It's pretty nuts how people will just lie. I know two people in real life who can actually read that fast. I know tens of people who talk about how much they read and how fast they read but cant even recall basic plot points of books they say they have read. Obviously booktubers and booktokers will have a higher rate of people who can read really quickly, but let's face it, most of them are lying. Chasing trends have been around the lit space for awhile and alot of people just hop on the train. That being said some people truly are just built different. Slow readers unite! (Great video btw)
I have truly read over 20 books in a month. Usually it's because other than working all I am doing is reading and I am fast reader to begin with. So when I read a thriller or stand alone horror which average maybe 250 pages ? They just go quite fast lol. And then some months I may not read at all.
@@shelleys.corneri feel most alternate between physical reading and audiobooks so they can meet the 20+ goal. And some are better at reading faster and memorizing everything. But if someone is just skimming and not getting important details in the books, are they really reading?
@gabrielleduplessis7388 I have no problems with audiobooks, especially considering they help loads of people who struggle with reading physical books but ofc that's with the added caveat of them actually paying attention and taking in the book
THE SOC GIRL PISSED ME OFF SO BAD “it’s about a heist, do I look like someone who would like a heist??” It’s literally on the cover of the book. It says “an impossible heist”.
I didn’t know before I read SoC that I didn’t like heists. I learned afterwards that I absolutely despise heists-it was confirmed when I was reading The Thief and I was so bored during the heist part of the book 😅
Very much giving me the sense that they never really read in school bc it was “lame” but now it’s cool and viral so they started… but they can’t fake liking reading fr
THIS. It’s this. This is the answer. They’re the same people who made fun of us for liking books but now it’s Soft Girl Aesthetic ™ and it’s cool to do it so they’re trying to pretend they like it but still having the same 🐶 💩 opinions that come with not liking reading.
Its about the smut. Her main complaint about books is that they don’t have smut she is open about it, plus smut books tend to be badly written published wattpad. Its like a person who binges love island will not appreciate a movie that focuses on colori g and characters
@@chrissyosozzy6465 I cannot fathom why someone would put in their bio "If it's not smut, I won't read it" and then reads a book without smut that specifically summarizes it as a heist, and then acts like it's the BOOK'S problem for not meeting her expectations.
@@chrissyosozzy6465 I have to agree. I find it funny that I saw people on booktok complaining about books written by men and how they describe females but, from my perspective, books like that are written way better than a lot of booktok smut and have a better plot. Its so painfully obvious that the people on booktok were not up late as a kid reading wattpad fanfics or sit down and read kids books
I'll never forget a review I read for a horror manga that was 0 stars and it just said "I dont like horror manga." That's the vibe some these booktoks give.
I despiseeee those type of reviews. Tell me about the plot, the twists and turns, were you engaged, the character development, did you cry, did you throw your book bc it made you mad or did you put it in the freezer bc it scared it (friends reference lol). People dont even know to review books let alone read them
@@NEVERHEREMERCH on the flip side alot of my favorite reviews start with some variation of "I don't usually like [genre] but ..." Like a book or other piece of media is so good it overpowers genre biases.
I think it's just people wanting to participate in the current trend and being a part of booktok is a trend. They wanna participate but they don't wanna reeeeeallly participate.
Exactly what I was thinking. These aren't cases of people who previously were avid readers and whose focus deteriorated because of social media. They're people who, if booktok hadn't come along, would simply... not read. They'd watch TV series or listen to mainstream music or have other hobbies that provide entertainment without the consumer having to put in too much effort to get something out of it. But now that reading has become trendy, there's lots of people who aren't in the right headspace for it forcing themselves to try and like it, not having a good time, and making it everyone else's problem, lol.
I feel like there are so many people in the online book community that will pick books that they fundamentally hate (either genre, word count, etc.) and say it’s the books fault that they don’t like it. Like no girl. If you don’t like long books then don’t pick up a long book. If you don’t like smut then don’t pick up a smutty romance book. It’s literally that simple. Maybe it’s the FOMO that’s making them choose these books but at the end of the day every book has an audience and sometimes you are not it. That doesn’t mean the book is bad it just means it’s not for you babes. There’s no shame in DNFing something that isn’t bringing you joy
Well it might be true for people who read as a hobby, but if you’ve made it your job than you’ll have to read books you’re not necessarily into only because those books are popular and you have to stay relevant
Same with dark romance. Books made for women by women where the female lead is abused has been a thing for a long time and probably will never go away. Better to do yourself a favour and ignore books with such a reputation.
@@shelleys.corner right, I take my time with each book, each paragraph, each sentence, each word…lol how do u skip…I mean I don’t Mind DNfing, but skipping is incomprehensible
I'll admit, I used to do that in middle school. I wasn't really a reader until I was 18, so when I did have to read there were times I would skim the book and only read dialogue.
I actually agree with this one. It’s super annoying to me when a novel is nothing but a hamfisted political message. If it’s subtle and well executed, that’s one thing, and there are a lot of really good books with political messages like that. But I’m not also in the mood for it. And I’ve found that a lot of modern authors are NOT subtle about it and just try to ram their views down your throat when all you wanted to do was immerse yourself a fun fantasy world where real world issues aren’t a thing.
@bluecannibaleyes some books can be overt with their political messaging, and I understand that's not everyone's cup of tea, but at the end of the day, all books in some shape or form, even the ones that are for pure enjoyment, are political. People just don't realise this because a lot of people don't truly understand what politics are. "politics" isn’t just about voting; it’s the wider system of beliefs and values that shape society. Whether intentionally or not, a writer's views on how they see the world and its systems will be reflected in the pages of their writing. Even in the most fantastical otherworldly book, a writer's views are reflected. So, to say books shouldn't be political just speaks to a lack of understanding of the wider nuances around the concept of politics.
@@shelleys.corner No, I understand that concept well, and I conveyed it in my initial comment. Yes, I’m well aware that writers will always put a bit of their own beliefs into their work. And I’m also painfully aware that everything is considered political nowadays. But there are subtle and not-so-subtle ways for a writer to put their views into a book. Some of us don’t want to read overtly political books. If I wanted that, I would just read books on politics, not novels. In novels, authors can apply a more subtle art in order to get their views across to the reader. There are more graceful ways for an author to convey a message than bashing the reader over the head with them, and I personally much prefer that to the more overt method. For example, I don’t want to start reading something that I thought was just going to be a hetero romance story and then have it suddenly turn into half the book being a Reddit thread about LGBT+ issues when the book didn’t advertise itself as LGBT. I think that’s a perfectly fair preference for me to have.
the fact that six of crows was too dense and slow for them is WILD. six of crows is literally a book for teenagers and it's an extremely efficient one. there is very little that's superfluous. everything develops either the plot or the characters or both. i read it when i was far younger than some of these tiktokers and it was so gripping and fast paced i got through it in one sitting. it's an extremely easy ride. like are we seriously pretending six of crows is as hard to read as asoiaf right now. do we seriously have problems reading books just because they have PARAGRPAHS
Yeah, it's a YA book, with an absolutely normal amount of words and paragraphs on normal sized pages in normal sized font of a normal length. Six of Crows is a pretty straightforward read (and it is fantastic). Someone show her War and Peace 😂
@@bethbaxter2922 To offer a bit of a different opinion, to me it wasn’t😅 I personally found the plot too shallow and predictable, and the characters one dimensional with a lot of “tell not show” going on. I found it a bit too juvenile, but it is a YA novel so if you usually like those you might still like it!y favorite fantasies are Lotr, the Kingkiller chronicles, game of thrones, etc. so I’m just used to a slower pace and more build up😊
Unrelated but I love your built in captions. It may seem kinda irrelevant but its nice seeing someone put the energy into it and knowing they'll be accurate because of that.
So I guess I'm reading wrong? I've always felt bad for being a slow reader but that's because I read every word. I don't like skimming over. I read to be entertained and to be transported in a different universe. When I read I imagine the scenes in my head as if I were watching a movie. I don't know, it's guess I'm lame but I don't claim being part of any community anyway.
i do the exact same thing!! it may take me like a week to finish one book, but that's how i know i enjoyed it because i spent so much time savoring every little detail (and i think it's a hallmark of good writing when you can imagine the scenes playing out in your head)
You're not reading wrong. What you're doing is called _reading._ You're doing it right. Skimming a book is *not* the same as actually reading the thing.
3:55 I recently read an article with university professors complaining about so many students who have never read an entire book. It's disturbing to me that so many people make it through middle school and high school and get accepted into a prestigious university and yet have never read even one book.
This reminds me of sophomore or junior year of high school where we had to have a lesson over capitalization and proper nouns the day before the staar test. (State testing) It was so painstakingly simple and slow and people were ACTUALLY CONFUSED. I feel so bad for my teacher.
@@cathysdeadgoldfish5646 uni Prof here and I can confirm, my students balk at five page articles. It's hard. It's really hard. Even when I manage to get them to read in class so we can actually get through something I need them to know, reading off the page seems like a huge struggle. The literacy issues also extend to verbalizing. I know it's systemic, but being the person trying to drag them through a page kicking and screaming feels like absolute crap.
Being able to skim a book and an article actually is a useful skill if you end up going into research of teaching. BUT you first have to spend a lot of years actually reading things so you know what to skim for
...... I hate to be that person, but... making university "trendy" or an experience for literally everyone, was the absolute wrong way to go.......... so many problems, like job requirements skyrocketing cuz everybody has a degree now, super lack of trade industry workers (plumbing, carpentry, etc), not to mention literally every young person having debt from student loans that will take a lifetime to repay..... ...and like lol we prolly definitely have all the rich kids whose parents went to the prestigious uni, so their dumbass spoiled kids get a free legacy ride in or something LOL
I feel that because booktok is so popular, it attracts people who dont regularly read. That reading muscle hasn't been developed to the point where they can fully enjoy a good book. However, I don't believe it's alright to bash a book because of its word count or to completely skip chunks of the book. I am happy that they are reading; I don't believe they should be taken as authorities on the topic of reading.
4:00 I don't really care "how" people read, but it's super frustrating when people skim, then complain something 'didn't make sense' or 'came out of nowhere'. I once had someone tell me they would read my fanfic "backward," where they scrolled to the end of the last chapter, then read up. They messaged me to say they found my story 'confusing'. 😅 I didn't want to be rude, but I also wanted to yell, "PLEASE READ IT IN THE RIGHT ORDER!"
I. wha. huh???? Backward??? How?? I'm imagining someone reading every word in reverse order but surely not. right? Did they mean they read from the last chapter to the first?? I can't find any way in which that makes sense??
What the actual fuck HAHAHA did they confuse your fanfic with a manga??? Why on earth would someone read a text on a phone from bottom to top? This genuinely made me laugh out loud 😂
What's really annoying is that there are: Plays, Visual Novels, Audio Books, Comics, Manwhas, Mangas, Poetry, Short Stories, Epics etc. I'm a versatile reader, I read many types of books for fun but I know that there's books for every specific reader. I think the problem too is that with some of the types of books I mentioned like manga aren't considered "sophisticated literature."
I'm just like you, I literally read every single thing you mention here and love EVERY single one! The stories in manga are some of my faves, and I will die on the hill of their complexities, but I take the time and put effort into actually taking it in and understanding it, which many people don't.
Same, I read all of these. I’m a mood reader and if I’m not feeling one type of book like a light novel, then I’ll switch to manga, etc. People don’t know but mangas have complexity and such. They can be so fun.
I've learned so much about storytelling from manga and webtoons, from what they choose to show, to pacing, and how to use dialogue to add to the story. Kind of like how in flash fiction, news articles, poetry and songwriting, you need to make each word work as hard as possible.
I personally can't read or listen to long books anymore. So I look for novellas and anthologies, which satisfy my desires. I think these people just guide themselves on hype and don't look for books that might be a better fit for them.
Yes, it sounds like they are trying to get into the trend so they're reading trendy books but not enjoying them very much, I think as they read more they might find books they actually like and read them
That's great. I would also suggest light novels, manga/graphic novels, and short story collections. I read longer novels still, but some months life is too busy, or I'm just tired. All these options are great for more bite-sized reading experiences.
Just wanted to shout out the wonderful subtitles you included. These make it so much easier for me to focus or watch with less volume and thus makes it less potentially overstimulating. Thank you so much for them!
I have ADHD and I love reading and this just makes me mad at this point. Sometimes I have to read a page multiple times before remembering that I’m reading, but it’s so worth t. Like, come on, stop being lazy and read for your mind. Give yourself time to get into it, even if you need to read a few pages multiple times and you’re slow at the start. It’s so worth it.
@@shannonr6056 Yeah I have ADHD too and have loved to read since I was a kid, it can take me a while to get into a book but once my attention is hooked I will literally fly through it because I become so obsessed with the story lol
exactly!! honestly spending a long time reading and letting myself be bored did wonders for my unmedicated adhd. it's not that i don't enjoy what i'm reading--quite the opposite-- it's that i'm having to push my way through executive dysfunction. paying attention to the little details in a story is a way to engage my brain and help me focus; it's like continuing to run even when you're tired and want to slow down. i always feel refreshed and accomplished afterwards unless i'm having a really hard day
@@oakland7561 yes yes yes! Exactly! It gives my brain a focus when it’s in 5 different places, makes me feel accomplished, helps my brain tire out so I can sleep, and gives me so many things to deep dive later on (as long as I make a note about it lol). And like the other commenter said, once I’m hooked it’s over, hello to sleepy eyes at work the next day
I can kinda understand the first woman since it sounds like she didn’t like the formatting of the book she just stated it in an “not smart” way lol. I admit I do like books were there are a lot of paragraph breaks because it’s easier for me to “see” it if that makes sense. It also sounded like she just needed the book in large print. But the people who skip whole sections and only read the dialogue… that’s crazy. I don’t even know how you would be able to even understand what’s going on if you do that! I’m actually curious to try it just to see lol.
yeah. especially if you have any sort of vision loss, adhd, dyslexia, etc. encourage people to read books sure, but shaming people who need large print, easier fonts, bigger spacing, etc. is not the way. these are legitimate accessibility features and making people feel shamed for needing them, like theyre less smart or more childish or less of a "reader" is kind of harmful... even if she was saying it in a way that sounded funny, i feel like its very easy to understand what she meant and i dont think people should have to couch their needs in all that fancy medical/therapy language just for them to be respected.
@@cowboycharmac I wouldn't say that saying "I need a bigger font" or something along those lines is "fancy therapy language", a toddler could say that (maybe with the slight exchange of putting "words" instead of "font", but the meaning is still the same, and notice how it's very clear). People aren't making fun of her because she needs accessibility aids, people are making fun of her because she said that a BOOK has "too many words", which is simply absurd. No one owes her guessing what she meant beyond what she said, and what she said, was - to put it plainly - stupid. Of course, she could've meant it just as you've said it, but even in that case, the backlash she is facing is the consequences of her own terrible communication of that idea
I agree, I think she could really benefit from getting an e-reader and adjusting the type size to her needs. Some formatting really is just a nightmare to read! The point of contention I have is that she framed it as though the book she was reading was excessively wordy or poorly formatted. I own that book, it's not. It's very typical and should be fine for the average reader. So her complaints just come off as ignorant.
At first, I definitely thought that's where she was going and she really just couldn't phrase it well, but in follow up videos, she then speaks on other issues with the world building (the complicated names, too much details etc., I'm paraphrasing ofc) And that's where I just knew she just didn't like the fact that the book wasn't, for lack of a better word, 'simple'.
i remember i accidentally missed like two sentences of a book and unluckily for me those two sentences had a detail that the entire climax made no sense without. so it’s insane that these people will just admit to skipping entire paragraphs or even entire PAGES without an ounce of shame and yet still consider themselves to have “read” the book. like damn no wonder no one online has any reading comprehension???
I could excuse if these where new readers or young people just getting back into reading but these are influencers with thousands of followers whos entire platform is based off reading and reviewing books. They are not only bringing hate to these authors with thier large fanbases but encouraging others to read the same as them and not value books and stories for what they are, its very disappointing to see
I really really hope that blonde girl is ragebait. Six of crows is literally ya, it's great I love it but as a BOOKinfluencer you should be able to read. Maybe these girls are in a phase where they think it's cute to be dumb well it's not 💀
Its not ragebait i went through her account and found her booktube, she means it. But not to sound mean after seeing her taste in books her reaction makes sense. All her favourite book are known for being badly written
I think the trendhopping when it comes to books, insane hauls and needing to constantly keep up with the hottest review demand's got so many people who don't really like reading all that much or who have to read books they don't want because they're popular having to default to this. I'd say it's a simple matter of just being yourself and knowing your own limits but Idk what kind of person would let their purchasing decisions be influenced by someone who outright admitted they DNFed bc there's too many words to read. Also feel like this is the logical conclusion of those insane weekly and monthly goals as well as the financial incentive to read books you can't handle
Like generally I'd advise most of them to just be yourself. If you only like reading dialogue, read plays or screenplays, get books that are formatted differently. Read comics, manga, manhwa, manhua or graphic novels! Really hate this trend nowadays of getting into something you don't personally like because of views and clicks and acting like it's the media's fault. A lot of people like labelling booktokers as 'People who got into their wattpad phase later than they should have' and yeah it really does seem populated by people who never cultivated that passion at an earlier time and want to blame everyone else because they have to play catch up
I've actually made a couple of videos about how this overconsumption culture and focus on quality over quality is truly endangering reading and the literature industry. It's really sad 😭
Yeah, and some booktubers/booktokkers read like 20-30 books a month according to their video titles, so they're concerned about the time it'll take to read a book. "I read 34 books in October" is just such a juicy video title. Those darn paragraphs just take so much time, though ... Honestly, as a book lover and reader since early childhood, the thought of reading that much horrifies me. I can't imagine how unpleasant that must be. When do you even have time to enjoy the book? Or even think about it once it's over? And for these poor girls have to have to do that with hobbies they don't even like? It's so so sad. But also infuriating.
@@klatskyn There's a girl who posted recently that she read like 350 books this year? and she said she listens to audiobooks on 3x speed so she can listen to 2 or 3 a day. But why??
Lol it took me a month to read "it" 🤣 and since then, Stephen King has 👀🤮 definitely scarred me. Ick! I haven't read anything from him since. 😳 I'm not sure how big priory of the orange tree is but 😩 😳 holy moly y'all
@@brittbratt33I've only read Under The Dome by Stephen King because I was told it wasn't a horror or scary, it's just an interesting scifi. I had night terrors after that. I'm scared to try again and that was like 7 years ago. 😅
@@klatskyn the book It got REALLY REALLY weird towards the end with the kids & sex scenes I had to put it down. 🤮 King was DEFINITELY on drugs to write a book as weird as that was. 😳 I can handle gore & guts but man. I was NOT prepared for that kind of book. But now, lol I can read extreme horror no problem. Just give a girl some trigger warnings dang!
@brittbratt33 Yeah, to be honest, there was little to no horror in Under the Dome, but it was very disturbing in terms of weird psychosocial stuff. It was good commentary on how people inevitably destroy themselves, but ... I mean, there was some heavy necrophilia in there. For why?! I will never even attempt "It".
I agree entirely. One frustrating thing about booktok/being a reader is that some people seem to make everything a competition by rushing through books and prioritizing books read, rather than enjoying reading. Reading should be a fun leisure activity rather than another way to show off on social media.
As someone who studied English at university, I’m excited to see people so interested in reading and engaging with literature. However, a lot of people in the booktok sphere exude a very superficial vibe. You can’t make reading an aesthetic, because reading is an activity, not a look that can be faked. Honestly, hearing someone complain that there are too many words in a book that already isn’t very dense breaks my heart a little. Students get exposed to denser texts (and more words per page) as they advance in their skill and education. The complaint really suggests that this person has likely never read classics or more “advanced” books published in older or denser printing styles. I’m not angry at the anti-intellectualism in this space, if one could call it that. I’m more so sad, because these people are missing out.
Theory time: The most popular books on TikTok are extremely formulaic. Readers can skim them because they're the basically same story over and over again. These girls get mad when a book doesn't follow the formula, because it forces them to pay attention!
the priory of the orange tree is so long but so worth it! it was one of the first english books i read (english isnt my first language) and its been one of my favourites since then, it amazed me even when I didn’t understand everything at that time
Absolutely! The way it’s structured as well with the diff character POVs is helpful for breaking the pace(?). It’s not daunting to taking in the story in chunks or a few chapters at a time given that it’s a huge book, which I appreciated.
When people complain about a book being too long my question is what does that matter? Unless you're only reading a book to finish it - what does it matter if reading it will take longer?
They only want to have views, and I think an easy way to obtain attention is to glamorize "nerdy" activities. If a story catches my interest, I prefer a longer book so that I have more time to enjoy it.
@@meloon5 have you tried the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon? There’s currently 9 books (with the final one being written now) and all of those books are 800+ pages long!
@@keziawells2511 I don't know anything about them. Thanks for the info. I'm going to research them for sure. The most extended boom I recall reading was "It" by Stephen King. It has 1000+ pages. And for the series, the GoT are chunky books as well.
I haven’t finished the video, so I’m not sure if you mentioned this, but I just heard that college professors have discovered that many of their students have never read an entire book. The students are overwhelmed when assigned book reading. That was definitely sad to hear. *And we’re not talking about disabilities or long books. They have just never had the attention span or interest to read a book.
@ Oh wow! Thank you for your personal insight! I know it must be so disheartening to find that out! It seems like it would present a significant challenge for educators.
not even just interest or attention span, the statistics for functional illiteracy are VASTLY raising so they genuinely can’t read something like a book and understand it. they can Literally read words,but they can’t grasp what’s happening in a book
I saw a video a couple days ago from a (former) public school teacher saying that because of “teaching for the test” she wasn’t allowed to assign/teach whole books and could only use excerpts.
Actually this makes a lot of things make sense. I think overconsumption is championing people that consume more… more stanleycups, more clothes, more books. And some people are so desperate to „keep up“ with these consumption expectations that they have to scim and skip to be able to stay ahead and have people see them as an authority in the book world (because these people have clearly read more books). I’m dyslexic so it’s always confused me how people can read so fast, but I also don’t hold myself to the same standards as others in this area. I know I need more time, and it takes more effort and concentration, but I‘ve loved reading and books since I was a small child. I’ve never resorted to skimming a book, although I do occasionally skip smut scenes (I just don’t enjoy them)
fabulous video! I feel like those are folks who mostly just want to hit high reading goals without having to spend too much time reading. High reading goals encourage people to avoid long books. Priory is kind of the opposite of Six of Crows in terms of formatting. It has huge margins and bigger font. So it actually isn’t THAT long. It’s just formatted to look enormous, haha.
Honestly yes! I made a video not too long ago about the problem with booktok and the like prioritising quantity over quality and many times, all to achieve a silly goal that you yourself set! It's so terrible. And lol I did not know that about Priory 🤣 I might try it sooner then I thought if that's the case.
Over the last few months, my ocd has manifested by having me reread passages and pages in my books several times. It's not I haven't read them previously. My brain just tells me I missed something. I've not been like this until recently, but with that struggle it makes me so sad they are just choosing to miss out on the best part of reading- actually experiencing the story. Thanks for the video.
I have ocd too and it's the first time I've seen someone else talk about this! Having to reread everything constantly is so tiring and can make reading a simple text a multiple hour activity :( Wish you all the best. Fck ocd
Does anyone else remember the way Julie described books in 1984? We're there right now. Instead of making reading illegal we're going to just mean girl our way into not reading anymore.
You should see the trumpies current take on booktok "leave politics out of booktok." As canadian I died inside every single time on tik tok right now. Your video has reached canada.
I'm a horror reader and I'll skip over the occasional scene that's too intense even for me, but like ... Entire chapters? ENTIRE chapters? ENTIRE SECTIONS OF A BOOK??? Oh... Oh we are cooked. Char broiled.
Honestly I understand that because there are certain things most people would skip, i.e. gore, smut etc. Skipping whole chapters and paragraphs based on length??? Shooketh
I've only ever skipped maybe a single chapter in a whole book and it was due to intensity and because I'd read it before and couldn't handle the secondhand embarrassment a second time. For a first time reading experience that's literally insane.
@@shelleys.corner Based on length is the true cooker here like honestly if you cant handle a long paragraph/chapter maybe you aren't worth listening to about anything... ik that's hella mean but honestly I'm sick of people who can't read something long acting like their opinion is worth crap.
I totally understand the first woman complaining about the formatting of certain books, but I honestly have the opposite problem, I hate reading books with a huge font and and a ridiculous page count(when it could have been easily formatted in fewer pages)
@@rahabintemotiul Same, especially if I own the book because now one book is hogging shelf space that could have fit two books if they were formatted normally.
I think instant gratification has become the new “happy pill”. Reading has now become not only a hobby but a trend. I believe that that makes particular books more digestible than others. Maybe they wanna read the books that the ppl have read and express these topics on an intellectual scale but maybe never notice it’s not the same and is more of a long term gratification. Idk if I’m making any sense.
its truly sad though because those people will never truly enjoy the experience of another world. I've been reading since I was little and was reading at a high school senior level at age 11. And now at 13 at the age level of someone beyond college. I get so immersed in those worlds that it becomes part of my life and some people can't even read more than 100 pages a year.
@@Girlbye11 I mean, there is fantasy short stories, novelettes and novellas, which would be more their taste. Its just that they dont look for them and guide themselves on hype.
In college it aint even better girl. I'm 19 and in college and the people who can't read a few chapters of a book for class is insane. Don't get me started on how they can't even read nonfiction for a single page. We are cooked.
@ yeah. People say our world will die when the sun explodes but it’s gonna die before that because people can’t get the motivation to simply pick up a book.😭
@@jerichonikolai in my defence a philosophy textbook is a different kind of boring than a novel. Did not have to read a novel for any of my college classes and glad I didn’t have to, I’ve never read a single assigned book, even during the years where I easily read 25 in the year. It’s just different to try to read something you just don’t care about, not to mention the time constraint.
@@Girlbye11 when you get busy reading is different. Used to read all the time in middle school but I could go months without reading now. One of the main reading killers is getting a job.
hello! im not a youtuber but ive watched a lot of different youtubers. At the end of your video you mention how other people upload everyday, and i just wanted to say my favorite youtubers Do Not upload everyday. The truth of the matter is that its not sustainable at all, and the people who do this have some combination of: a) don't know how to set boundaries and eventually suffer from burnout b) have youtube as their only and full time job, so they have their normal full working hours dedicated to it. c) are not actually supporting themselves 100% independently one thing ive struggled to learn as a new adult is to not compare myself to others performance, and to learn how to be an adult as myself. Your channel seems really cool, it should be a place for you to have fun and connect with other readers, not a source of pressure to keep up. you've got a new subscribe from me!
I'm challenged regarding concentration after a bout of stress and depression...10 years ago...wow, time flies...so I know I don't have that much energy to throw into reading, like I had when I was younger. So I'm only choosing books I know have stood the test of time. The classics. Apart from Harry Potter and the Da Vinci Code I can't recall reading a newer book in ages.
See, that's different. There were genuine causes to your lack of reading (I hope you're doing much better by the way 🫶🏾🫶🏾) whereas for a lot of others, the environment has made it so they're not drawn to reading even if they are fully capable.
@shelleys.corner thank you, I am, thankfully. An occasional dip in mood, but NOTHING like it was. And yes, unfortunately reading has been devalued in society, starting all the way back at school level. Where I live, there's been an increasing effort to make school the place where you determine the path for the rest of your life. Already in 8th grade, the student have to decide which avenue they want to take regarding an education. So it all boils down to testing and grades, and not ebeough emphasis on learning and growing as individuals. Edit...there was supposed to be a connection in there to the lack of reading. It made sense in my head.
@Kasino80 that's great to hear! And I get what you're trying to say. Reading is, in my opinion, a fundamental part of learning and growing as a person, because even if they don't teach you something directly in school, through reading, you can seek out knowledge on your own. Books (well written ones anyway) are also a great way to develop critical thinking skills, emotional intelligence, etc. so by not putting an emphasis on reading, people are being done a disservice. This is why the growing ban on books is so detrimental to the next generation 😫
I only "complain" when there are "too many words" on the page when the font is small. To me, its very intimidating to read a book with tini font, so I'd rather pick up the same books on kindle where I can make the font bigger.
I really don’t think short books contribute to illiteracy. Some of the best books are 200-300 pages. Great Gatsby, The Jungle, Frankenstein, Slaughterhouse 5 to name a few. A modern short book I love is A Psalm for the Wild-Built!
I think what she meant was that "illiteracy is bending the literature market to its will", not the other way around. Like she kept saying that there are more and more short books so that these people can keep their mega quotas of "20+ books per month" and also not have to READ sooooo much, because there's so many ppl following trends and would rather buy the small short books with less words
just found your channel--thank you so much for having built-in captions :( it makes your videos way more accessible for people with audio processing issues. i have yet to find a channel besides yours that has this
i just think a lot of booktokkers 'read' just to look a bit more like pretentious intellectuals, meanwhile i'm getting a degree in literature and i proudly read only around 3-5 books a month because i really want to absorb what i'm reading, and i have a life outside of reading 😂 the "too many pages" cracks me up, if you don't want to read a book that large, perhaps don't pick it up in the first place instead of getting it because it's popular??
Right lol. I have a few chunky books that I'm really interested in, but theyre on the back burner until after holiday season, when I feel like can focus more. For now I'm sticking to catching up on some manga series I forgot about for a few years.
This relates somewhat to this topic. So I recently decided to get another degree (I'm 27) and I'm just astounded by what I've been seeing at the university. People don't know how to write anymore. I'm not exaggerating when I say I'm constantly seeing my peers not be able to write coherent, grammatically correct sentences. One girl sitting next to me said "the prof can't expect me to sit down and watch a 20 minute video before the lecture." It is also a rare sight to see someone reading a book, as pretty much everyone is sitting on their phone before class. And that class felt to me like it was at middle school level difficulty. I think education has really deteriorated significantly in the last decade. It just seems like no one wants to put in effort and grow intellectually anymore...:/
one part our school system being destroyed on purpose, on every level, from every angle; one part gen z got used to being told they were Gifted and never wanted to put in genuine scholastic effort past age 9
Reading is an emotional investment in a currency we have very little of. Time. I cherish every single second ive sepent on tedious dialogue, convoluted plot lines, descriptions of georaphy, culture, clothing, cuisine etc. This has reminded me why i love to read. Its the journey its not the destination.
I will never forget a short conversation I had with classmate back in high school, some time during 2010. Our English teacher assigned a book report, but we could only choose from a certain selection of books, so we were all huddled around a library cart picking books. I grabbed a larger book that caught my eye (Eon/Eona series; would definitely recommend) and someone commented on how big it was, confused on why I would pick it. He had in his hands one of the smallest books on the cart… an engine manual.
Reading is like a toddler moving through levels. Chapter books, YA books, literature and so on. I think it’s normal to need to be comfortable with one level before moving to the next. On the other hand, many RUclips creators are just rage bating to get views. Perhaps that is what they are doing.
I'm proud to say that my bonus daughters are reading! I encouraged them since they were younger, and they've always seen me reading, but knowing that at 17 and 16 years old, they ask me to take them book shopping!!! 😊
Your channel just appeared in my feed today and omg I’m surprised your channel isn’t bigger!! I love the way you articulate things- witty and funny and genuine all at once. Definitely subscribing ❤
I’m a good deal older than you, and I’ve had concerns for a long time about the dumbing down of people, lack of attention spans etc. it’s good to see a younger person such as yourself also noticing this and being concerned. Some very good points
I feel like this is a purely booktok problem. I love reading but there are days when I just can't focus on the text even if I like the book. I'm not in a hurry though, I have no deadline so I can just put the book down and pick up later. I'm not justifying them, you shouldn't rate a book if you didn't even read it properly. But I get it, why they are skimming through. Tiktok is fast and you have to upload daily or even more then once a day. It's less about reading and more about fast clik bait videos. Anyway this is why I watch youtubers instead.
Oh it's definitely not a booktok problem alone. Booktok is probably making it worse but it goes beyond that. There was an elite college this year that made headlines because the professor was shocked to learn that their students couldn't read as many admitted to never having finished a full book 😭 it's definitely a wider literacy problem.
@@shelleys.cornerIn Gen Z it started in HS when people didn’t put in effort to read assigned books and rely on the internet for summaries. HS also really pushes diversified reading genre wise because you read plays, speeches, historical fiction, Greek Classics, American Classics etc. At least that’s what I experienced. There just needs to be some period in life where a person really makes an effort to soak up a variety of literature. I’ve been a lifelong reader, so I cared enough during HS to use that as my opportunity to do that. College is another place to do that too.
This is exactly one of the reasons that I cannot stand tiktok, esp. booktock. Influencers across almost every genre are actively deteriorating the quality of information available, and people believe them because they are popular. I've tried to watch influencers across multiple genres and they just strike me as extremely immature and I don't understand why they have a following.
@@shelleys.corner honestly the 500+ page romance books is filled with smut. not shaming the people who read them, but for me personally I want a book that actually has a plot
I totally agree. I grew up reading LOTR have read it 11 times, and am reading wheel of time now every word. I enjoy a lot of book tok books for what they are but consider them easy reads or pallete cleansers. It’s sad to me if that’s all one can handle reading though I worry great fantasy’s like they used to be written won’t be written anymore and all we’ll have are easy reads since that’s all people read now but there’s so much more magic in the huge books and depth
i want to say i really like how you do your captions. i dont need captions, but i appreciate them because they help me with retaining information as someone with brainfog and most likely, an auditory processing disorder. the little blue part is somwthing i never really see content creators do but its surprisingly helpful and looks quite nice too
Something hopeful: The more you read, the better you get at it. If they find the correct books they can get all the way through, or even if they just half-ass-read a lot of books, they will skill-up at it. Eventually, if they keep reading, they'll look back and realize how cringe this was, and by that point they'll be a versed enough reader to know what they were missing out on. They might re-read Six of Crows and love it in 10 years time.
Your video just confirmed for me that I'll never join TikTok. Anything I ever see from that site is utterly vapid. These girls are literally the "beach too sandy, water too wet" people who absolutely should NOT have a platform to broadcast their pointless opinions.
okay so glad i found your channel and this video. i was comparing myself to only being able to read maybe 1-3 books a month or less and feeling super unaccomplished compared to booktubers i watch. but i was reading taking my time building the scenes in my mind and throughly enjoying the ones i have been reading. i was making into something that reading shouldn’t be and realizing that’s the reason i stopped a long time ago too but it was all because of the “influencers” i watch. it’s not a competition and that’s what it can feel like sometimes.
From what I understand about the US education system in like the last two decades, they really don't teach people how to "read" anymore. At least not now to recognize a word beyond the first and last letters in a word and not spending enough time on phonics from what I've read for a lot of areas which I think contributes to how people interact with reading. Even so, it makes me sad bc there's so much to gain from reading and challenging yourself on reading books that are harder or be able to read/comprehend nonfiction that is academic in some way. Idk if that's what's happening here, but my brain always goes back to that thought bc of stuff like No Child Left Behind really screwed things up for kids learning a lot of things including reading in the US. But I'm sure even before that, there wasn't much done to help kids learn how to read if they were consider lost causes in not understanding the material for whatever reason. Otherwise, I do agree its something to see people admit to skimming/skipping huge chunks of the books they read and having a lot of people agree with them on Tik Tok.
@@cheyenneguest4495 no child left behind actually supported phonics based reading instruction over cueing based teaching (the system your talking about that focused on the first letter and context) but cueing was already so entrenched by that point
@@rachel43274 Thank you for the correction! I remembered that cueing was a form of teaching since I read about it, but couldn't remember the exact word for it when typing out my comment. But I definitely can see it contributing to the lack of literacy we're seeing even with supporting phonics to be taught.
@@cheyenneguest4495 oh yes for sure No Child Left Behind had other problems, I recommend the podcast Sold A Story for anyone who's interested in learning more about kids not being taught how to read
@@S.-bu2kg That would make sense with how education seems to be a way to make money rather than for understanding anything about our world in a lot of places
Me agreeing with your entire soc rant. 😅 I love soc sm Also, when i read soc, I read it way too quickly, like 3-4 days for the whole duology. If you havent read it yet, take it SLOW. Enjoy every line, because its all so good!
@shelleys.corner sammeee I'm trying to get my family to read up but they just aren't interested! And I'm like you 👏 don't 👏 understand 👏 my life is literally changed!
I just came from a Bluesky thread talking about anti intellectualism and the cozy book trend and this seems to resonate… worried for the future but hopeful reading these comments!
I was honestly hoping that that video of her complaining about the words was a joke. But now I’m really concerned about people who can’t read the way we’re used to because of the attention span issue.
The edition of Crime and Punishment on by parents' bookshelf has font so small I'm scared that I'm going to hurt my vision reading it (and it's also still like 400 pages!)
I agree with both sides that’s why I typically read novels in verse or novellas. 600 page books aren’t really my thing unless it’s a book I want to read bad af!
Honestly the too many words on a page ive said before but in the context of the fact that my eyes hate focusing on words if they are too small or close together, I skim words like the and than because my brain will fill that in but the simple concept of just reading the dialogue from the start confounds me
Not me clicking on this and immediately feeling seen. Six of Crows is perfection and I have Priory of the Orange Tree on my shelf, staring me in the face every day inducing panic 🤣
It feels like the mix of “booktok popularity” and “rise of spice in YA” is what is making people who see popular books that are used to just reading smut scenes, trying to read books that don’t have them, and just skipping to kind the “good parts”.
Ive wanted to say all of this. "If youre not actually reading, why are you pretending to read?" But I didn't want to get called names. 😂 If you're not reading, YOU'RE NOT READING!! 😅
A part of the reason is because of the instant gratification nature of these social media niches, especially where TikTok is concerned, it bred a whole group of people who don't want to be bothered to engage with whatever they're making content on, whether it's just a review or it's a recommendation, a lot of creators don't want put in the effort to create a genuine product.
If it’s too much to read, they are not readers/bibliophiles, so they need to find their lane elsewhere. One, really, hopes those who wish to dumb ppl down will leave us readers-bibliophiles alone. We love reading & books, big books are challenges we enjoy accomplishing.
We have those TikTokers, and then readers like me, who are committed to read every book I start, regardless if after a couple chapters just can’t connect to it. I know it’s wrong, but can’t help it.
I think TikTok has fried their brains. I have always been a big reader but I noticed that watching too much tiktok destroyed my attention span for reading. I ended up uninstalling the app.
You can see this with people who claim to read an insane number of books in a month when they give their "reviews". It's literally just them rephrasing/rewording the summary on the back and the typical "I loved it! It was great!" without giving *any* other details (hence making the "review" pointless). Its a trend right now. How many books people "read". Who can get the most "reviews" out. Talking about what's most "mainstream" will bring in views/clicks/etc. It's not about reading or having a hobby and talking about it. It's about how they can use it to get more views and attention.
Complaining about so many words and no pictures is very Gaston Coded.
Lmao I’m stealing this
😂😂😂the perfect comment👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Yesss omg and that girl probably says her fav princess is Belle bc they both like reading. Like um no lmfao.
Googled “Gaston Code,” realized what it meant as I was typing it into the search bar. My god, thank you 😂
I'll start calling them Gastons
So they Just skimm through books, that's why they "read" 20+ books a month smh.
I know some people can genuinely read that much, especially if that's their full time job, but now I'm also questioning some of them cause wowwww
It's pretty nuts how people will just lie. I know two people in real life who can actually read that fast. I know tens of people who talk about how much they read and how fast they read but cant even recall basic plot points of books they say they have read. Obviously booktubers and booktokers will have a higher rate of people who can read really quickly, but let's face it, most of them are lying. Chasing trends have been around the lit space for awhile and alot of people just hop on the train. That being said some people truly are just built different. Slow readers unite! (Great video btw)
I have truly read over 20 books in a month. Usually it's because other than working all I am doing is reading and I am fast reader to begin with. So when I read a thriller or stand alone horror which average maybe 250 pages ? They just go quite fast lol. And then some months I may not read at all.
@@shelleys.corneri feel most alternate between physical reading and audiobooks so they can meet the 20+ goal.
And some are better at reading faster and memorizing everything.
But if someone is just skimming and not getting important details in the books, are they really reading?
@gabrielleduplessis7388 I have no problems with audiobooks, especially considering they help loads of people who struggle with reading physical books but ofc that's with the added caveat of them actually paying attention and taking in the book
THE SOC GIRL PISSED ME OFF SO BAD “it’s about a heist, do I look like someone who would like a heist??” It’s literally on the cover of the book. It says “an impossible heist”.
She probably felt the cover also had too many words on it.
@@brees3 GIRL BYEEE WHY IS SO FUNNY 😭😭😭😭
I'm just inclined to believe it's intentional rage bait for more channel engagement
I didn’t know before I read SoC that I didn’t like heists. I learned afterwards that I absolutely despise heists-it was confirmed when I was reading The Thief and I was so bored during the heist part of the book 😅
@ didn’t ask?
Very much giving me the sense that they never really read in school bc it was “lame” but now it’s cool and viral so they started… but they can’t fake liking reading fr
💯
THIS. It’s this. This is the answer.
They’re the same people who made fun of us for liking books but now it’s Soft Girl Aesthetic ™ and it’s cool to do it so they’re trying to pretend they like it but still having the same 🐶 💩 opinions that come with not liking reading.
This is 100% it!
Yess, we were the nerds and odd ones and now it's trendy...
The neurotypicals got a hold of a book
they don’t actually like to read. they want to look like someone who likes to read. it’s all about appearances to them.
Its about the smut. Her main complaint about books is that they don’t have smut she is open about it, plus smut books tend to be badly written published wattpad. Its like a person who binges love island will not appreciate a movie that focuses on colori g and characters
@@chrissyosozzy6465 I cannot fathom why someone would put in their bio "If it's not smut, I won't read it" and then reads a book without smut that specifically summarizes it as a heist, and then acts like it's the BOOK'S problem for not meeting her expectations.
@@chrissyosozzy6465 I have to agree. I find it funny that I saw people on booktok complaining about books written by men and how they describe females but, from my perspective, books like that are written way better than a lot of booktok smut and have a better plot. Its so painfully obvious that the people on booktok were not up late as a kid reading wattpad fanfics or sit down and read kids books
"i skip until i see quotations" then they turn around and say graphic novels dont count as real reading
I'll never forget a review I read for a horror manga that was 0 stars and it just said "I dont like horror manga." That's the vibe some these booktoks give.
This is absolutely insane to me and literally made me laugh out loud at the absurdity 😂
I despiseeee those type of reviews. Tell me about the plot, the twists and turns, were you engaged, the character development, did you cry, did you throw your book bc it made you mad or did you put it in the freezer bc it scared it (friends reference lol). People dont even know to review books let alone read them
@@NEVERHEREMERCH on the flip side alot of my favorite reviews start with some variation of "I don't usually like [genre] but ..."
Like a book or other piece of media is so good it overpowers genre biases.
I'll never forget a Moby-Dick review that was, "There's too much stuff about whales in it."
I think it's just people wanting to participate in the current trend and being a part of booktok is a trend. They wanna participate but they don't wanna reeeeeallly participate.
They want the aesthetic
Exactly what I was thinking. These aren't cases of people who previously were avid readers and whose focus deteriorated because of social media. They're people who, if booktok hadn't come along, would simply... not read. They'd watch TV series or listen to mainstream music or have other hobbies that provide entertainment without the consumer having to put in too much effort to get something out of it. But now that reading has become trendy, there's lots of people who aren't in the right headspace for it forcing themselves to try and like it, not having a good time, and making it everyone else's problem, lol.
This is such a good summary of it. It probably doesn’t help that these weapons-grade bad takes are getting so many clicks and views.
Exactly. They want the reward without the investment. Pity tho. They're the ones missing out. To read a good book is a joy.
Exactly. They want the numbers without the work/input.
I feel like there are so many people in the online book community that will pick books that they fundamentally hate (either genre, word count, etc.) and say it’s the books fault that they don’t like it. Like no girl. If you don’t like long books then don’t pick up a long book. If you don’t like smut then don’t pick up a smutty romance book. It’s literally that simple. Maybe it’s the FOMO that’s making them choose these books but at the end of the day every book has an audience and sometimes you are not it. That doesn’t mean the book is bad it just means it’s not for you babes. There’s no shame in DNFing something that isn’t bringing you joy
YES!!!! 👏🏾
I appreciate people reading outside their comfort zone, I just do think some grace should be allowed when discussing their feelings on it.
Well it might be true for people who read as a hobby, but if you’ve made it your job than you’ll have to read books you’re not necessarily into only because those books are popular and you have to stay relevant
Same with dark romance. Books made for women by women where the female lead is abused has been a thing for a long time and probably will never go away. Better to do yourself a favour and ignore books with such a reputation.
@@sugarzblossom8168”dark romance” “books made for women by women” “the female lead is abused” something is not quite right here..
My question is how you skip entire sections of a novel?? Like why? How? Youre going to miss so much context?
I really don't know! I feel like missing even a sentence takes away from the ENTIRE experience 😭
@@shelleys.corner right, I take my time with each book, each paragraph, each sentence, each word…lol how do u skip…I mean I don’t
Mind DNfing, but skipping is incomprehensible
I'll admit, I used to do that in middle school. I wasn't really a reader until I was 18, so when I did have to read there were times I would skim the book and only read dialogue.
@@haleyhentze5621 i feel like that's fine since you didn't really identify as a reader, but like these people call themselves readers!
Tbh, If it’s like the 3rd or 4th sex scene and it isn’t even well written I’ll start skimming to get back to the actual story.
I just saw a booktok girl crying about how books shouldn't be political. What are books for at this point 😢
Oh that's the most recent chaos. I can't even with that one
people are so scared of politics it's concerning
i wonder if that's why that asshole became the president in the us again
I actually agree with this one. It’s super annoying to me when a novel is nothing but a hamfisted political message. If it’s subtle and well executed, that’s one thing, and there are a lot of really good books with political messages like that. But I’m not also in the mood for it. And I’ve found that a lot of modern authors are NOT subtle about it and just try to ram their views down your throat when all you wanted to do was immerse yourself a fun fantasy world where real world issues aren’t a thing.
@bluecannibaleyes some books can be overt with their political messaging, and I understand that's not everyone's cup of tea, but at the end of the day, all books in some shape or form, even the ones that are for pure enjoyment, are political. People just don't realise this because a lot of people don't truly understand what politics are. "politics" isn’t just about voting; it’s the wider system of beliefs and values that shape society. Whether intentionally or not, a writer's views on how they see the world and its systems will be reflected in the pages of their writing. Even in the most fantastical otherworldly book, a writer's views are reflected. So, to say books shouldn't be political just speaks to a lack of understanding of the wider nuances around the concept of politics.
@@shelleys.corner No, I understand that concept well, and I conveyed it in my initial comment. Yes, I’m well aware that writers will always put a bit of their own beliefs into their work. And I’m also painfully aware that everything is considered political nowadays. But there are subtle and not-so-subtle ways for a writer to put their views into a book. Some of us don’t want to read overtly political books. If I wanted that, I would just read books on politics, not novels. In novels, authors can apply a more subtle art in order to get their views across to the reader. There are more graceful ways for an author to convey a message than bashing the reader over the head with them, and I personally much prefer that to the more overt method.
For example, I don’t want to start reading something that I thought was just going to be a hetero romance story and then have it suddenly turn into half the book being a Reddit thread about LGBT+ issues when the book didn’t advertise itself as LGBT. I think that’s a perfectly fair preference for me to have.
the fact that six of crows was too dense and slow for them is WILD. six of crows is literally a book for teenagers and it's an extremely efficient one. there is very little that's superfluous. everything develops either the plot or the characters or both. i read it when i was far younger than some of these tiktokers and it was so gripping and fast paced i got through it in one sitting. it's an extremely easy ride. like are we seriously pretending six of crows is as hard to read as asoiaf right now. do we seriously have problems reading books just because they have PARAGRPAHS
Is six of crows worth the hype?
@@bethbaxter2922I think so, I really love it. The characters for me are what really makes it so so good
@@bethbaxter2922 it is in my opinion, but know that it's completely ok to not understand the first 100 pages esp if you havent read the og 3 books
Yeah, it's a YA book, with an absolutely normal amount of words and paragraphs on normal sized pages in normal sized font of a normal length. Six of Crows is a pretty straightforward read (and it is fantastic). Someone show her War and Peace 😂
@@bethbaxter2922 To offer a bit of a different opinion, to me it wasn’t😅 I personally found the plot too shallow and predictable, and the characters one dimensional with a lot of “tell not show” going on. I found it a bit too juvenile, but it is a YA novel so if you usually like those you might still like it!y favorite fantasies are Lotr, the Kingkiller chronicles, game of thrones, etc. so I’m just used to a slower pace and more build up😊
Unrelated but I love your built in captions. It may seem kinda irrelevant but its nice seeing someone put the energy into it and knowing they'll be accurate because of that.
@@graeson3317 I was Literally going to comment about this lol I'm actually obsessed and with others did this too!
I was coming down to say this too. They're helpful, but also add so much!
I think we like it so much because it appeals to our short attention span. Or at least in my case 😭😭
@@alanisarizpemarcela5859 Probably. I like the visual aspect it adds and looking at them does make me focus more on exactly what is being said.
So I guess I'm reading wrong? I've always felt bad for being a slow reader but that's because I read every word. I don't like skimming over. I read to be entertained and to be transported in a different universe. When I read I imagine the scenes in my head as if I were watching a movie. I don't know, it's guess I'm lame but I don't claim being part of any community anyway.
Honestly, apparently a lot of us are reading incorrectly 😭
i do the exact same thing!! it may take me like a week to finish one book, but that's how i know i enjoyed it because i spent so much time savoring every little detail (and i think it's a hallmark of good writing when you can imagine the scenes playing out in your head)
You're not reading wrong. What you're doing is called _reading._ You're doing it right. Skimming a book is *not* the same as actually reading the thing.
I read the same way, I can actually imagine myself in the book.
nah this is what actual reading is. a lot of people in the so-called book community clearly don't even like to read
3:55 I recently read an article with university professors complaining about so many students who have never read an entire book. It's disturbing to me that so many people make it through middle school and high school and get accepted into a prestigious university and yet have never read even one book.
This reminds me of sophomore or junior year of high school where we had to have a lesson over capitalization and proper nouns the day before the staar test. (State testing)
It was so painstakingly simple and slow and people were ACTUALLY CONFUSED. I feel so bad for my teacher.
@@cathysdeadgoldfish5646 uni Prof here and I can confirm, my students balk at five page articles. It's hard. It's really hard. Even when I manage to get them to read in class so we can actually get through something I need them to know, reading off the page seems like a huge struggle. The literacy issues also extend to verbalizing. I know it's systemic, but being the person trying to drag them through a page kicking and screaming feels like absolute crap.
And in school they always encouraged us read..like dude how did these people study even?
Being able to skim a book and an article actually is a useful skill if you end up going into research of teaching. BUT you first have to spend a lot of years actually reading things so you know what to skim for
...... I hate to be that person, but... making university "trendy" or an experience for literally everyone, was the absolute wrong way to go..........
so many problems, like job requirements skyrocketing cuz everybody has a degree now, super lack of trade industry workers (plumbing, carpentry, etc), not to mention literally every young person having debt from student loans that will take a lifetime to repay.....
...and like lol we prolly definitely have all the rich kids whose parents went to the prestigious uni, so their dumbass spoiled kids get a free legacy ride in or something LOL
"why are there so many words on the page?"🤯
It's something a nonreadwr says.
Like could she not have checked to see if there was a bigger print of the book? Therefore....Less words per page????
Lol when she played that vid I literally yelled out MAYBE BECAUSE IT'S A BOOK 📖😱 lol just craaaazy
As if they never touched a chapter book so out of touch...
@@TangibleReads I love that booktoker but that was a wild statement 😂😂
I feel that because booktok is so popular, it attracts people who dont regularly read. That reading muscle hasn't been developed to the point where they can fully enjoy a good book. However, I don't believe it's alright to bash a book because of its word count or to completely skip chunks of the book. I am happy that they are reading; I don't believe they should be taken as authorities on the topic of reading.
I don't see a problem with skipping if you don't try to hold up your opinion as authority when you didn't actually read the book.
Idk the people in the video have huge hime libraries in the back, so we cant say they don’t have rwading muscles
@@chrissyosozzy6465 That's shopping muscles, not reading muscles. Buying a hundred books is a very different activity to reading a hundred books.
@@chrissyosozzy6465people buy books for the aesthetic all the time.
I didn't even like Six of Crows, but to dismiss it all together because of the typeface is just wild
4:00 I don't really care "how" people read, but it's super frustrating when people skim, then complain something 'didn't make sense' or 'came out of nowhere'.
I once had someone tell me they would read my fanfic "backward," where they scrolled to the end of the last chapter, then read up.
They messaged me to say they found my story 'confusing'. 😅 I didn't want to be rude, but I also wanted to yell, "PLEASE READ IT IN THE RIGHT ORDER!"
I. wha. huh???? Backward???
How?? I'm imagining someone reading every word in reverse order but surely not. right? Did they mean they read from the last chapter to the first?? I can't find any way in which that makes sense??
What the actual fuck HAHAHA did they confuse your fanfic with a manga??? Why on earth would someone read a text on a phone from bottom to top? This genuinely made me laugh out loud 😂
@@leightoningstrike6971 I’m guessing they read from bottom to top in the separate paragraphs. I find this really infuriating…
What's really annoying is that there are: Plays, Visual Novels, Audio Books, Comics, Manwhas, Mangas, Poetry, Short Stories, Epics etc.
I'm a versatile reader, I read many types of books for fun but I know that there's books for every specific reader.
I think the problem too is that with some of the types of books I mentioned like manga aren't considered "sophisticated literature."
I'm just like you, I literally read every single thing you mention here and love EVERY single one! The stories in manga are some of my faves, and I will die on the hill of their complexities, but I take the time and put effort into actually taking it in and understanding it, which many people don't.
Same, I read all of these. I’m a mood reader and if I’m not feeling one type of book like a light novel, then I’ll switch to manga, etc. People don’t know but mangas have complexity and such. They can be so fun.
I've learned so much about storytelling from manga and webtoons, from what they choose to show, to pacing, and how to use dialogue to add to the story. Kind of like how in flash fiction, news articles, poetry and songwriting, you need to make each word work as hard as possible.
Right on this one Bro there's something for everyone
I personally can't read or listen to long books anymore. So I look for novellas and anthologies, which satisfy my desires. I think these people just guide themselves on hype and don't look for books that might be a better fit for them.
Yes, it sounds like they are trying to get into the trend so they're reading trendy books but not enjoying them very much, I think as they read more they might find books they actually like and read them
i do the same! sometimes i don’t want to commit hours and hours to a long book so i’ll just find something short:)
That's the case for my friend as well. She started doing like you do, and she is really happy to finally be able to finish stories again.
That's great. I would also suggest light novels, manga/graphic novels, and short story collections. I read longer novels still, but some months life is too busy, or I'm just tired. All these options are great for more bite-sized reading experiences.
yeah, sometimes when I want to read but I know it's going to be too time consuming and long, I always reach for smaller books
Just wanted to shout out the wonderful subtitles you included. These make it so much easier for me to focus or watch with less volume and thus makes it less potentially overstimulating. Thank you so much for them!
I have ADHD and I love reading and this just makes me mad at this point. Sometimes I have to read a page multiple times before remembering that I’m reading, but it’s so worth t. Like, come on, stop being lazy and read for your mind. Give yourself time to get into it, even if you need to read a few pages multiple times and you’re slow at the start. It’s so worth it.
@@shannonr6056 Yeah I have ADHD too and have loved to read since I was a kid, it can take me a while to get into a book but once my attention is hooked I will literally fly through it because I become so obsessed with the story lol
exactly!! honestly spending a long time reading and letting myself be bored did wonders for my unmedicated adhd. it's not that i don't enjoy what i'm reading--quite the opposite-- it's that i'm having to push my way through executive dysfunction. paying attention to the little details in a story is a way to engage my brain and help me focus; it's like continuing to run even when you're tired and want to slow down. i always feel refreshed and accomplished afterwards unless i'm having a really hard day
@@oakland7561 yes yes yes! Exactly! It gives my brain a focus when it’s in 5 different places, makes me feel accomplished, helps my brain tire out so I can sleep, and gives me so many things to deep dive later on (as long as I make a note about it lol). And like the other commenter said, once I’m hooked it’s over, hello to sleepy eyes at work the next day
That's actually makes sense! So many really bad books have high hype - these influencers just don't read them😂🤦♀️
I can kinda understand the first woman since it sounds like she didn’t like the formatting of the book she just stated it in an “not smart” way lol. I admit I do like books were there are a lot of paragraph breaks because it’s easier for me to “see” it if that makes sense. It also sounded like she just needed the book in large print. But the people who skip whole sections and only read the dialogue… that’s crazy. I don’t even know how you would be able to even understand what’s going on if you do that! I’m actually curious to try it just to see lol.
yeah. especially if you have any sort of vision loss, adhd, dyslexia, etc. encourage people to read books sure, but shaming people who need large print, easier fonts, bigger spacing, etc. is not the way. these are legitimate accessibility features and making people feel shamed for needing them, like theyre less smart or more childish or less of a "reader" is kind of harmful... even if she was saying it in a way that sounded funny, i feel like its very easy to understand what she meant and i dont think people should have to couch their needs in all that fancy medical/therapy language just for them to be respected.
@@cowboycharmac I wouldn't say that saying "I need a bigger font" or something along those lines is "fancy therapy language", a toddler could say that (maybe with the slight exchange of putting "words" instead of "font", but the meaning is still the same, and notice how it's very clear).
People aren't making fun of her because she needs accessibility aids, people are making fun of her because she said that a BOOK has "too many words", which is simply absurd. No one owes her guessing what she meant beyond what she said, and what she said, was - to put it plainly - stupid.
Of course, she could've meant it just as you've said it, but even in that case, the backlash she is facing is the consequences of her own terrible communication of that idea
I agree, I think she could really benefit from getting an e-reader and adjusting the type size to her needs. Some formatting really is just a nightmare to read! The point of contention I have is that she framed it as though the book she was reading was excessively wordy or poorly formatted. I own that book, it's not. It's very typical and should be fine for the average reader. So her complaints just come off as ignorant.
I remember reading Dead Souls and the paragraphs could go for literal pages. A great book, but the paragraph length made it a bit harder to read
At first, I definitely thought that's where she was going and she really just couldn't phrase it well, but in follow up videos, she then speaks on other issues with the world building (the complicated names, too much details etc., I'm paraphrasing ofc) And that's where I just knew she just didn't like the fact that the book wasn't, for lack of a better word, 'simple'.
waiting for someone to say "omg this BOOK has WORDS?"
“How can you read this?? There’s no pictures!”
i remember i accidentally missed like two sentences of a book and unluckily for me those two sentences had a detail that the entire climax made no sense without. so it’s insane that these people will just admit to skipping entire paragraphs or even entire PAGES without an ounce of shame and yet still consider themselves to have “read” the book.
like damn no wonder no one online has any reading comprehension???
I could excuse if these where new readers or young people just getting back into reading but these are influencers with thousands of followers whos entire platform is based off reading and reviewing books. They are not only bringing hate to these authors with thier large fanbases but encouraging others to read the same as them and not value books and stories for what they are, its very disappointing to see
I really really hope that blonde girl is ragebait. Six of crows is literally ya, it's great I love it but as a BOOKinfluencer you should be able to read. Maybe these girls are in a phase where they think it's cute to be dumb well it's not 💀
Its not ragebait i went through her account and found her booktube, she means it. But not to sound mean after seeing her taste in books her reaction makes sense. All her favourite book are known for being badly written
@@booksandthings8297 she is a dummy, that’s all.
I think the trendhopping when it comes to books, insane hauls and needing to constantly keep up with the hottest review demand's got so many people who don't really like reading all that much or who have to read books they don't want because they're popular having to default to this. I'd say it's a simple matter of just being yourself and knowing your own limits but Idk what kind of person would let their purchasing decisions be influenced by someone who outright admitted they DNFed bc there's too many words to read. Also feel like this is the logical conclusion of those insane weekly and monthly goals as well as the financial incentive to read books you can't handle
Like generally I'd advise most of them to just be yourself. If you only like reading dialogue, read plays or screenplays, get books that are formatted differently. Read comics, manga, manhwa, manhua or graphic novels! Really hate this trend nowadays of getting into something you don't personally like because of views and clicks and acting like it's the media's fault. A lot of people like labelling booktokers as 'People who got into their wattpad phase later than they should have' and yeah it really does seem populated by people who never cultivated that passion at an earlier time and want to blame everyone else because they have to play catch up
I've actually made a couple of videos about how this overconsumption culture and focus on quality over quality is truly endangering reading and the literature industry. It's really sad 😭
Yeah, and some booktubers/booktokkers read like 20-30 books a month according to their video titles, so they're concerned about the time it'll take to read a book. "I read 34 books in October" is just such a juicy video title. Those darn paragraphs just take so much time, though ...
Honestly, as a book lover and reader since early childhood, the thought of reading that much horrifies me. I can't imagine how unpleasant that must be. When do you even have time to enjoy the book? Or even think about it once it's over? And for these poor girls have to have to do that with hobbies they don't even like? It's so so sad. But also infuriating.
@@klatskyn There's a girl who posted recently that she read like 350 books this year? and she said she listens to audiobooks on 3x speed so she can listen to 2 or 3 a day. But why??
@sayakota3054 "But why??" just about captures it exactly! 🤣🤣🤣
"Priory of the Orange Tree" is incredible, but yeah, no one is going to blow through it in a day.
@@marissarae Right? I personally loved it so much I didn’t even realise how long a read it was but I’m definitely not rereading any time soon😂
Lol it took me a month to read "it" 🤣 and since then, Stephen King has 👀🤮 definitely scarred me. Ick! I haven't read anything from him since. 😳
I'm not sure how big priory of the orange tree is but 😩 😳 holy moly y'all
@@brittbratt33I've only read Under The Dome by Stephen King because I was told it wasn't a horror or scary, it's just an interesting scifi. I had night terrors after that. I'm scared to try again and that was like 7 years ago. 😅
@@klatskyn the book It got REALLY REALLY weird towards the end with the kids & sex scenes I had to put it down. 🤮 King was DEFINITELY on drugs to write a book as weird as that was. 😳 I can handle gore & guts but man. I was NOT prepared for that kind of book. But now, lol I can read extreme horror no problem. Just give a girl some trigger warnings dang!
@brittbratt33 Yeah, to be honest, there was little to no horror in Under the Dome, but it was very disturbing in terms of weird psychosocial stuff. It was good commentary on how people inevitably destroy themselves, but ... I mean, there was some heavy necrophilia in there. For why?! I will never even attempt "It".
THE BOOKTOKKERS ARE OPENLY ADMITTING TO VOTING FOR THAT MAN BECAUSE THEY LIKE MORALLY GREY MEN! Help!!!!!!
This is sadly unsurprising 🫠🫠
I cannot express enough how sincerely I hope you’re joking
Please tell me, you're just joking. Please
Trump should not be named now?
@@katlamb4606 of course he can! I just find it more disrespectful to not even acknowledge his name.
I agree entirely. One frustrating thing about booktok/being a reader is that some people seem to make everything a competition by rushing through books and prioritizing books read, rather than enjoying reading. Reading should be a fun leisure activity rather than another way to show off on social media.
This! I always judge myself for not reading more books like the influencers I see.
As someone who studied English at university, I’m excited to see people so interested in reading and engaging with literature. However, a lot of people in the booktok sphere exude a very superficial vibe. You can’t make reading an aesthetic, because reading is an activity, not a look that can be faked.
Honestly, hearing someone complain that there are too many words in a book that already isn’t very dense breaks my heart a little. Students get exposed to denser texts (and more words per page) as they advance in their skill and education. The complaint really suggests that this person has likely never read classics or more “advanced” books published in older or denser printing styles.
I’m not angry at the anti-intellectualism in this space, if one could call it that. I’m more so sad, because these people are missing out.
I am both angry and sad. I'm angry because they are likely influencing other people to follow their behavior.
Theory time: The most popular books on TikTok are extremely formulaic. Readers can skim them because they're the basically same story over and over again. These girls get mad when a book doesn't follow the formula, because it forces them to pay attention!
the priory of the orange tree is so long but so worth it! it was one of the first english books i read (english isnt my first language) and its been one of my favourites since then, it amazed me even when I didn’t understand everything at that time
Big mood. I usually don't read books that long, but I got hooked and loved it
Absolutely! The way it’s structured as well with the diff character POVs is helpful for breaking the pace(?). It’s not daunting to taking in the story in chunks or a few chapters at a time given that it’s a huge book, which I appreciated.
When people complain about a book being too long my question is what does that matter? Unless you're only reading a book to finish it - what does it matter if reading it will take longer?
They only want to have views, and I think an easy way to obtain attention is to glamorize "nerdy" activities.
If a story catches my interest, I prefer a longer book so that I have more time to enjoy it.
@@meloon5 have you tried the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon? There’s currently 9 books (with the final one being written now) and all of those books are 800+ pages long!
@@keziawells2511 I don't know anything about them. Thanks for the info. I'm going to research them for sure.
The most extended boom I recall reading was "It" by Stephen King. It has 1000+ pages. And for the series, the GoT are chunky books as well.
was recommended this video, and i just wanted to say i really appreciate you adding captions! that’s really convenient!
I haven’t finished the video, so I’m not sure if you mentioned this, but I just heard that college professors have discovered that many of their students have never read an entire book. The students are overwhelmed when assigned book reading. That was definitely sad to hear.
*And we’re not talking about disabilities or long books. They have just never had the attention span or interest to read a book.
@ Oh wow! Thank you for your personal insight! I know it must be so disheartening to find that out! It seems like it would present a significant challenge for educators.
not even just interest or attention span, the statistics for functional illiteracy are VASTLY raising so they genuinely can’t read something like a book and understand it. they can Literally read words,but they can’t grasp what’s happening in a book
I saw a video a couple days ago from a (former) public school teacher saying that because of “teaching for the test” she wasn’t allowed to assign/teach whole books and could only use excerpts.
@ oh wow, that’s unfortunate!
Actually this makes a lot of things make sense. I think overconsumption is championing people that consume more… more stanleycups, more clothes, more books. And some people are so desperate to „keep up“ with these consumption expectations that they have to scim and skip to be able to stay ahead and have people see them as an authority in the book world (because these people have clearly read more books).
I’m dyslexic so it’s always confused me how people can read so fast, but I also don’t hold myself to the same standards as others in this area. I know I need more time, and it takes more effort and concentration, but I‘ve loved reading and books since I was a small child. I’ve never resorted to skimming a book, although I do occasionally skip smut scenes (I just don’t enjoy them)
fabulous video! I feel like those are folks who mostly just want to hit high reading goals without having to spend too much time reading. High reading goals encourage people to avoid long books.
Priory is kind of the opposite of Six of Crows in terms of formatting. It has huge margins and bigger font. So it actually isn’t THAT long. It’s just formatted to look enormous, haha.
Honestly yes! I made a video not too long ago about the problem with booktok and the like prioritising quantity over quality and many times, all to achieve a silly goal that you yourself set! It's so terrible.
And lol I did not know that about Priory 🤣 I might try it sooner then I thought if that's the case.
It's completely unrelated, but I just did a library photoshoot for my 39th birthday with Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom.
That’s so cool!!! Happy birthday!!! 🎉🎉🎉
Over the last few months, my ocd has manifested by having me reread passages and pages in my books several times. It's not I haven't read them previously. My brain just tells me I missed something. I've not been like this until recently, but with that struggle it makes me so sad they are just choosing to miss out on the best part of reading- actually experiencing the story. Thanks for the video.
I have ocd too and it's the first time I've seen someone else talk about this! Having to reread everything constantly is so tiring and can make reading a simple text a multiple hour activity :(
Wish you all the best. Fck ocd
Does anyone else remember the way Julie described books in 1984? We're there right now.
Instead of making reading illegal we're going to just mean girl our way into not reading anymore.
Books are already being banned in the US unfortunately
You should see the trumpies current take on booktok "leave politics out of booktok." As canadian I died inside every single time on tik tok right now. Your video has reached canada.
Politics is in everything lmao. They're a reflection of personal beliefs and values
I'm a horror reader and I'll skip over the occasional scene that's too intense even for me, but like ... Entire chapters? ENTIRE chapters? ENTIRE SECTIONS OF A BOOK???
Oh... Oh we are cooked. Char broiled.
Honestly I understand that because there are certain things most people would skip, i.e. gore, smut etc.
Skipping whole chapters and paragraphs based on length??? Shooketh
I've only ever skipped maybe a single chapter in a whole book and it was due to intensity and because I'd read it before and couldn't handle the secondhand embarrassment a second time. For a first time reading experience that's literally insane.
@@shelleys.corner Based on length is the true cooker here like honestly if you cant handle a long paragraph/chapter maybe you aren't worth listening to about anything... ik that's hella mean but honestly I'm sick of people who can't read something long acting like their opinion is worth crap.
I totally understand the first woman complaining about the formatting of certain books, but I honestly have the opposite problem, I hate reading books with a huge font and and a ridiculous page count(when it could have been easily formatted in fewer pages)
@@rahabintemotiul Same, especially if I own the book because now one book is hogging shelf space that could have fit two books if they were formatted normally.
I think instant gratification has become the new “happy pill”. Reading has now become not only a hobby but a trend. I believe that that makes particular books more digestible than others. Maybe they wanna read the books that the ppl have read and express these topics on an intellectual scale but maybe never notice it’s not the same and is more of a long term gratification. Idk if I’m making any sense.
its truly sad though because those people will never truly enjoy the experience of another world. I've been reading since I was little and was reading at a high school senior level at age 11. And now at 13 at the age level of someone beyond college. I get so immersed in those worlds that it becomes part of my life and some people can't even read more than 100 pages a year.
@@Girlbye11 I mean, there is fantasy short stories, novelettes and novellas, which would be more their taste. Its just that they dont look for them and guide themselves on hype.
In college it aint even better girl. I'm 19 and in college and the people who can't read a few chapters of a book for class is insane. Don't get me started on how they can't even read nonfiction for a single page. We are cooked.
@ yeah. People say our world will die when the sun explodes but it’s gonna die before that because people can’t get the motivation to simply pick up a book.😭
@@jerichonikolai in my defence a philosophy textbook is a different kind of boring than a novel. Did not have to read a novel for any of my college classes and glad I didn’t have to, I’ve never read a single assigned book, even during the years where I easily read 25 in the year. It’s just different to try to read something you just don’t care about, not to mention the time constraint.
@@Girlbye11 when you get busy reading is different. Used to read all the time in middle school but I could go months without reading now. One of the main reading killers is getting a job.
hello! im not a youtuber but ive watched a lot of different youtubers. At the end of your video you mention how other people upload everyday, and i just wanted to say my favorite youtubers Do Not upload everyday.
The truth of the matter is that its not sustainable at all, and the people who do this have some combination of:
a) don't know how to set boundaries and eventually suffer from burnout
b) have youtube as their only and full time job, so they have their normal full working hours dedicated to it.
c) are not actually supporting themselves 100% independently
one thing ive struggled to learn as a new adult is to not compare myself to others performance, and to learn how to be an adult as myself. Your channel seems really cool, it should be a place for you to have fun and connect with other readers, not a source of pressure to keep up.
you've got a new subscribe from me!
I'm challenged regarding concentration after a bout of stress and depression...10 years ago...wow, time flies...so I know I don't have that much energy to throw into reading, like I had when I was younger. So I'm only choosing books I know have stood the test of time. The classics. Apart from Harry Potter and the Da Vinci Code I can't recall reading a newer book in ages.
See, that's different. There were genuine causes to your lack of reading (I hope you're doing much better by the way 🫶🏾🫶🏾) whereas for a lot of others, the environment has made it so they're not drawn to reading even if they are fully capable.
@shelleys.corner thank you, I am, thankfully. An occasional dip in mood, but NOTHING like it was. And yes, unfortunately reading has been devalued in society, starting all the way back at school level. Where I live, there's been an increasing effort to make school the place where you determine the path for the rest of your life. Already in 8th grade, the student have to decide which avenue they want to take regarding an education. So it all boils down to testing and grades, and not ebeough emphasis on learning and growing as individuals.
Edit...there was supposed to be a connection in there to the lack of reading. It made sense in my head.
@Kasino80 that's great to hear!
And I get what you're trying to say. Reading is, in my opinion, a fundamental part of learning and growing as a person, because even if they don't teach you something directly in school, through reading, you can seek out knowledge on your own. Books (well written ones anyway) are also a great way to develop critical thinking skills, emotional intelligence, etc. so by not putting an emphasis on reading, people are being done a disservice. This is why the growing ban on books is so detrimental to the next generation 😫
Yes! That's what I was getting at 😊
I only "complain" when there are "too many words" on the page when the font is small. To me, its very intimidating to read a book with tini font, so I'd rather pick up the same books on kindle where I can make the font bigger.
I really don’t think short books contribute to illiteracy. Some of the best books are 200-300 pages. Great Gatsby, The Jungle, Frankenstein, Slaughterhouse 5 to name a few. A modern short book I love is A Psalm for the Wild-Built!
I think what she meant was that "illiteracy is bending the literature market to its will", not the other way around. Like she kept saying that there are more and more short books so that these people can keep their mega quotas of "20+ books per month" and also not have to READ sooooo much, because there's so many ppl following trends and would rather buy the small short books with less words
Did anyone else see Amadeus as a child? I hear "too many words" and I think "too many notes."
"Well, there it is!"
I saw it as a teenager.
just found your channel--thank you so much for having built-in captions :( it makes your videos way more accessible for people with audio processing issues. i have yet to find a channel besides yours that has this
i just think a lot of booktokkers 'read' just to look a bit more like pretentious intellectuals, meanwhile i'm getting a degree in literature and i proudly read only around 3-5 books a month because i really want to absorb what i'm reading, and i have a life outside of reading 😂 the "too many pages" cracks me up, if you don't want to read a book that large, perhaps don't pick it up in the first place instead of getting it because it's popular??
Right lol. I have a few chunky books that I'm really interested in, but theyre on the back burner until after holiday season, when I feel like can focus more. For now I'm sticking to catching up on some manga series I forgot about for a few years.
This relates somewhat to this topic. So I recently decided to get another degree (I'm 27) and I'm just astounded by what I've been seeing at the university. People don't know how to write anymore. I'm not exaggerating when I say I'm constantly seeing my peers not be able to write coherent, grammatically correct sentences. One girl sitting next to me said "the prof can't expect me to sit down and watch a 20 minute video before the lecture." It is also a rare sight to see someone reading a book, as pretty much everyone is sitting on their phone before class. And that class felt to me like it was at middle school level difficulty. I think education has really deteriorated significantly in the last decade. It just seems like no one wants to put in effort and grow intellectually anymore...:/
one part our school system being destroyed on purpose, on every level, from every angle; one part gen z got used to being told they were Gifted and never wanted to put in genuine scholastic effort past age 9
„are tiktokers okay?“ is a question that generally only knows one answer: No.
Reading is an emotional investment in a currency we have very little of. Time. I cherish every single second ive sepent on tedious dialogue, convoluted plot lines, descriptions of georaphy, culture, clothing, cuisine etc. This has reminded me why i love to read. Its the journey its not the destination.
I will never forget a short conversation I had with classmate back in high school, some time during 2010.
Our English teacher assigned a book report, but we could only choose from a certain selection of books, so we were all huddled around a library cart picking books.
I grabbed a larger book that caught my eye (Eon/Eona series; would definitely recommend) and someone commented on how big it was, confused on why I would pick it.
He had in his hands one of the smallest books on the cart… an engine manual.
This is hilarious. And engine manual as a book pick? Loool
Reading is like a toddler moving through levels.
Chapter books, YA books, literature and so on.
I think it’s normal to need to be comfortable with one level before moving to the next.
On the other hand, many RUclips creators are just rage bating to get views. Perhaps that is what they are doing.
@@ingridfitz5677 yeah thats where I am landing with this: rage-baiting has hit booktok
The thing is those are al adults. Voting age which explains the outcome of the election
I'm proud to say that my bonus daughters are reading! I encouraged them since they were younger, and they've always seen me reading, but knowing that at 17 and 16 years old, they ask me to take them book shopping!!! 😊
Aw I love that! It's great that they have a parent who's actively encouraging them 😊
Your channel just appeared in my feed today and omg I’m surprised your channel isn’t bigger!! I love the way you articulate things- witty and funny and genuine all at once. Definitely subscribing ❤
That's exactly how I read books in college, but I would never do it for leisurely reading.
I’m a good deal older than you, and I’ve had concerns for a long time about the dumbing down of people, lack of attention spans etc. it’s good to see a younger person such as yourself also noticing this and being concerned. Some very good points
I feel like this is a purely booktok problem. I love reading but there are days when I just can't focus on the text even if I like the book. I'm not in a hurry though, I have no deadline so I can just put the book down and pick up later. I'm not justifying them, you shouldn't rate a book if you didn't even read it properly. But I get it, why they are skimming through. Tiktok is fast and you have to upload daily or even more then once a day. It's less about reading and more about fast clik bait videos. Anyway this is why I watch youtubers instead.
Oh it's definitely not a booktok problem alone. Booktok is probably making it worse but it goes beyond that. There was an elite college this year that made headlines because the professor was shocked to learn that their students couldn't read as many admitted to never having finished a full book 😭 it's definitely a wider literacy problem.
@@shelleys.cornerIn Gen Z it started in HS when people didn’t put in effort to read assigned books and rely on the internet for summaries. HS also really pushes diversified reading genre wise because you read plays, speeches, historical fiction, Greek Classics, American Classics etc. At least that’s what I experienced.
There just needs to be some period in life where a person really makes an effort to soak up a variety of literature. I’ve been a lifelong reader, so I cared enough during HS to use that as my opportunity to do that. College is another place to do that too.
Can I also just say how much I adore your nails! The maroon/shiny red color of them looks so beautiful on you (:
This is exactly one of the reasons that I cannot stand tiktok, esp. booktock.
Influencers across almost every genre are actively deteriorating the quality of information available, and people believe them because they are popular.
I've tried to watch influencers across multiple genres and they just strike me as extremely immature and I don't understand why they have a following.
I really love the effort you put in the subtitles of your video! It's very helpful!
Though romance novels are now long over 500 pages 😂💀
Ohhh I've not seen any like that! Hopefully they're actually well written. Otherwise, it makes no difference really 😭
There is no reason for a romance to be over 450 pages. And even that is pushing it
@@shelleys.corner yes most of what I got is over 500 pages. The pumkin spice cafe is a bit on the shorter sizes of things.
@@shelleys.corner honestly the 500+ page romance books is filled with smut. not shaming the people who read them, but for me personally I want a book that actually has a plot
@@haleyhentze5621its smut, dialogue, description about how hot they are and double pov so u get it all twice. Its like written reality tv
I've been waiting for someone to talk about this! Thank you!
I totally agree. I grew up reading LOTR have read it 11 times, and am reading wheel of time now every word. I enjoy a lot of book tok books for what they are but consider them easy reads or pallete cleansers. It’s sad to me if that’s all one can handle reading though I worry great fantasy’s like they used to be written won’t be written anymore and all we’ll have are easy reads since that’s all people read now but there’s so much more magic in the huge books and depth
i want to say i really like how you do your captions. i dont need captions, but i appreciate them because they help me with retaining information as someone with brainfog and most likely, an auditory processing disorder.
the little blue part is somwthing i never really see content creators do but its surprisingly helpful and looks quite nice too
Something hopeful: The more you read, the better you get at it. If they find the correct books they can get all the way through, or even if they just half-ass-read a lot of books, they will skill-up at it. Eventually, if they keep reading, they'll look back and realize how cringe this was, and by that point they'll be a versed enough reader to know what they were missing out on. They might re-read Six of Crows and love it in 10 years time.
Unrelated to the topic of the video but I Love your glasses! They look so beautiful on you!
Your video just confirmed for me that I'll never join TikTok. Anything I ever see from that site is utterly vapid. These girls are literally the "beach too sandy, water too wet" people who absolutely should NOT have a platform to broadcast their pointless opinions.
okay so glad i found your channel and this video. i was comparing myself to only being able to read maybe 1-3 books a month or less and feeling super unaccomplished compared to booktubers i watch. but i was reading taking my time building the scenes in my mind and throughly enjoying the ones i have been reading. i was making into something that reading shouldn’t be and realizing that’s the reason i stopped a long time ago too but it was all because of the “influencers” i watch. it’s not a competition and that’s what it can feel like sometimes.
From what I understand about the US education system in like the last two decades, they really don't teach people how to "read" anymore. At least not now to recognize a word beyond the first and last letters in a word and not spending enough time on phonics from what I've read for a lot of areas which I think contributes to how people interact with reading. Even so, it makes me sad bc there's so much to gain from reading and challenging yourself on reading books that are harder or be able to read/comprehend nonfiction that is academic in some way.
Idk if that's what's happening here, but my brain always goes back to that thought bc of stuff like No Child Left Behind really screwed things up for kids learning a lot of things including reading in the US. But I'm sure even before that, there wasn't much done to help kids learn how to read if they were consider lost causes in not understanding the material for whatever reason. Otherwise, I do agree its something to see people admit to skimming/skipping huge chunks of the books they read and having a lot of people agree with them on Tik Tok.
@@cheyenneguest4495 no child left behind actually supported phonics based reading instruction over cueing based teaching (the system your talking about that focused on the first letter and context) but cueing was already so entrenched by that point
@@rachel43274 Thank you for the correction! I remembered that cueing was a form of teaching since I read about it, but couldn't remember the exact word for it when typing out my comment. But I definitely can see it contributing to the lack of literacy we're seeing even with supporting phonics to be taught.
@@cheyenneguest4495 oh yes for sure No Child Left Behind had other problems, I recommend the podcast Sold A Story for anyone who's interested in learning more about kids not being taught how to read
my coworkers (65+) are amazed that i (23) never learned how to READ, i just kind of skim words and assume their meaning 😭
@@S.-bu2kg That would make sense with how education seems to be a way to make money rather than for understanding anything about our world in a lot of places
Me agreeing with your entire soc rant. 😅 I love soc sm
Also, when i read soc, I read it way too quickly, like 3-4 days for the whole duology. If you havent read it yet, take it SLOW. Enjoy every line, because its all so good!
I feel so pained that I can't experience it for the first time again 🥹🥹
@shelleys.corner sammeee I'm trying to get my family to read up but they just aren't interested! And I'm like you 👏 don't 👏 understand 👏 my life is literally changed!
I just came from a Bluesky thread talking about anti intellectualism and the cozy book trend and this seems to resonate… worried for the future but hopeful reading these comments!
Book tiktokers these days: "Guys, did you know you can read 100 books a week by just reading the blurb? Im such a book girly now!! 🤭🤭🤭"
I HATE skipping so much you can't even imagine, I feel guilty like I'm disrespecting the writer.
I was honestly hoping that that video of her complaining about the words was a joke. But now I’m really concerned about people who can’t read the way we’re used to because of the attention span issue.
they don’t appreciate!! how are they having any fun if they’re not even fully immersed? they’re reading for others, not for themselves
Gasping in Stephen King at the girl in the clip lol
LOOOOOL I wonder how he'd take that video
The edition of Crime and Punishment on by parents' bookshelf has font so small I'm scared that I'm going to hurt my vision reading it (and it's also still like 400 pages!)
I agree with both sides that’s why I typically read novels in verse or novellas. 600 page books aren’t really my thing unless it’s a book I want to read bad af!
Honestly the too many words on a page ive said before but in the context of the fact that my eyes hate focusing on words if they are too small or close together, I skim words like the and than because my brain will fill that in but the simple concept of just reading the dialogue from the start confounds me
tbh i feel like this is a problem, cause people lack comprehension in reading ... and im trying to talk to them but its like.. idk?
I'm slowly losing hope for a lot of people
@ i wanna know how its even possible to be that... 😭
Not me clicking on this and immediately feeling seen. Six of Crows is perfection and I have Priory of the Orange Tree on my shelf, staring me in the face every day inducing panic 🤣
It feels like the mix of “booktok popularity” and “rise of spice in YA” is what is making people who see popular books that are used to just reading smut scenes, trying to read books that don’t have them, and just skipping to kind the “good parts”.
The publishing industry is giving (certain) readers what they want, but not what they need.
Not me currently staring at the unopened Priority of the Orange Tree on my shelf as I watch this 🤣 Absolute UNIT of a book
@@The_hexgames give it a try. It's a good book
It's SO GOOD though.
One of my favorite novels had about 500/600ish pages and I remember being DEVASTATED that it wasn’t longer. ( and i dont regularly read massive books)
Ive wanted to say all of this. "If youre not actually reading, why are you pretending to read?" But I didn't want to get called names. 😂 If you're not reading, YOU'RE NOT READING!! 😅
A part of the reason is because of the instant gratification nature of these social media niches, especially where TikTok is concerned, it bred a whole group of people who don't want to be bothered to engage with whatever they're making content on, whether it's just a review or it's a recommendation, a lot of creators don't want put in the effort to create a genuine product.
If it’s too much to read, they are not readers/bibliophiles, so they need to find their lane elsewhere.
One, really, hopes those who wish to dumb ppl down will leave us readers-bibliophiles alone. We love reading & books, big books are challenges we enjoy accomplishing.
We have those TikTokers, and then readers like me, who are committed to read every book I start, regardless if after a couple chapters just can’t connect to it. I know it’s wrong, but can’t help it.
I think TikTok has fried their brains. I have always been a big reader but I noticed that watching too much tiktok destroyed my attention span for reading. I ended up uninstalling the app.
I recently left booktok. Between the constant drama & pedos, I'm over it.
You can see this with people who claim to read an insane number of books in a month when they give their "reviews". It's literally just them rephrasing/rewording the summary on the back and the typical "I loved it! It was great!" without giving *any* other details (hence making the "review" pointless). Its a trend right now. How many books people "read". Who can get the most "reviews" out. Talking about what's most "mainstream" will bring in views/clicks/etc.
It's not about reading or having a hobby and talking about it. It's about how they can use it to get more views and attention.