading slowly, me too! My friends read audiobooks on like 3x speed. I refuse, I won't go past 1.75x and that's when the author is just reading realllly slow. I want to enjoy the story, not "get through it". Thanks for making this video! Many valid points were made :)
Totally agree with audio book speed. How can you hear the emotion the narrator adds to the words at 3x speed. You can’t review a book with integrity if you never take the time, to enjoy the experience.
I totally agree that booktube has made me feel like i need to read more, but this is sometjing i started to work on this january. I want to read the books i want and when i want to, if i go 1-2 months without reading a single book, that is equally fine as when i read 5-6 books in a month.
And one thing I have found that has changed my reading in a positive way because of booktube, is that i now read more diverse books not just to read diverse books, but because i have realized all the new content reading diverse books brings to you.
Just the tiny elements that are different from authors from all over the world is such a joy to read!
THIS. I AGREE WITH EVERYTHING YOUVE SAID.
Thank you 💕✨I'm glad you gave it a watch.
Great points! Also, this is the first I'm seeing of your channel so hi! :) I have had issues with the pressure BookTube pushes for quantity over quality, and I'm doing the same thing this year as you did in 2021 by reevaluating how I want to read. I completely agree about all the outrage on "problematic" stories or authors. I mean, seriously, what are they going to do? Go up to someone reading a book and say, "Hey! This book personally offends me (or someone told me I should be offended) and even though you don't know me, you better stop reading this book right now!" Again, such a great video!
this is my favorite video on booktube. I keep coming back to it whenever I feel pressured to read certain books and it reminds me that reading should be fun. everyone has something unique to bring to the table, not to try to be a copy of the person who came before them. I feel like there will always be days when you don't get to read and months where your goals will not be reached and that's fine! also it's okay to read for enjoyment and it's okay to read critically. also it's okay to collect books and it's okay to be minimalist. you do you. booktube shouldn't feel stressful
This comment literally makes me so happy I made this video 💕💕💕 Thank you so much. I'm so glad it's able to benefit you so much friend 💕 And you're absolutely right!
Your glasses are super cute I love them
Thanks so much 😊♥️
Oh yes! I can't with the judgements and pressure. I left that bullying behind in school. I read what I want, when I want, how I want. I pay for these books. I spend my time searching for these books. I spend my day reading these books. It's like when people criticize my job or life-style...like you don't pay any bills in this house, Susan! You don't cook, clean, or take out the trash. Who are you to have the final say in what I bloody decide? My autonomy isn't a democracy. Everyone isn't getting a vote in what I do. Reading helps strengthen my creativity; no way am I putting that spark in the hands of another to dictate to me what is and isn't okay FOR ME.
Side-note: I saw those glasses in the thumbnail and was really geek'd up to see them and go find me some. Then I realized they weren't prescription glasses, just frames, and it hurt me so much. 🤣 They are so cute. I need contacts so I can cop me a pair.
Side-side-note: I seriously thought you were around 16, until the bio said 24 and I opp!
One thing I will say about booktube is that if someone sees ONE negative review they'll be like "oh no I was looking forward to that one" like just because they saw one negative review they can't read that book or make the decision for themselves to read that book. I love that people review books, but I honestly don't pay attention to books if I can help it. Also TikTok has ruined booktube for me. I don't like the majority of TikTok books and a lot of them are "spicy", and I don't like having romance and s*x shoved in my face all the time. I already have to deal with it in music and real life, I don't want it in my books either. I used to not mind it once in a while, but recently I've decided that I don't want to read anything spicy at all anymore because it's just ruined it for me. Also I've probably like a total of 2 TikTok books and hated the rest of them. And I'm not even a picky reader, at least I didn't think I was. Not to mention they're boycotting YA books now, which I'm not sure what that has to do with reading TikTok books. My mom was a literature major and would tell me all the time how much she hated that I read YA, and it sucks that I now see that same condescending attitude in the booktube community. Thank you for the video!
16:36 THIS!!
also fun fact
if you only read fanfics, or fiction published only on the internet you are still a reader!!
Yesss exactly! Someone gets it! 💕
lets goooo Mashalah sister ! love that theres muslim represention on BookTube!
I definitely agree with a lot of the things you said. I put a huge amount of pressure on myself to read more and to read the books other people like since I started booktube/book blogging. It means that sometimes I force myself to read when I don't want to.
I can definitely relate. I literally am trying so hard to break out of this cycle and mindset and get back to doing what I enjoy. It’s so hard sometimes not to fall into the pressure ✨ I wish you the best with your reading journey ♥️
Yes yes yes yes and yes 🙌🏽
I just found booktube two months ago, and I appreciate that you pointed this out.
booktube and booktok got me thinking popular/viral novels must be rlly good when actually some of them just suck and the writing is mediocre 😂 they also got me thinking libraries are bad and i should be buying every single book i read when in reality i'm only gonna read it once and never again
Yesss, finally with whom I can agree. I only read for enjoyment and I don't really over analyze it.
I read 8 books in may and it was the highest I got in years. This months? finishing my long ass fave series and relaxing
New subscriber and totally agree. I don't always come to booktube but I frequent bookclubs on FB and Instagram. I feel so bad for a poster saying "ooh I love this book" then comes the onslaught of people informing this poor person why they should cancel the author. Now what's the chances this person will want to publicly participate in the group again? It so sad to see.
Welcome to the family and thank you so much for subscribing! That's true, sometimes it makes it seem much easier to read alone.
I am definitely learning more about cancel culture since joining bookstal/booktube, and generally I am doing my own research before making my own opinion, but it's true that it is hard to know everything problematic/foolish happening in the book community, and I was definitely not aware before joining the book community despite reading books 🤷🏽♀️
Well, I followed you over here from your other channel...I normally don't say much, Actually I'm usually the one sitting in the back with the popcorn, watching all the Tea...But Guuurl, I was snapping my fingers with you today...There are so many books I've read that I didn't even know who the Author was until after I read it. I personally don't do background checks on the authors before I read their books 🤷🏾♀️...
It might just be me, but I would rather see you read less books and give more character and story info like you use to do. I really miss that 💜...Guuurl, I'm OLD, LOL...less is more,at least for me. I use to feel like I could keep up, especially when you would go over many of your tabs and stuff 🙂
I make TV show edits on my other channel and I've realized that it affected the way I watch shows in good and bad ways. Sometimes I force myself to watch a show just because I like the aesthetic of it and think it would be a good (and popular) edit even though I don't actually like the show all that much. I've stopped doing that so much now that I work full time, but I also still feel the pressure of watching the shows that everybody's doing edits of. I actually have so many shows on my to-watch list that I stopped watching them because I was getting mentally overwhelmed by all the choices.
I'm very new to Booktube and not even sure if my content qualifies as Booktube so I haven't run into that problem with books yet, but that's definitely something to keep in mind. I want to monetize this channel at some point because I'm broke lol, but I don't want to turn something I'm passionate about into a hustle.
While I think some cancellations are warranted, I agree that it's gone way too far. I don't pay attention unless it's something actually substantial like JK Rowling spreading harmful messages about trans people. I don't care what individual readers like, I care what people with huge platforms do with the power they have.
I loved this. I honestly feel the amount of reading some prolific booktubers do is incredibly intimidating. I honestly don't care about the numbers. I think it's more about inspiration and connecting over a love for books.
I love this take. That’s so true! It’s all about the connection you have with books 🥰💕✨It’s so intimidating to focus on the numbers and what everyone else is doing.
I relate so much to what you've said, especially your first two points about feeling pressured to read more and about reading books only based on recommendations, not by just discovering them by chance. So many of my reading habits are now influenced by how quickly I can finish a book, whether i can add it towards my reading challenge etc. and it honestly takes so much joy out of reading (for example, I will put off reading classics because i know they'll take me a long time). as for reading books based on recommendations, that has definitely made my reading more diverse (in terms of genre as well as reading stories about LGBTQ+, POC, disabled etc. characters). But I also miss just stumbling upon books by chance.
As for reading books by "problematic authors", this is such a difficult topic, and there's a thin line to walk between wanting to hold people accountable and not supporting problematic authors, while also acknowledging that we're all just imperfect humans and that many people read for escapism and might not always want to keep up with everything coming up about every author.
I can't not believe how childish some of these booktubers are with the cancel culture! Whole videos just listing off all these 'problematic authors' as if their slanderous content isn't problematic. People think they are so superior. Im so disgusted with that part of booktube.
New viewer. *waves* Just wanted to say I appreciated all your comments and they way you delivered them. Nicely done.
How is it even possible for people to read that much in a month?
Girl I got 2 kids, a day job and a husband to please + don't get me started on the housework.
Audiobooks have been a lifesaver to listen to during the day or while driving so thats been the main way I've been able to consume stories.
I hope you've been able to enjoy reading more this last year. This is the first video I've watched of yours but yay for finding more booktubers to follow.
Also so true, I don't pay any attention to what people bitch about at authors. I don't care about their personal life, we can still enjoy a book they wrote 🤷♀️
P.S love your glasses 😍
I don’t comment much but I watch all your videos from the beginning when you were only at 100 subscribers but everything you said I can understand and agree with as well. I used to be an avid reader then I went down to reading a book a month. I’ve gotten back into reading but I got more audiobooks and ebooks then physical books since they’re easier to read in a sense. How are you though? How’s your family?
Omg thank you so much for supporting me this long 😭♥️ Definitely switching up my book formats has helped so much, especially with a baby. Reading sometimes is so hard to do now even though i’m falling back in love with it.
Ur skin is glowing and gorgeous and I love those glasses! Did u put the crystals on urself? And speaking of other content, I would LOVE a skincare routine lol... this is my first video of yours I’ve seen but I like ur vibe, and ur skin is gorgeous... I know lighting plays a part and there are beauty filters, but also I heard that pregnancy can give u glowy skin... I wanna know ur secretssss lol
I just started and immediately got overwhelemed for these exact reasons of not reading enough. i was just buying stuff.
I can definitely relate. It’s a lot of pressure and it can become exhausting very quickly. You’re gonna do great though 🥰 don’t let the pressure burn you out.
fucking finally found my comfort channel.
I agree with a lot if what you said in this video. When I was reading The Love and Lies of Rukshana Ali so many white reviewers were cancelling it but a lot of them hadn’t read it and took into account the cultural context.
booktok and booktube actually really got me into reading this year! i read 200 books last year but that was because I wanted to get back into reading after starting high school, and it wasn't really a habit or something I did for fun so much. this year, I found a compilation of booktok videos on youtube and that completely got me into reading. I've already read heaps of books this year and I put that down to getting so many good recommendations and having more time. also because everyone talks lots about their favourite books and all of the tropes i am like hungry to read more of them if that makes sense!
however, I do feel a fair bit of pressure on myself to read more when I see people who have already read like 150+ books already this year, even though no one is telling me that I should be reading more, and I also feel a bit "lesser" if that makes sense for not buying the books that I want to read (I utilise the library a lot) and not having as many books. idk a bit of a rant.
PREACH 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽
I love discussion videos. ♥️🌵
I read half a book a month. that's right. I have university, work, and a personal life, and on top of that because of my neurodevelopmental disorder I'm not able to read books and have to listen to audiobooks who obviously take more time to get through. and its okay! as long as we're enjoying what we're reading, why would it be wrong to do it slowly?
Totally agree on the 'reading for leisure' thing! I spent 5 years having to read critically for college and uni doing a literature degree - so 95% of the time now I read just to enjoy the story because I want to read for fun and not constantly try to interpret the intention of an author, which is something we can only guess at anyway, or digging through real or imagined layers of subtext 😂
OMG THIS COMMENT lol If only I could heart it a million times. That was exactly me after I got out of school. I want to relax and enjoy my reads as much as possible.
@@BookedWithJameelah I'm glad its not just meeee 🤣 I still read critically sometimes as I'm a writer myself but otherwise someone can be like 'so what did you think of the underlying themes of This Book' and I'm like... 'themes? What themes? But that fight scene was coooool. Oh look MAGIC YAY!' 😂 (I promise my degree wasn't a waste and I'm still capable of sophisticated thoughts)
for some reason I'm super late to this party 🙃 I'm a booktube viewer, not creator, and booktube has had a huge impact on reading both for better and for worse. I started watching booktube in 2019 and it reignited my love for reading. wonderful positive. additionally, booktube has caused me to start judging my reading behavior as 'bad' or 'good.' a reading month with 3 books is now a 'bad' job or fail in my mind, whereas a 20-book month is awesome/good job. I want to let go of that part. one final thing I appreciate about booktube is staying informed about book 'news' bc I def don't want to support authors with my money if they are out there spewing hate on Twitter and I like hearing about highly anticipated new releases. loved this video! ❤
The Gatorade 😂
This discussion was great! I literally feel the same and it’s so much pressure 😭
I am NOT a critical reader for books I read for FUN and booktube...
Like Francina Simone’s book for instance....why was that book cancelled before the book even came out? 🙃
I’m so glad I’m not the only one. I was sweating a little uploading this 🤣 OMG yesss, I don’t even remember why Francina’s book was cancelled but I remember there been a big stink over some picture of a couple lines from the book. I really still want to read it for myself.
this video was sooo on point!
Thank you so much 😊
My fourteen year old daughter spends her allowance on books too.
Aww, young readers really warm my heart. I hope she can always enjoy the happiness that comes with being a reader.
@@BookedWithJameelah yes, thank you. She loves to read.
Reading is a very personal and cathartic experience for me. I can't buy this whole "author canceling" thing, especially because I think it's crucial to differentiate the person from their work. Nobody's perfect. It's not fair when we judge a work of art not for its objective and subjective merit but from the person who created it.
authors views Do seep into their books though. it's pretty hard to separate them
New subscriber. I’m just getting out of a reading slump because I was trying to read a lot of books in a moth span. But, I’m like a lot of people count audiobooks in their books read count. Don’t get me wrong, I like my audiobooks but does it really count as books read?! I mean you listen to it 😆
I think those of us that are capable of ciritcal thinking/evaluating are able to separate what we are reading as FICTION from our reality.
There is the idea of critical thinking and reading. You may not agree, but that also doesn’t mean you are necessarily agree..
I wish Booktubers would not all review the same popular books, like go to the bookstore and get a book that is extremely unpopular and review it. Likewise reviewing books of the same genre, I get it can be their comfort zone but expand yourself into different genres. Lastly, a lot of the Booktubers that review the most recent popular books that have just come out, need to understand that in 3rd world countries people don't have access to those books or if it is sold it is EXTREMELY expensive to purchase...
(sorry that is my 2 cents🙈)
6:20 YES! Thank you. One of the most annoying things about booktube recently... 🙄 Thanks for this video. Agree with basically all of it. 😂 Especially the point of not always reading critically. Look at Robinson Crusoe: for some people a childhood memory of an adventure story; for my English lit professor a story about colonialism. It‘s okay to read it both ways. Books are there to help us escape from reality from time to time and that’s enough and ok.
When someone tries to tell you that there is only one way to interpret or understand a book, they have forgotten that the core purpose of reading, for most people, is to develop their own personal connection (or not, if the book sucks for them!) with the text.
"This is gatorade, not tea"
Did anyone ever tell you you're the funniest person on planet earth?
XD
The worst, I believe it is. Thank you for the content.
I wish I could remember who did this video a year or so ago but it was all about how cancelling people disproportionately effected minorities. Like if your a minority you must be perfect in your “minority-ness”??? It was an excellent video.
And yeah as someone not on Twitter I never know about authors being problematic lol
Edit: the video may have been by Sarah Z
thAT Gatorade SENT me i have never hit subscribe so FAST
LOL i’m so glad you subscribed! Thank you 😊
The sheer amount of reading that is expected has caused me to burn out more often. It’s a shame, and it is put out there that you don’t have to read as much as others, but the pressure is there nonetheless.