During the pandemic, a niche section of TikTok gained a large following: BookTok. In these videos, creators review books, give recommendations, and discuss literature, spurring their followers to go out and buy these new books. Before 2020, my sister primarily read graphic novels and Dork Diaries, something we used to tease her for. Recently, however, I’ve noticed thicker novels have filled her shelves and I often find them strewn around the house. While I certainly support my sister’s love of reading, I can’t justify the amount she sometimes spends on books when she could just borrow them from the library. In addition, when I ask her how she likes the stories, more often than not, my sister hates the main character and yells about the stupidity of their decisions. BookTok streamlines finding books with niche tropes, but an overload of these cliches can downgrade the book’s overall quality. The reused plots are then mass-produced and take away from the overall meaning of the book, if there even was one to begin with. While I support reading light-hearted books for fun (I mean you have to take a break from the depressing English books during high school sometimes), it is also important to read to educate yourself through literacy. Why spend money on a book you might not like when you could just loan it from the library for free? The Santa Clara County Library District boasts four public libraries in the West San Jose area. Of course, there is a problem if you enjoy annotating and tabbing books. I suggest borrowing from a friend or the local library and reading it first. If you enjoy it, then you can invest in the book. Moreover, if you liked the book, rereading it should be no issue. Next time you are thinking about reading another book, check your local library first, instead of needlessly spending money.
