Ill also say this: Im tired of the literary industry giving out million dollar checks to specific blown up writers rather than investing in broadening the quality and quantity of diverse voices, ideas, etc. The act of reading and or consuming literature feels like a little tiny home version of capitalism and it made me stop reading. Books are now just fast fashion.
As an author, THIS!! It’s bad enough that they break advances in 4-5 payments now, and it’s worse that the editing they provide to most of their authors is subpar at best. But then they’ll pay $250k, $500k, a million, for one author, maybe for one book, maybe a series, put all their funds into marketing that one book, and then release other authors who they’ve put no energy into under the guise of not selling enough. Make it make sense!
I don’t usually comment, but I thought this was super poignant and so important to talk about how fantasy is based in reality and why people push back against novels being political!! I always enjoy hearing how you speak, and you really captured here a lot of why I initially pursued becoming a teacher. Fab work xx
Library hauls would be such fun videos. If only that would catch on. And I too am one of the poors, so I have to really want a book to actually buy it at all, let alone buy it new.
I filmed myself doing a library haul once but wasn't comfortable enough on camera to put it anywhere. It was fun though, live realizing I'm not totally sure what the book I grabbed is about.
It would be cool but it would backfire if you didn't block/blur it right. You'd have to keep sticky notes over library names or blur it out. Otherwise you'd dox your own location.
lmaoooooo rip to Rachel Oates. i generally like her content about bad books but you're definitely right in this case. she's not online enough to dig into stuff like booktok. and good for her tbh, she certainly touches more grass than me 😅 it just makes for a pov that's out of touch in this specific case ETA: NOT THE WHIMPER HAHAHAHA
I gave you a thumbs up, so don't come after me 😅Buuuut, as a casual enjoyer of RO's videos, I noticed that she tends to do click baity, rage inducing type of content, something like the 2 minutes of hate from 1984 (but now it's bloated, so it's 2 hours instead, cause that pays better. Get you bag, girl, don't mind me). And this is why I can only watch her from time to time, cause you end up consuming stuff that includes fucking morons saying stupid shit. Which is not only common in her channel, but in social commentary channels in general. Why waste your, our time tearing down someone that barely knows how to talk? There are answers that I'd rather not get into (they're not that deep, anyone can come up with them), but what I'm aiming at is that I believe RO may very well understand booktok, it's just that she focuses on this stuff cause it gets more views. Anyways, I'm going to bed, g'night.
I also watch Rachel Oates from time to time! Her videos about poetry and her videos breaking down misogyny and abuse in books are usually pretty great, but yeah, some of her videos are click-baity and undercooked 😅
Yeah I like her videos sometimes but this one. I was like "girl not all of booktok is like that" like I was on booktok until like a month ago and had never seen those individuals. Then again I'm more into existential horror and cosmic horror so maybe that's why 😅
@@noonoolink6822I think the problem with booktok is the problem that happens with ALOT of groups. The bag eggs make the biggest noise and takeover. So it drowns all the good stuff out so the main representatives are bad. Even worse is when it gets to be the most popular so its difficult tk see the less rage/bad stuff.
I agree with what you're saying. I never thought about why book hauls bothered me (most hauls low-key do), but you've hit the nail on the head. I really LOVE the libby shout-out! I almost exclusively read from my library (or random things my retired librarian mom gives me before she donates it or sends it to someone). Also recommend checking to see if your local library has lending agreements with other libraries. That's how I have 6ish library cards. Let's not forget hoopla, world cat, kanopy.... That being said, I am guilty of buying a book I intend to read and then... don't for whatever reason.
You are unfortunately not the first, and def not the last black booktuber to share these sentiments. I'm glad you are setting strong boundaries on what you want to cover and how. I hold no special sentiment to Sanderson, but I'm curious about your reasons for not reading his books.
Completely agree with everything you are saying here. I was sad to see you leave booktok, but now I’m wondering how long I’ll last in there myself. None of it is really sparking joy or creativity all that much anymore.
Part of me didn’t want to delete my account. But I wasn’t proud of anything I created and I really really wrap my head around why there was a new fight every day but also the fights weren’t new…
Can’t believe I’m here to witness the birth of your feud with Rachel Oates! KIDDING but in absolute fairness to her, I saw SEVERAL TH-camrs doing videos on the exact same handful of TikToks. Like, this has been a thing for the last couple weeks outside of her. “The contentification of literature” is such a good way to put it. Like obviously art and commerce have been intertwined for a long time but there’s something about the way publishers are using TikTok that is really… gross? Every time people use the word “consumer” another piece of what’s left of my soul dies. Anyway, thanks especially for putting so succinctly how political all of this is. That’s one of the discussions of late that’s got me the most heated. And it all goes back to the same anti-intellectualism, anti-criticism, anti-any kind of critical thinking that is so pervasive in certain online spaces. It’s political whether you want it to be or not! And honestly, especially rich when it’s coming from people who feel like they’re facing some very minor consequences for the way they chose to vote. Ohh no your feelings got hurt?? That’s definitely the worst thing that has happened as result of voting. Give me a breeeeeaaak.
@@dfretter oh no, fully a joke, I don’t know Rachel personally but knowing her history with being drawn into feuds it feels safe to say she’s not interested either.
If you want a good video about books becoming like fast fashion, I recommend Abby Cox. She's a dress historian who makes content about history and she did a video specifically about the topic of books and publishing becoming like fast fashion. It made me look at the topic differently based on the context and sources she gave.
frankly i love when i get to watch content creators rip my favorite romantasy books apart, i'm aware they're bad and i enjoy entertainment from people who critically look at the genre
I'm so delighted to have found your channel! A mature approach to reading, books, and content, ugh, I want to fill a bath and dunk myself in it (in a wholesome way). 10 more influencers just like this, please!
I enjoyed Rachel Oates’ Colleen Hoover roasts but then she said Fourth Wing had a better written relationship and got the ick lmfao. Edit: damn you’re really missing a REALLY good story when it comes to the hunger games 🤣
Oh no, I missed that 🥲 she's usually fairly on point (I say fairly because there is still some bias and things I've disagreed with too) but Xaden and Violet?? 😔
NO BUT FOR REAL, she straight up said that it was “good enemies-to-lovers”!! Girl they are not enemies!!!! What!!!!!! Violet and Zaden start of wanting to bang because they like each other’s bodies and then do exactly that. There are no enemies. There is no development. The world building is garbage, too. What are you talking about 😭
Emily Fox is a thrifty BookTuber and promotes going to the library! Not sure about TikTok, I'm not on there. Also, totally agree about the commodification of art whether that's through drawing/painting or writing, what's wrong with just creating for the sake of creating? Why does it need to be a "hustle" or "content" to "get views/noticed?"
I have a lot of issues with many of the romance books that are popularised by certain spheres of booktok, and I think a lot of it comes down to a failure to accurately label it. I don’t have a problem with spice, including kinky and violent spice - I grew up on AO3 and I’ve read all the cursed Dan and Phil fics so I don’t have any grounds for judgement - but I don’t like when it isn’t telegraphed in advance. I’m in some online kink spaces and I enjoy reading about dark kinks, and one of the first things you learn is that you need to label your work properly. You don’t post your dark kinky violent erotica without making it clear that that’s what it is And that has multiple different reasons. For one, it prevents people who don’t want to see it from having it be sprung on them, whether it’s triggering, they find it uncomfortable, or they’re just not into it. Two, it helps to give people the language to explain what they like or don’t like, and it encourages them to explore different kinks that they may never have considered with some degree of knowledge. As awful as 50 Shades is, the fact that it was explicitly about BDSM doubtlessly helped people to realise they were into that scene. And three, it serves as a shopping list for people who are genuinely into it. If someone is in the mood for a kidnapping erotica but your book is marketed as a dark romance, you might end up missing your core demographic because you marketed it wrong There’s nothing wrong with writing ‘disturbing’ erotica, but if you’re marketing it as a vaguely taboo/dark romance then you’re doing something wrong The rest of my issues are based around the fact that the hyper-consumption mentality you see in some circles encourages authors to just pump out books as fast as possible without much effort. Things like Colleen Hoover books, Zodiac Academy, Fourth Wing, and even things like Haunting Adeline have genuine potential to be great, but they ended up so shallow and (imo) poorly written. It’s just disappointing yknow
@ I think with CoHo it’s that she never really seems to understand what she’s writing. All her characters are awful unsympathetic people, particularly her men, but she seems to think they’re incredible. She’s a good writer in that her books are easy to read, people find them emotional, and they have some good concepts (as can be seen in the fact that Verity is literally just Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier from Wish), but it’s her characters and executions that really let her down. If she could unlearn her internalised misogyny and racism and maybe take a writing class or three, I do think she could be quite good. But yeah for now she’s my nemesis
That’s her viewpoint too but he frames it as book banning adjacent. I feel like decrying it as book banning is just a way to silence and not engage with the actual ideas driving convos on book covers, marketing and book content. Where you agree or disagree, the conversation is necessary.
I remember being in junior high and two older women in front of me in line saw me buy a ya fantasy book and they told me id love 50 shades of gray bc of the book I was buying, which I think just came out / i had never heard of it, and i would like to give them the benefit of the doubt where maybe they thought i was an adult but it always sits with me when people blame booktok for people being creepy. I think booktok just brings it to the foreground so to speak. Buying books I have definitely slowed down on too. I only use two shelves on my bookcases for books and those are the only books I have, and specifically for nonfiction i like to buy because i like to highlight if its something im genuinely learning about and taking notes. One of the last books I bought without looking into it before had fatphobia immediately and that was really eye opening to me because it was such a waste of money to buy and I could have just gotten it from my library and it would have been fine.
I'm tired of "content" and I don't know how to really explain what I mean. This goes beyond books too. I enjoy hearing people talk about things they're passionate about. I want to watch people. When it starts to feel less like talking about the "thing" and more like generating "content" or drama I start to fade out. I find I feel this stronger with short form videos. I don't use tiktok, I don't use instagram, etc. It's not like I'm completely divorced from social media and content online. I still use discord servers, and forums, and bluesky/twitter as I enjoy discussing things with new people but I was not getting that same sense of discussion from just commenting on a 60 second video. And I am NOT saying everyone shouldn't use these things. It's a me thing. I want to engage with what I'm watching (whether that's me actively mentally engaging, watching a show, watching a game, etc.) and short form video doomscrolling was turning into mindless consumption for me. I get why people do it and I get when people need to do it for money I'm just not interested. I'm hella rambling but I really want to say thanks for this video. I love reading and I love thinking about what I'm reading so I enjoy hearing your thoughts and how much it feels like you care about what you're saying.
I usually only buy books when I can't find them in my local library. Honestly, the only thing causing me to skim read are thrillers that are just pages of love triangles and school drama. Like can we get back to murder mystery please :/
More library content! For real!! I'm frustrated that a lot of creators that are readers only talk about buying their books. I wish we talked more about library resources.
I’m still watching but Wanna comment this before I forget lmao but I’m curious to hear your thoughts on why people so often think criticism=bad. I’ve had so many conversations all over the internet where anytime I (usually quite respectably) criticize something, people will perceive that as being mean or a hater or being negative. Like where did this come from? Is that how it’s always been? My suspicion of what it traces back to is the pervasive black or white thinking (mostly born from Christianity I think with their whole good vs evil bs) so people think “if I like this thing that someone is telling me is harmful/bad, then I am bad too” so they just shut down ANY (justified) criticism. Idk if that holds up but that’s my theory. Similar to how , for example, if You point out something someone says is ableist they might just double down and refuse to believe it, because If they acknowledge they are spewing ableist bs they would have to confront a lot of “bad” things about themselves and their beliefs and 1.) that’s just too hard to do for them / don’t want to and 2) they have this subconscious believe that doing a bad thing is irredeemable and you’re just bad as a person
Yeah I often say we need to talk about the portrayal of romantic relationships in romance and how the dynamics enforce patriarchal ideas and then people call me an anti and that I want to ban books. I just want analysis on the topic and for people to be better informed about media troupes and where they come from.
D, I get that you don't want to be a tiktok hottie, but you can be one. As in, don't sell yourself short. You're a wonderful TH-cam yapper and definitely have the potential to be a tiktok hottie
I’m very happy I don’t have Tik Tok & have stayed away from it but unfortunately, I feel like its affected publishing greatly. Its even affected how bookstores are organized & how local bookclubs are run. So its even affecting readers who don’t know anything about Tik Tok. I love following all kinds of readers from different backgrounds & its been beneficial for my reading experience. Seems like Tik Tok is all the same books & content. Appreciate all of the TH-camrs I follow including you!
I love libraries but the library in my town is raycist they carry like 10 books by ppl of color and when you go in there as someone who isn’t …. They don’t make you feel welcomed and they rush you or they assume you’re not there for books. They also have books for like older older ppl, But I say all this to say I love second hand books and free little libraries and Book outlet, I am trying to use Libby but I’m a little lost on it
While I generally like Rachel Oates, I do think she gets to be a bit judgmental and parental when it comes to what people read and how they interact with it. It's annoying when people come to a video and tell someone to turn their brain off and enjoy things, but it's equally annoying to go to a video or make a video and tell other people to "get literate/smart". Think you hit the nail on the head when you called out that she says she doesn't even booktok--how would she even know what the majority of the review scene is like there? In defense of skimming: an author should write what's necessary and engaging into their story and edit out fluff. A bunch of these viral books were written longer specifically for the pay-per-page flip KU model. They are needlessly repetitive, so skimming through until the author says something new feels justified. But that's just my take as someone who skims a lot because I want to know what happens but I can't stand hearing about how unfair x character's situation still is for the millionth time. If the writing is engaging and offering new info or description or perspective I don't skim lol.
I think the reason why we have a lot of people who wouldn't normally get into books getting into books is because of the lack of visual media that's actually good and enjoyable to watch. TV shows used to fill the what I like to call candy content. Which is a need we all have. I think that's why a lot of people like things like twilight and SJM because it's very sitcomy. Right like the fun part of twilight at least for me wasnt Bella and Edward relationship it was the family of vampire shenanigans. Like I love ice planet barbarians and part of the reason is because of the lore and because of the tribe shenanigans. So I think once we start getting more trash content out of TV and movies again this whole thing will probably still be there but less in our face. Edit: also i would like to add my tast range from camp to existential horror and cosmic horror, as well as sifi. A book thats better then both sjm and twilight that has the fun i like without the problematic aspect is " a journey to a small angry world" its a lot of fun if not exposition heavy.
I stopped watching Rachel Oates poetry book reviews because I got the same kind of elitist vibe. I don't think it's intentional on her point, but I totally get why it put you off.
She speaks about literature the same way Neil DeGrasse Tyson speaks about science, in a tone that very firmly states, "I am an authority. I am correct. There is no room for debate; do not question me." It's a combination of authoritative vocal tone and verbage that doesn't sufficiently acknowledge any potential subjectivity or error. I can't stand NDT because I think that tone is inappropriate even for a PhD discussing hard science. Hearing it from a humanities enthusiast is an enormous red flag, IMO.
I gave up on her when she made it clear that she thinks if you like dark things in your literature you need intervention. I'm with Folding Ideas. Just because you like dark fiction doesn't mean you want it to happen to you.
I will occasionally watch a Rachel Oates video but I feel like I have been put off by her by her video(s?) about BookTok. I’m not on TikTok and I also don’t enjoy reading dark romance or heavy smut books but her videos reading Zodiac Academy and discussing BookTok completely missed the point. I read the first Zodiac Academy and while I didn’t like it at all and had a bunch of frustrations with it I know people reading it aren’t viewing it as peak literature. The way Rachel talked about it made it seem people were stupid and were promoting abuse for liking it. It is a very clearly marked dark/bully romance book and isn’t meant to teach people what kind of relationship to desire but is more of an indulgence and fun thrill for some. It reads like a Wattpad book I’d absently read on my phone when I can’t sleep at night but she seemed mad it wasn’t a story showing perfect relationships. I felt like she didn’t get the point of it and was mad other people had fun reading it. I also attempted to watch her BookTok video and had to stop cause she seemed so angry about a community she even expressed she wasn’t ever a part of or cared to be. I much prefer content and criticisms of BookTok from people who are or have been in the space and understand those in the space (although I do agree with her frustrations about people who skim 80% of a book and just read dialogue and heavy action scenes).
5:12 you super don’t have to, but I’ve been really enjoying your music on Spotify and would love to hear your poetry, and so if you want to post some of that on TH-cam shorts I’d be interested. I’m not on TikTok, but I would watch those on TH-cam shorts. ❤ (Btw, I saw that you might have a poetry collection out?)
Thank you for listening to my music! I deeply appreciate your interest in my poetry as well. I won’t be posting my poetry on this channel, I don’t think it has a place. I’ve been debating starting a second channel that’s more personal and about my life trying to be an artist. So if I do share poetry on TH-cam it will be on a separate channel.
When I buy books (which is rare as another poor) it's always from the small bookstores that sell their books on eBay. I used to always buy them from Half Priced Books but they don't exist anymore in central Ohio. Even if I were rich, I would buy my books used for the same reason your wife had a talk with you. It's just better for the environment until people finally get it and they start making paper out of hemp. But the library is your friend, y'all and they are about to be attacked heavily over the next four years so please support them. Anti Intellectualism and the way people on Booktok are saying things like "I only read the dialogue" or "Don't put politics in books..." are all intertwined. Anti Intellectualism is nothing new in America. I was a bookworm growing up in the 90's who had to physically fight people in school because I was a target for all the damn bullies.... because I dared to love books. Poor people also were historically not allowed to read. My great grandfather left school in third grade because he had to work on his small family farm. Also, white women absolutely can and should be able to catch things like micro aggressions.... you just have to listen when black and brown people speak on these things. It is not difficult. I changed an entire section of a book I wrote as a teenager because I didn't know about the white savior complex and when I learned... from listening to black and brown people... what that was, I felt that part came off white savior like so, because I am self published and can change things whenever I want, I changed it. No one told me to do that. I didn't do it so I could appease people. Hell, no one knows my books exist. I did it because when a person of color tells me a problem exists, I am going to acknowledge that problem and try not to be part of the problem. Being white in 2024 when we have access to people all over the world and you can get on TH-cam and hear experiences that are different from your own, there really isn't an excuse... especially when we know most of the people the publishing industry props up today were rich before they were published so they should be better educated and more aware than someone like me, right? 🙄They have no excuse in my opinion. As a writer, I get very sick and tired of this irrational push back against criticism. It's ridiculous. As long as a person reads the book or is honest about DNF'ing it and their criticism is honest (I once had a right winger who didn't like my book because it was about the 60's and the main character was an antiwar activist who hung out with Black Panthers so he literally just made shit up in his "review"... don't do that... obviously 😂😂😂) criticism is not only acceptable, it's good. In the dark ages of early Goodreads, reviewers and indie authors were friends. We supported one another. But we didn't expect or ask the reviewers to refrain from critiquing our books. We wanted the truth (most of us did...there were some out there people who were doing wild stuff even back then but they were a minority of indie authors) because when it's a matter of taste, what they hated about your book might actually be the thing that makes someone else buy your book. I have personally witnessed this. I don't know how we got here with people wanting to publish stuff and get no criticism about the work but if you can't handle criticism, you are not cut out for publishing. Sorry. That's just the reality of the situation. 🤷🏻♀️
@@dfretter I felt so bad for how this comment was worded and was just now starting to edit it when I saw your reply lol overall this is an incredible video.
About the overconsumption of books, imo the biggest issue is the overconsumption of the same mostly cis white authors. I intentionally go out of my way to preorder indie books, books from authors of color, ESPECIALLY trans authors of color. I would personally have much less issue with all the buying of books if it was a VARIETY every time, each influencer with their own unique taste and style and intrigue.
I’ve watched quite a bit of Rachel Oats over the years, and lately she’s been dipping her toes into some book-banning rhetoric that concerns me. I thought her Zodiac Academy analysis would be an insightful roast, but she was strongly hinting that the books should not be allowed to exist. It was VERY uncomfortable. She was also shaming survivors who use dark romance to cope/heal, which is just gross. Please NEVER give survivors blanket medical advice!! You are not the doctor treating them!!
Yeah, certain videos of Rachel Oates give that elitist vibe where she believes that if she deems any topic too dark, it shouldn't exist. Which is fucking weird because that line of thinking will lead you to censorship and book banning. NOTHING is too dark to be wiped away. I believe every piece of literature is a window to people's souls. I also find it so annoying when people bring up the "oh you read dark things, you'll start thinking it's okay in real life". I read horror growing up, it didn't make me want to copy a slasher movie. I have the emotional and mental intelligence to understand what's right and wrong without needing to blindly believe what books tell me. I trust myself to make that judgement however it seems too many people lack that. Rachel Oates is not the only person who has videos with that mentality but it does suck that someone like her, an intelligent woman who has gone through a lot still thinks dark topics shouldn't exist :/
Genuine question: as someone who has never read a Brandon Sanderson book, can you tell me what reasons you will not read his work? Do you just not like his writing? Or is there something else that I should know? Because I was considering picking up his book but I don't want to if he is problematic.
I wouldn’t say he’s problematic but ExpertBookSmuggler.com in the “what’s the deal with…” section has some information on why some choose not to read him.
He's a Mormon and he's said some homophobic things in the past. Even if he seems to be walking back from that position, he still Tithes to the Mormon church, which is a very homophobic and racist institution
omg i just unsubscribed to her channel she was starting to really rub me the wrong way, her video really came off as something she made while angry at a specific person or two.
I should check out more book thrifting content. Book hauls don't usually interest me coz I don't care what books people own, I care more what they say about a book they have read. So I don't care about books they haven't read yet. But I like the vibe of thrifting. I also watch Little Free Library swapping/stocking videos sometimes.
I’m not trying to convince you to read The Hunger Games. I just want you to know that the movie was a very poor representation of the books and it lost all the nuance of the writing. I watched the movie having not read the book and it wasn’t easy to understand much of anything. I got the general idea but I couldn’t see why everyone was over the moon over it. I read the book last year and I finally understood a lot of the things happening and the motivations. It was filmed very powerfully though, it just didn’t capture what it was supposed to. There’s nothing like the magic of imagining a story in your mind in my opinion.
I’m sure I’m not the first to say this, but with a quick scroll through I couldn’t see anyone. Brandon Sanderson didn’t write the Hunger Games. I’m not sure if that’s what you meant to say, but that wasn’t him. I have a feeling you just misspoke because hunger games really wouldn’t fit into the Brandon Sanderson universe.
@ I thought that it was a mistake, which is why I said that I thought he didn’t mean to say it, but he did put the two together twice. Anyone who reads knows that Suzanne Collins and Brandon Sanderson write in completely different styles. I thought it was a much more a funny slip up than anything else.
I loved your video, and thought your takes were really well articulated With Rachel Oates I really enjoy her religious influencer content. She does have some stuff that doesn't land, but when you were referring to her video, I found it weird that you had the exact name of the video down even mentioning it was all caps, but then proceeded to mispronounce her name. If you are going to use someone's content you should give a proper citation
Because he's an active mormon and as such, 10% of his income goes to the LDS which is more of a cult than a regular church. I recommend watching ExMormon content by people like Alyssa Grenfell.
I am at the point where I will NEVER EVER buy a self-published book. Full stop. Most "writers" cannot write. They suck, to use layman's terms. Yes, there are a few good books out there, but my time is limited. Time best spent reading the classics.
I really think Rachel Oates has an elitism problem. While critiquing she always has an aloof attitude which can escalate to some -ism statements. For example, when she reviewed a book by a son of David Beckham who had stated himself that he can't write well, she assumed that his poor writing style is due to intellectual disability. Like, writing is a skill you can learn and doesn't come natural to anyone! But she seems to think that intelligent people write well while others don't..
I personally wouldn’t recommend Oates too much. Transphobic lady that does that weird schtick of “I’m not transphobe I just think (transphobic spiel)” whenever asked about it and tried to block other creators work in her home county for pointing out her transphobia
A lot of these people seem like the modern day equivalent of those rich Victorians who would fill their home libraries with books they never intended to read (they often bought them in bulk just for that purpose - it was an olde timey book haul!) just because having an aesthetic library full to the ceiling with books was trendy. My hope for the future of Book-[InsertPlatformHere] is that many of the people watching this content will be introduced to books they love or books they hate and want to share their real, human thoughts with the world, which - hopefully - will be right there waiting. I predict this style of book 'review' will go the way of critics of the Nostalgia variety: those shouty, screamy content generators who everybody wanted to emulate for a time until viewers got fed up of that and realised they'd rather hear the thoughts of actual critics. Real analysis is evergreen. It's always new and different because there will always be new and different takes. The same can't be said for fad peddling.
6:43 I’ll be sure not to tell myself you said this THE SECRET IS SAFE WITH ME
🤐
Ill also say this: Im tired of the literary industry giving out million dollar checks to specific blown up writers rather than investing in broadening the quality and quantity of diverse voices, ideas, etc. The act of reading and or consuming literature feels like a little tiny home version of capitalism and it made me stop reading. Books are now just fast fashion.
No literally!! It’s the same over done concepts- ppl promote aesthetics and not actual substance.
And the “diversity” these books is downright offensive or non-existent in the sense that they are ambiguously brown shadow rebel men.
As an author, THIS!! It’s bad enough that they break advances in 4-5 payments now, and it’s worse that the editing they provide to most of their authors is subpar at best. But then they’ll pay $250k, $500k, a million, for one author, maybe for one book, maybe a series, put all their funds into marketing that one book, and then release other authors who they’ve put no energy into under the guise of not selling enough. Make it make sense!
EXACTLY, and now we see thise same writers make new releases that ypu can clearly tell weren't edited. And if they were, it wasn't well.
@@ebonywill2426 i will do that
I don’t usually comment, but I thought this was super poignant and so important to talk about how fantasy is based in reality and why people push back against novels being political!! I always enjoy hearing how you speak, and you really captured here a lot of why I initially pursued becoming a teacher. Fab work xx
Library hauls would be such fun videos. If only that would catch on.
And I too am one of the poors, so I have to really want a book to actually buy it at all, let alone buy it new.
I filmed myself doing a library haul once but wasn't comfortable enough on camera to put it anywhere. It was fun though, live realizing I'm not totally sure what the book I grabbed is about.
It would be cool but it would backfire if you didn't block/blur it right. You'd have to keep sticky notes over library names or blur it out. Otherwise you'd dox your own location.
@@muriel6843 Hey, a fellow poor! 😁
lmaoooooo rip to Rachel Oates. i generally like her content about bad books but you're definitely right in this case. she's not online enough to dig into stuff like booktok. and good for her tbh, she certainly touches more grass than me 😅 it just makes for a pov that's out of touch in this specific case
ETA: NOT THE WHIMPER HAHAHAHA
I gave you a thumbs up, so don't come after me 😅Buuuut, as a casual enjoyer of RO's videos, I noticed that she tends to do click baity, rage inducing type of content, something like the 2 minutes of hate from 1984 (but now it's bloated, so it's 2 hours instead, cause that pays better. Get you bag, girl, don't mind me). And this is why I can only watch her from time to time, cause you end up consuming stuff that includes fucking morons saying stupid shit. Which is not only common in her channel, but in social commentary channels in general. Why waste your, our time tearing down someone that barely knows how to talk? There are answers that I'd rather not get into (they're not that deep, anyone can come up with them), but what I'm aiming at is that I believe RO may very well understand booktok, it's just that she focuses on this stuff cause it gets more views.
Anyways, I'm going to bed, g'night.
I also watch Rachel Oates from time to time! Her videos about poetry and her videos breaking down misogyny and abuse in books are usually pretty great, but yeah, some of her videos are click-baity and undercooked 😅
Yeah I like her videos sometimes but this one. I was like "girl not all of booktok is like that" like I was on booktok until like a month ago and had never seen those individuals.
Then again I'm more into existential horror and cosmic horror so maybe that's why 😅
@@noonoolink6822I think the problem with booktok is the problem that happens with ALOT of groups. The bag eggs make the biggest noise and takeover. So it drowns all the good stuff out so the main representatives are bad. Even worse is when it gets to be the most popular so its difficult tk see the less rage/bad stuff.
I agree with what you're saying. I never thought about why book hauls bothered me (most hauls low-key do), but you've hit the nail on the head. I really LOVE the libby shout-out! I almost exclusively read from my library (or random things my retired librarian mom gives me before she donates it or sends it to someone). Also recommend checking to see if your local library has lending agreements with other libraries. That's how I have 6ish library cards. Let's not forget hoopla, world cat, kanopy.... That being said, I am guilty of buying a book I intend to read and then... don't for whatever reason.
Again, the crossover with Rachel always makes my days ❤
You are unfortunately not the first, and def not the last black booktuber to share these sentiments. I'm glad you are setting strong boundaries on what you want to cover and how. I hold no special sentiment to Sanderson, but I'm curious about your reasons for not reading his books.
Didn’t think I was the first. I feel it was worth reiterating.
Completely agree with everything you are saying here. I was sad to see you leave booktok, but now I’m wondering how long I’ll last in there myself. None of it is really sparking joy or creativity all that much anymore.
Part of me didn’t want to delete my account. But I wasn’t proud of anything I created and I really really wrap my head around why there was a new fight every day but also the fights weren’t new…
@ That is so fair!
Can’t believe I’m here to witness the birth of your feud with Rachel Oates! KIDDING but in absolute fairness to her, I saw SEVERAL TH-camrs doing videos on the exact same handful of TikToks. Like, this has been a thing for the last couple weeks outside of her.
“The contentification of literature” is such a good way to put it. Like obviously art and commerce have been intertwined for a long time but there’s something about the way publishers are using TikTok that is really… gross? Every time people use the word “consumer” another piece of what’s left of my soul dies.
Anyway, thanks especially for putting so succinctly how political all of this is. That’s one of the discussions of late that’s got me the most heated. And it all goes back to the same anti-intellectualism, anti-criticism, anti-any kind of critical thinking that is so pervasive in certain online spaces. It’s political whether you want it to be or not! And honestly, especially rich when it’s coming from people who feel like they’re facing some very minor consequences for the way they chose to vote. Ohh no your feelings got hurt?? That’s definitely the worst thing that has happened as result of voting. Give me a breeeeeaaak.
If she wants the smoke that’s up to her but it would be a waste of her time cause I’m too chill to feud with.
@@dfretter oh no, fully a joke, I don’t know Rachel personally but knowing her history with being drawn into feuds it feels safe to say she’s not interested either.
@ lol I figured and was joking too. Hard to tell in a comment section 😅
“They’re upset you have the gall to be hurt to their face” 👏👏
Knowing I’m in that circle within the venn diagram makes me incredibly elated.
If you want a good video about books becoming like fast fashion, I recommend Abby Cox. She's a dress historian who makes content about history and she did a video specifically about the topic of books and publishing becoming like fast fashion. It made me look at the topic differently based on the context and sources she gave.
frankly i love when i get to watch content creators rip my favorite romantasy books apart, i'm aware they're bad and i enjoy entertainment from people who critically look at the genre
I'm so delighted to have found your channel! A mature approach to reading, books, and content, ugh, I want to fill a bath and dunk myself in it (in a wholesome way).
10 more influencers just like this, please!
You literally said everything I'm feeling so well. I'm just gonna direct everyone to this video to explaining my point of view of everything lol
7:48 I don’t mind it much, but I do think it’s overdone. Also I HATE the term “spice.” Maybe it’s because I’m old(er), but just call it what it is!
To me, the term spice is just a silly goofy time. Always thought it was derived from calling attractive people hot. But I am not a learned man.
@ Oooooh I hadn’t thought of that! I thought it was just because people didn’t wanna say “smut.” 🤷🏻♀️
I enjoyed Rachel Oates’ Colleen Hoover roasts but then she said Fourth Wing had a better written relationship and got the ick lmfao. Edit: damn you’re really missing a REALLY good story when it comes to the hunger games 🤣
I’ll take your word for it because I refuse.
Oh no, I missed that 🥲 she's usually fairly on point (I say fairly because there is still some bias and things I've disagreed with too) but Xaden and Violet?? 😔
NO BUT FOR REAL, she straight up said that it was “good enemies-to-lovers”!! Girl they are not enemies!!!! What!!!!!! Violet and Zaden start of wanting to bang because they like each other’s bodies and then do exactly that. There are no enemies. There is no development. The world building is garbage, too. What are you talking about 😭
Emily Fox is a thrifty BookTuber and promotes going to the library! Not sure about TikTok, I'm not on there.
Also, totally agree about the commodification of art whether that's through drawing/painting or writing, what's wrong with just creating for the sake of creating? Why does it need to be a "hustle" or "content" to "get views/noticed?"
I don't think I've ever been this early to a video while also being so excited for it.
Proud of you
I have a lot of issues with many of the romance books that are popularised by certain spheres of booktok, and I think a lot of it comes down to a failure to accurately label it. I don’t have a problem with spice, including kinky and violent spice - I grew up on AO3 and I’ve read all the cursed Dan and Phil fics so I don’t have any grounds for judgement - but I don’t like when it isn’t telegraphed in advance. I’m in some online kink spaces and I enjoy reading about dark kinks, and one of the first things you learn is that you need to label your work properly. You don’t post your dark kinky violent erotica without making it clear that that’s what it is
And that has multiple different reasons. For one, it prevents people who don’t want to see it from having it be sprung on them, whether it’s triggering, they find it uncomfortable, or they’re just not into it. Two, it helps to give people the language to explain what they like or don’t like, and it encourages them to explore different kinks that they may never have considered with some degree of knowledge. As awful as 50 Shades is, the fact that it was explicitly about BDSM doubtlessly helped people to realise they were into that scene. And three, it serves as a shopping list for people who are genuinely into it. If someone is in the mood for a kidnapping erotica but your book is marketed as a dark romance, you might end up missing your core demographic because you marketed it wrong
There’s nothing wrong with writing ‘disturbing’ erotica, but if you’re marketing it as a vaguely taboo/dark romance then you’re doing something wrong
The rest of my issues are based around the fact that the hyper-consumption mentality you see in some circles encourages authors to just pump out books as fast as possible without much effort. Things like Colleen Hoover books, Zodiac Academy, Fourth Wing, and even things like Haunting Adeline have genuine potential to be great, but they ended up so shallow and (imo) poorly written. It’s just disappointing yknow
Zodiac Academy and Fourth Wing definitely had potential! Not sure if CoHo books can ever be fixed.
@ I think with CoHo it’s that she never really seems to understand what she’s writing. All her characters are awful unsympathetic people, particularly her men, but she seems to think they’re incredible. She’s a good writer in that her books are easy to read, people find them emotional, and they have some good concepts (as can be seen in the fact that Verity is literally just Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier from Wish), but it’s her characters and executions that really let her down. If she could unlearn her internalised misogyny and racism and maybe take a writing class or three, I do think she could be quite good. But yeah for now she’s my nemesis
That’s her viewpoint too but he frames it as book banning adjacent. I feel like decrying it as book banning is just a way to silence and not engage with the actual ideas driving convos on book covers, marketing and book content. Where you agree or disagree, the conversation is necessary.
Sometimes i listen to those haul videos and think to myself. "look at all the books I won't read" and then I switch off.
Haha found you through read with Rachel 😂
Absolutely love your takes on books I'll never read 😅
Me too!
I remember being in junior high and two older women in front of me in line saw me buy a ya fantasy book and they told me id love 50 shades of gray bc of the book I was buying, which I think just came out / i had never heard of it, and i would like to give them the benefit of the doubt where maybe they thought i was an adult but it always sits with me when people blame booktok for people being creepy. I think booktok just brings it to the foreground so to speak.
Buying books I have definitely slowed down on too. I only use two shelves on my bookcases for books and those are the only books I have, and specifically for nonfiction i like to buy because i like to highlight if its something im genuinely learning about and taking notes. One of the last books I bought without looking into it before had fatphobia immediately and that was really eye opening to me because it was such a waste of money to buy and I could have just gotten it from my library and it would have been fine.
My dude speaking facts as usual
I'm tired of "content" and I don't know how to really explain what I mean. This goes beyond books too. I enjoy hearing people talk about things they're passionate about. I want to watch people. When it starts to feel less like talking about the "thing" and more like generating "content" or drama I start to fade out. I find I feel this stronger with short form videos. I don't use tiktok, I don't use instagram, etc. It's not like I'm completely divorced from social media and content online. I still use discord servers, and forums, and bluesky/twitter as I enjoy discussing things with new people but I was not getting that same sense of discussion from just commenting on a 60 second video.
And I am NOT saying everyone shouldn't use these things. It's a me thing. I want to engage with what I'm watching (whether that's me actively mentally engaging, watching a show, watching a game, etc.) and short form video doomscrolling was turning into mindless consumption for me. I get why people do it and I get when people need to do it for money I'm just not interested.
I'm hella rambling but I really want to say thanks for this video. I love reading and I love thinking about what I'm reading so I enjoy hearing your thoughts and how much it feels like you care about what you're saying.
Also left TikTok some time ago and honestly don’t miss it. Love all your points.
excellent video - excited to watch more of your other ones!
I usually only buy books when I can't find them in my local library. Honestly, the only thing causing me to skim read are thrillers that are just pages of love triangles and school drama. Like can we get back to murder mystery please :/
Great video. This brought so much needed nuance to discussing the issues with booktok!!
More library content! For real!! I'm frustrated that a lot of creators that are readers only talk about buying their books. I wish we talked more about library resources.
I’m still watching but
Wanna comment this before I forget lmao but I’m curious to hear your thoughts on why people so often think criticism=bad. I’ve had so many conversations all over the internet where anytime I (usually quite respectably) criticize something, people will perceive that as being mean or a hater or being negative. Like where did this come from? Is that how it’s always been? My suspicion of what it traces back to is the pervasive black or white thinking (mostly born from Christianity I think with their whole good vs evil bs) so people think “if I like this thing that someone is telling me is harmful/bad, then I am bad too” so they just shut down ANY (justified) criticism. Idk if that holds up but that’s my theory. Similar to how , for example, if
You point out something someone says is ableist they might just double down and refuse to believe it, because
If they acknowledge they are spewing ableist bs they would have to confront a lot of “bad” things about themselves and their beliefs and 1.) that’s just too hard to do for them / don’t want to and 2) they have this subconscious believe that doing a bad thing is irredeemable and you’re just bad as a person
This might make an interesting video so thank you for the comment!
Yeah I often say we need to talk about the portrayal of romantic relationships in romance and how the dynamics enforce patriarchal ideas and then people call me an anti and that I want to ban books. I just want analysis on the topic and for people to be better informed about media troupes and where they come from.
D, I get that you don't want to be a tiktok hottie, but you can be one. As in, don't sell yourself short. You're a wonderful TH-cam yapper and definitely have the potential to be a tiktok hottie
Thank you for believing in me 🥲
There are smaller sections of booktok that are a lot more wholesome!
Yeah there’s hidden gems for sure💎
@ 100%. I feel like the best accounts just get buried by the algorithm bc the cringe and over the top content gets the views.
Books are expensive in my country. must be nice to be so privileged that one can buy stacks of them just for spicy scenes.
@@phangkuanhoong7967 I live in America and I can’t afford it
You can get the spice for free by reading fanfictions.
@@Lemonrollcake legit you can get better spice from fanfictions or the original works section on AO3
I’m very happy I don’t have Tik Tok & have stayed away from it but unfortunately, I feel like its affected publishing greatly. Its even affected how bookstores are organized & how local bookclubs are run. So its even affecting readers who don’t know anything about Tik Tok. I love following all kinds of readers from different backgrounds & its been beneficial for my reading experience. Seems like Tik Tok is all the same books & content. Appreciate all of the TH-camrs I follow including you!
I love libraries but the library in my town is raycist they carry like 10 books by ppl of color and when you go in there as someone who isn’t …. They don’t make you feel welcomed and they rush you or they assume you’re not there for books. They also have books for like older older ppl,
But I say all this to say I love second hand books and free little libraries and Book outlet, I am trying to use Libby but I’m a little lost on it
Liking this video for the chair
🍉
While I generally like Rachel Oates, I do think she gets to be a bit judgmental and parental when it comes to what people read and how they interact with it. It's annoying when people come to a video and tell someone to turn their brain off and enjoy things, but it's equally annoying to go to a video or make a video and tell other people to "get literate/smart". Think you hit the nail on the head when you called out that she says she doesn't even booktok--how would she even know what the majority of the review scene is like there?
In defense of skimming: an author should write what's necessary and engaging into their story and edit out fluff. A bunch of these viral books were written longer specifically for the pay-per-page flip KU model. They are needlessly repetitive, so skimming through until the author says something new feels justified. But that's just my take as someone who skims a lot because I want to know what happens but I can't stand hearing about how unfair x character's situation still is for the millionth time. If the writing is engaging and offering new info or description or perspective I don't skim lol.
In honor of you, D, I will reread Hunger Games. I'm just kidding, I already have the whole series in my reading queue. Plus Battle Royale.
TH-cam Yapper is a title I relate to 😂😂
I also like Michael bays ninja turtle movies
Omg book net fest movie night!?
BEAUTIFUL! Thanks man.
I think the reason why we have a lot of people who wouldn't normally get into books getting into books is because of the lack of visual media that's actually good and enjoyable to watch.
TV shows used to fill the what I like to call candy content. Which is a need we all have.
I think that's why a lot of people like things like twilight and SJM because it's very sitcomy. Right like the fun part of twilight at least for me wasnt Bella and Edward relationship it was the family of vampire shenanigans.
Like I love ice planet barbarians and part of the reason is because of the lore and because of the tribe shenanigans.
So I think once we start getting more trash content out of TV and movies again this whole thing will probably still be there but less in our face.
Edit: also i would like to add my tast range from camp to existential horror and cosmic horror, as well as sifi.
A book thats better then both sjm and twilight that has the fun i like without the problematic aspect is
" a journey to a small angry world" its a lot of fun if not exposition heavy.
I stopped watching Rachel Oates poetry book reviews because I got the same kind of elitist vibe. I don't think it's intentional on her point, but I totally get why it put you off.
She speaks about literature the same way Neil DeGrasse Tyson speaks about science, in a tone that very firmly states, "I am an authority. I am correct. There is no room for debate; do not question me." It's a combination of authoritative vocal tone and verbage that doesn't sufficiently acknowledge any potential subjectivity or error. I can't stand NDT because I think that tone is inappropriate even for a PhD discussing hard science. Hearing it from a humanities enthusiast is an enormous red flag, IMO.
I gave up on her when she made it clear that she thinks if you like dark things in your literature you need intervention. I'm with Folding Ideas. Just because you like dark fiction doesn't mean you want it to happen to you.
@@cricketcalin I didn’t even know that Rachel believed that. I watch her on and off, when did she state that opinion? Do you recall the video?
I will occasionally watch a Rachel Oates video but I feel like I have been put off by her by her video(s?) about BookTok. I’m not on TikTok and I also don’t enjoy reading dark romance or heavy smut books but her videos reading Zodiac Academy and discussing BookTok completely missed the point.
I read the first Zodiac Academy and while I didn’t like it at all and had a bunch of frustrations with it I know people reading it aren’t viewing it as peak literature. The way Rachel talked about it made it seem people were stupid and were promoting abuse for liking it. It is a very clearly marked dark/bully romance book and isn’t meant to teach people what kind of relationship to desire but is more of an indulgence and fun thrill for some. It reads like a Wattpad book I’d absently read on my phone when I can’t sleep at night but she seemed mad it wasn’t a story showing perfect relationships. I felt like she didn’t get the point of it and was mad other people had fun reading it.
I also attempted to watch her BookTok video and had to stop cause she seemed so angry about a community she even expressed she wasn’t ever a part of or cared to be. I much prefer content and criticisms of BookTok from people who are or have been in the space and understand those in the space (although I do agree with her frustrations about people who skim 80% of a book and just read dialogue and heavy action scenes).
@KendallM0219 I believe it was one of the zodiac academy videos
5:12 you super don’t have to, but I’ve been really enjoying your music on Spotify and would love to hear your poetry, and so if you want to post some of that on TH-cam shorts I’d be interested. I’m not on TikTok, but I would watch those on TH-cam shorts. ❤
(Btw, I saw that you might have a poetry collection out?)
Thank you for listening to my music! I deeply appreciate your interest in my poetry as well. I won’t be posting my poetry on this channel, I don’t think it has a place. I’ve been debating starting a second channel that’s more personal and about my life trying to be an artist. So if I do share poetry on TH-cam it will be on a separate channel.
@ sounds good! I’ll check it out if you end up deciding to do that.
This video makes me happy that I'm too old for the tok. 🙃
Ayy well I’m glad the video could provide you with some happiness 🩷✨
@@dfretter always!
When I buy books (which is rare as another poor) it's always from the small bookstores that sell their books on eBay. I used to always buy them from Half Priced Books but they don't exist anymore in central Ohio. Even if I were rich, I would buy my books used for the same reason your wife had a talk with you. It's just better for the environment until people finally get it and they start making paper out of hemp.
But the library is your friend, y'all and they are about to be attacked heavily over the next four years so please support them.
Anti Intellectualism and the way people on Booktok are saying things like "I only read the dialogue" or "Don't put politics in books..." are all intertwined. Anti Intellectualism is nothing new in America. I was a bookworm growing up in the 90's who had to physically fight people in school because I was a target for all the damn bullies.... because I dared to love books. Poor people also were historically not allowed to read. My great grandfather left school in third grade because he had to work on his small family farm. Also, white women absolutely can and should be able to catch things like micro aggressions.... you just have to listen when black and brown people speak on these things. It is not difficult. I changed an entire section of a book I wrote as a teenager because I didn't know about the white savior complex and when I learned... from listening to black and brown people... what that was, I felt that part came off white savior like so, because I am self published and can change things whenever I want, I changed it. No one told me to do that. I didn't do it so I could appease people. Hell, no one knows my books exist. I did it because when a person of color tells me a problem exists, I am going to acknowledge that problem and try not to be part of the problem. Being white in 2024 when we have access to people all over the world and you can get on TH-cam and hear experiences that are different from your own, there really isn't an excuse... especially when we know most of the people the publishing industry props up today were rich before they were published so they should be better educated and more aware than someone like me, right? 🙄They have no excuse in my opinion.
As a writer, I get very sick and tired of this irrational push back against criticism. It's ridiculous. As long as a person reads the book or is honest about DNF'ing it and their criticism is honest (I once had a right winger who didn't like my book because it was about the 60's and the main character was an antiwar activist who hung out with Black Panthers so he literally just made shit up in his "review"... don't do that... obviously 😂😂😂) criticism is not only acceptable, it's good. In the dark ages of early Goodreads, reviewers and indie authors were friends. We supported one another. But we didn't expect or ask the reviewers to refrain from critiquing our books. We wanted the truth (most of us did...there were some out there people who were doing wild stuff even back then but they were a minority of indie authors) because when it's a matter of taste, what they hated about your book might actually be the thing that makes someone else buy your book. I have personally witnessed this. I don't know how we got here with people wanting to publish stuff and get no criticism about the work but if you can't handle criticism, you are not cut out for publishing. Sorry. That's just the reality of the situation. 🤷🏻♀️
17:32 I think you’re conflating instant gratification with short attention spans but (edited: then again those do go hand in hand)
I see them as two separate symptoms of the same illness. I associate them with each other. But I know they’re different.
@@dfretter I felt so bad for how this comment was worded and was just now starting to edit it when I saw your reply lol overall this is an incredible video.
@@nicodinisi I’ve done that before. S’all good! thank you for watching.
About the overconsumption of books, imo the biggest issue is the overconsumption of the same mostly cis white authors. I intentionally go out of my way to preorder indie books, books from authors of color, ESPECIALLY trans authors of color. I would personally have much less issue with all the buying of books if it was a VARIETY every time, each influencer with their own unique taste and style and intrigue.
I’ve watched quite a bit of Rachel Oats over the years, and lately she’s been dipping her toes into some book-banning rhetoric that concerns me. I thought her Zodiac Academy analysis would be an insightful roast, but she was strongly hinting that the books should not be allowed to exist. It was VERY uncomfortable. She was also shaming survivors who use dark romance to cope/heal, which is just gross. Please NEVER give survivors blanket medical advice!! You are not the doctor treating them!!
Yeah when it comes to working through trauma or navigating mental health there isn’t a one size fits all method.
Yeah, certain videos of Rachel Oates give that elitist vibe where she believes that if she deems any topic too dark, it shouldn't exist. Which is fucking weird because that line of thinking will lead you to censorship and book banning. NOTHING is too dark to be wiped away. I believe every piece of literature is a window to people's souls.
I also find it so annoying when people bring up the "oh you read dark things, you'll start thinking it's okay in real life". I read horror growing up, it didn't make me want to copy a slasher movie. I have the emotional and mental intelligence to understand what's right and wrong without needing to blindly believe what books tell me. I trust myself to make that judgement however it seems too many people lack that. Rachel Oates is not the only person who has videos with that mentality but it does suck that someone like her, an intelligent woman who has gone through a lot still thinks dark topics shouldn't exist :/
Genuine question: as someone who has never read a Brandon Sanderson book, can you tell me what reasons you will not read his work? Do you just not like his writing? Or is there something else that I should know? Because I was considering picking up his book but I don't want to if he is problematic.
I wouldn’t say he’s problematic but ExpertBookSmuggler.com in the “what’s the deal with…” section has some information on why some choose not to read him.
He's a Mormon and he's said some homophobic things in the past. Even if he seems to be walking back from that position, he still Tithes to the Mormon church, which is a very homophobic and racist institution
@@Arrows-N-eyez he's an active mormon, for one
@@sourcandyspite Yes, and as one, 10% of his income goes to the LDS which is more of a cult than a regular church.
omg i just unsubscribed to her channel she was starting to really rub me the wrong way, her video really came off as something she made while angry at a specific person or two.
I should check out more book thrifting content. Book hauls don't usually interest me coz I don't care what books people own, I care more what they say about a book they have read. So I don't care about books they haven't read yet. But I like the vibe of thrifting. I also watch Little Free Library swapping/stocking videos sometimes.
All the shade to Rachel from me. I found that video irritating beyond belief. The faux high-horse nonsense is so grating and, like you said, elitist.
Love the video!
I’m not trying to convince you to read The Hunger Games. I just want you to know that the movie was a very poor representation of the books and it lost all the nuance of the writing. I watched the movie having not read the book and it wasn’t easy to understand much of anything. I got the general idea but I couldn’t see why everyone was over the moon over it.
I read the book last year and I finally understood a lot of the things happening and the motivations. It was filmed very powerfully though, it just didn’t capture what it was supposed to.
There’s nothing like the magic of imagining a story in your mind in my opinion.
I’m going to tell Rachel right now 😂 …………. okay just kidding, but that was funny!😁
DANDADAN MENTIONED ‼️‼️
I’m sure I’m not the first to say this, but with a quick scroll through I couldn’t see anyone. Brandon Sanderson didn’t write the Hunger Games. I’m not sure if that’s what you meant to say, but that wasn’t him. I have a feeling you just misspoke because hunger games really wouldn’t fit into the Brandon Sanderson universe.
You are the first person to say this. I was saying I am not gonna read Sanderson and also I’m not reading the hunger games.
sorry did you watch the same video we did? he definitely didn't say that lmao
@ I thought that it was a mistake, which is why I said that I thought he didn’t mean to say it, but he did put the two together twice. Anyone who reads knows that Suzanne Collins and Brandon Sanderson write in completely different styles. I thought it was a much more a funny slip up than anything else.
The advertising of same books/specially ya genre!
The hunger games movies aren’t very good and they leave a lot of stuff out of the books. You should definitely read the hunger games!
Bluebook? Booksky? Has that site figured out their silly name yet?
I dunno I’m not on there
Booksky sounds better imo
I did a little checking, im pretty sure its Booksky
I will watch any video that dunks on booktok 😋 i'm sat.
I loved your video, and thought your takes were really well articulated
With Rachel Oates I really enjoy her religious influencer content. She does have some stuff that doesn't land, but when you were referring to her video, I found it weird that you had the exact name of the video down even mentioning it was all caps, but then proceeded to mispronounce her name. If you are going to use someone's content you should give a proper citation
🫡
💛🫶💛
i haven't read the hunger games yet, but i do love (most of) sanderson's books
why are you refusing to read them, if you don't mind telling?
Well I don’t read him because he is a Zionist
Because he's an active mormon and as such, 10% of his income goes to the LDS which is more of a cult than a regular church. I recommend watching ExMormon content by people like Alyssa Grenfell.
Sooooo......people don't want you to critique books when your content is about your opinions about books you've read? People are way too controlling.
Rachel Oates is gonna break down if she sees these comments about her 😅
Prolly shouldn’t have name checked 🥲
I am at the point where I will NEVER EVER buy a self-published book. Full stop. Most "writers" cannot write. They suck, to use layman's terms.
Yes, there are a few good books out there, but my time is limited. Time best spent reading the classics.
I really think Rachel Oates has an elitism problem. While critiquing she always has an aloof attitude which can escalate to some -ism statements. For example, when she reviewed a book by a son of David Beckham who had stated himself that he can't write well, she assumed that his poor writing style is due to intellectual disability.
Like, writing is a skill you can learn and doesn't come natural to anyone! But she seems to think that intelligent people write well while others don't..
I personally wouldn’t recommend Oates too much. Transphobic lady that does that weird schtick of “I’m not transphobe I just think (transphobic spiel)” whenever asked about it and tried to block other creators work in her home county for pointing out her transphobia
Oh this some phresh tea ☕️
A lot of these people seem like the modern day equivalent of those rich Victorians who would fill their home libraries with books they never intended to read (they often bought them in bulk just for that purpose - it was an olde timey book haul!) just because having an aesthetic library full to the ceiling with books was trendy.
My hope for the future of Book-[InsertPlatformHere] is that many of the people watching this content will be introduced to books they love or books they hate and want to share their real, human thoughts with the world, which - hopefully - will be right there waiting. I predict this style of book 'review' will go the way of critics of the Nostalgia variety: those shouty, screamy content generators who everybody wanted to emulate for a time until viewers got fed up of that and realised they'd rather hear the thoughts of actual critics. Real analysis is evergreen. It's always new and different because there will always be new and different takes. The same can't be said for fad peddling.
Knowing I’m in that circle within the venn diagram makes me incredibly elated.