By Christine Yunn-Yu Sun
In last week’s article, we explored the “Discovering a Good Read” report from Australia Reads, which identifies the reasons given by teenagers for their withdrawal from reading.
Some of these are particularly noteworthy, such as “reading is not fun”, “it’s hard to find anything good to read”, and “there are not many books about people like me”.
Based on this report, Australia Reads recommends seven ways to support teenagers in reading for pleasure.
One of them is “meet teens where they are”.
Specifically, the popularity of BookTok, Bookstagram and BookTube shows “the incredible power of social media to support reading behaviour, through aiding with book discovery and forming online communities”.
According to the Australia Reads Research Review in 2022, 68 per cent of teen readers say that BookTok has inspired them to read a book that they would otherwise have never considered.
The “Discovering a Good Read” report also reveals social media ranks as the top passive leisure pursuit for teenagers, with their preferred platforms being Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok.
Australia Reads further cites a recent research by the Publishers Association in the UK, titled “The BookTok Generation: How social media is transforming Gen Z reading habits”.
Among the research’s over 2,000 respondents aged 16-25, “almost two-thirds (59 per cent) say that BookTok or book influencers have helped them discover a passion for reading”.
The UK research also finds that BookTok and book influencers have a significant influence over this audience’s reading choices, with 55 per cent of respondents saying they turn to the platform for book recommendations.
More importantly: “38 per cent of young people now turn to BookTok for recommendations ahead of family and friends, while seven in ten (68 per cent) say that BookTok has inspired them to read a book that they would have never considered otherwise.”
The research finds that BookTok helps Gen Z-ers connect with their peers and create communities based on what they are reading. Even better, the platform has a positive impact on brick-and-mortar bookstores, with “nearly half (49 per cent) of respondents visiting a physical bookshop to buy a book they have seen on BookTok”.
In Australia, publishers, booksellers and authors are already harnessing the power of the platform to engage and inspire readers.
As explained by researchers from the “Teen Reading in the Digital Era” project at Deakin University:
“By showcasing teenagers who love books and are proud of their reading habits, BookTok inspires other young people to enjoy reading. And it creates trends that influence the types of books they read, sometimes in unexpected ways.”
The aforementioned “Discovering a Good Read” report made a similar point, showing fiction titles popular on BookTok are often nominated by teenage readers as their favourites.
While popular fiction genres include fantasy, mystery and crime, dystopian, romance, humour, science fiction and graphic novels, non-fiction works such as self-help titles and (auto)biographies and memoirs of well-known sportspeople and actors are also favoured.
“To foster a strong reading culture among teens, it’s essential to align initiatives with their
digital habits and busy schedules,” the report concluded.
