NYT 100 best books, book influencers, and the death of negative reviews

[@literielle]

as someone who owns a book "instagram", there is hell with posting book reviews especially for the more popular fictions where certain authors who have huge fanbases can light your account on fire just because you didn't give a big 5/5 and had the most minimal amount of criticism over the book. we are not obligated to like something just because it's popular and vice versa. it definitely makes you lose motivation to post because you're unsure whether to ride the coattails of popularity or stand your ground and risk being bullied by these online users..

[@JaceBlack-do2uy]

I saw this happen to someone saying they didn't really like sarah j maas and they literally had to turn their comments off

[@sstjohn96]

I just started a booksta and I'm too scared to post a negative review.

[@Onemorebookpodcast.]

This is a scary direction for Book content to be moving toward, but it should just encourage us to stand out grounds & give our honest opinions on books. We owe our Audience that, no matter how big or small it is. Keep on doing what you are doing ✊🏾

[@TF-lk6co]

"Literary criticism, when done right, is not telling us whether the book is good or bad." I may get this tattooed somewhere.

[@Bucky_Winchester]

Just yesterday I saw a comment under a 2 Star review of a book, and a very reasonable one that is. Like, no attacking, just basically an analysis of what didn't work for the in the big picture and someone got so offended over it and took it weirdly personal. Basically shouting in the comment and telling the review owner that they didn't have to be so mean and crappy about it, that there are people out there that like the book and they shouldn't spoil their fun and joy about it. Like... nobody's keeping anyone from reading what they like. But people are allowed to post negative reviews. I was speechless tbh

[@_Celine_26]

Yeah this is crazy. Something similar happened to me this year. I told a friend I finished reading The Alchemist, he got all excited and asked me my opinion ; I said it was nice and liked it but was disappointed that women don't have personal legends on their own, that the female character deserved better etc. He took it super personally and stopped talking to me. During an attempt to clear the air several weeks later, he said "you could have just said whether it was entertaining, you didn't have to critize". I can't believe someone would throw away a friendship because I didn't like their favorite book as much as they did. But here we are. So yeah, people take things weirdly personally...

[@alexandragutu8652]

I have always been an avid book commentary type of youtube video watcher, and I felt very bothered that most book commentary videos made by more well known youtubers lacked a nuanced vision of a certain topic that was being highly discussed. So, here I am commenting for the first time just to say how much I, as a viewer, appreciate you finally giving voice to a lot of important things that have been overlooked by other youtubers. It is even odd that such avid readers sometimes see only in black or white, when most of the times we lack so many other shades and colours in multiple conversations. So, thank you, and keep it up!

[@GladysHunnam]

Yes, I noticed that yeeears ago here in my country. The fear of losing collaborations make bookstagrammers lie in their reviews. I started to get suspicious when they didn't have anything to criticise because there's always some aspects that you didn't enjoy in a book. I've also noticed that a lot a bookstagrammers don't even read those books that have been sent to them by publishers and their reviews are a copy-paste of the blurb, exactly word by word. I still can't figure out what they gain by doing that

[@ashleys_space]

I was floored the other day when a booktuber I watch was doing a reading vlog. The way she started describing the books as she “read” them, I could tell she wasn’t reading them and giving copy and paste answers. I was like “no way she’s playing in our faces like this … no way”. I had already unfollowed a few because I realized they weren’t reading these books. I follow one girl and she buys a ton of books and then give a lot out to free little libraries. The issue is, she does hauls and swear she’s going to read them, and then a few videos later she’s like “ I’ve had this book forever and I’m never gonna read it” or “I read this book a few times and it’s time to let it go” in her little library I hauls like we didn’t see her just buy them a few videos back.

[@confusedbutgotthespirit]

@@ashleys_spacedon’t be scared, drop the youtubers’ names 👀

[@adreamerontherun]

Yes thank you for this, I've also noticed how it seems that 1) everyone is reading the same books and 2) every single one of those books are "5/5, a masterpiece". Apart from the fact that it is impossible, I think it has led to mediocre books and media in general to become the norm. I personally think people should be a bit more stingy with their ratings! 😄 also, this is why I've came to the conclusion to not read the books that booktok or bookstagram recommend and do not give in to the "hype".

[@leonasindlerova1727]

And that's why I get the best book recommendations on Tumblr, there's no way of making it your career from there and people really don't hold back when they don't like something and the reasons why😂 All the negatives aside, the fact that it has no algorithm is still one of the best things.

[@Hyperboreasy]

Very much agreed. It's as if criticism has become a binary thing, polarised into peerless praise or scathing remarks. Few people are still doing balanced, fair commentary on the good and bad of each piece, wherever that falls on the spectrum.

[@dextro_whatever]

Okay, y'all. Authors are told not to read their reviews. Maybe unless it comes from a very respected publication or critic, and unless the author is actually insane, they aren't going to care if you, the average internet user, writes them a negative review. That review should, that being said, be genuine. Goodreads and its counterparts are for readers, not writers. And if someone leaves a negative review on something you did like, hear them out. Maybe their opinion will bring to light something you didn't notice, or maybe you can agree to disagree.

[@ramalam98]

RIGHT like if the author is out there searching for reviews and takes offense from what you said about their book, that is THEIR problem

[@vjpublisher]

The people or influencers who are afraid of giving negative reviews are often those who haven't read the book at all. They're the ones who just bought the book for the pictures or listen to audiobooks at 2x speed. If they give a negative review and it's challenged, they can't back it up. Aesthetics can only cover so much.

[@zicoelsamo6921]

I listen to the audiobooks at 2.25x speed and can still re-tell all of the details of the plot and characters. Just because your brain is incapable of doing something doesn’t mean other’s are the same ❤

[@DanLyndon]

The fable app is just what I needed, as I have a newsletter about fiction with a book club but have also struggled to facilitate that live community aspect. Although, no, literary criticism, when done right, _is_ about evaluating the quality of the work. The idea that it isn't is why we have so many badly written and shallow books being promoted as important literature. This idea that literary criticism should just be a passive commentary is a very recent idea espoused in MFA circles. It is impossible to give a proper study of a book's themes, etc., without also discussing how the book tackles those themes, and when discussing the how of it, the assessment of quality is baked into what you have to say about it, whether you acknowledge it or not.

[@LeroyBickerstaff4]

As someone who is a longtime Letterboxd user and new Goodreads user, its weird to see the discrepancy in review tone. Letterboxd definitely invites an open critical tone (for the most part) but it seems like negative reviews of any sort on Goodreads is frowned upon. I think the best thing about art is how divisive it can be. You could hear a song, watch a movie, or read a book that moves you to tears but makes your friend roll their eyes. AND THATS FINE. It would be boring if everyone responded to art the same way. If we adore unabashedly positive reviews of something the reviewer loves, we should also accept reviews that someone discovers something they absolutely loathe.

[@NerdyNurseReads]

I love doing a negative review, especially for classics. I love watching a litbro lose their mind in comments bc I dared to challenge Pynchon’s greatness or Dostoevsky s ability to write believable women. People are have different opinions. It’s ok. We don’t need to treat people like they’re stupid for not liking what you like. Anyway, loved this!

[@JaceBlack-do2uy]

yay for weird books book club!! we have books at home is such a good book club name lmao

[@Montie-Adkins]

I don't know, I watch a lot of booktubers and they are loaded with both books they liked and disliked. I'm not seeing a death of negative reviews.

[@mar.v.]

same.

[@peowlskdjwjshxu]

I honestly think platform makes a difference. The death of negative reviews is more present on tiktok than it is on youtube imo

[@accordingtoalina]

I agree that youtube is a lot more varied and “honest” and I think this has a lot to do with the platform (as someone else has already mentioned). Something I see a lot on tiktok is people getting piled on for the mildest critiques of books that are popular on the platform. As for Instagram, idk if creators on there like to think of themselves as on the more wholesome side or if it’s specifically the bookstagram demographic that doesn’t want to ruffle any feathers, but I find the platform as a whole borders on toxic positivity sometimes. KZbin is different for reasons I can’t quite put my finger on, but it’s one of the main reasons I prefer making content here - there’s more room for nuance

[@Linklex7]

Booktubers tend to be a bit more honest. Usually it’s TikTok & Instagram where the corruption happens.

[@JenDunndot]

"overly enthusiastic book reviews" yep yep, I know exactly what you're talking about because they are all over my Instagram feed and they are so frustrating!! I hadn't considered this aspect of bookstagrammers getting book pr and feeling a pressure to give good reviews just so they maintain that relationship with the publisher because like you say, there is not so much at stake like they're not getting paid or anything. I'd love to see a more in depth video about "book influencers" from you

[@Alisse.notavaliable]

I am not a fan of "books you need to read". Because that are mostly the same 10 books that were overhyped. Right now I'm not even interested in literature and booktok is one of the reasons. I read one article in a German newspaper (zeit) where it was questioned why there are so many english authors who are Times-Bestseller. The reason was kinda upsetting: The americans don't like to read authors who are not english. And publishers don't feel the need to translate books if there is no interest in such authors. For me personally the last 20 years were years where young adult /teens books have been one forefront. (for example: Harry Potter, Hunger Games, Twillight, etc.)

[@Nothereforit174]

They’re usually there for a reason. Overhyped is a faux subject of the egoists who think they’re smarter than thousands and millions. That’s overvaluing the self and probably a sign one is not a great reader(limited range for appreciation). So I try to ask why it appeals to others and not me, I either end up loving the book I didn’t expect to or understanding why it has appeal but what isn’t working for me as a reader or behind

[@melissaannmiller]

I hadn't heard that Stephen King nominated one of his one books 😅 I havent read his books, and I'm sure he has books that are worth being on the list, but that's just an interesting detail

[@accordingtoalina]

He’s so funny for that

[@dustinneely]

Having read 19 Stephen King books I can confidently say King has no literary value.

[@lewartofstory]

​@@dustinneely lol what is the criteria for a book having literary value? people tend to look down upon genre fiction.....

[@kl4856]

@@dustinneely I couldnt disagree with you more

[@sylviawatch]

omg your voice is soo calming i was literally feeling so overwhelmed after a long day and you made my evening🩷 thank u

[@ioanaburlacu3069]

I am sure with the PR from publishing companies that many book influencers are lying even though they are told to give a ‘honest’ review in exchange for the advanced copy. Even in the booktube days, you would see the same copy paste review that is extremely vague and incessantly praising the book without almost to zero discussion! That is a shame because discourse should be encouraged. That is how writers and readers improve!

[@user-hw3bv7hq1d]

honestly, i feel like there should b more negative reviws!! ppl r entitled to their own opinion! i esp like reading "book beef" e.g leo tolstoy and Fyodor dostoevsky, Shibusawa and Yuki Mishima's friendship, Chuuya and Dazai's hatredof each other!! ugh!1 we need more!

[@sandramiksawrites]

I’m so excited for the Book Club!!

[@Mina-hm2og]

Yeah for the book club! You have interesting things to say, you stay calm and your voice is very soothing, so yeah for this type of content too! (Overenthusiastic critique of content, but I believe you deserve it).

[@accordingtoalina]

Thank you so much ♥️

[@hardnewstakenharder]

As a reader, Goodreads is still my go to for solid book reviews. As a debuting author (Fall 2025!), I'm a little wary because Goodreads is going to be accurate.

[@_Celine_26]

what's your book? :)

[@bookum]

I do agree with you. Eddie Glaude Jr. has this quote that has stuck - We are in a moment in time where people don't know how to disagree without being disagreeable. I think that does go into some the book reviews/literary criticism discussions.

[@accordingtoalina]

"people don't know how to disagree without being disagreeable" I might have to steal that

[@bookum]

@@accordingtoalina All yours!

[@gabbyfox5714]

Great video. You bring up some really good points. Love your channel!

[@Theomite]

As someone who's in the process of beginning their own self-publishing career, this is just one more thing in an already overwhelming morass of "stuff I don't understand but have to deal with." I don't use social media so the whole "cultivation" aspect of self-promotion and the weird cult-like politics that seem to saturate the entire sphere, it's giving me second thoughts about writing professionally, especially since a lot of modern writing seems to vibes-oriented instead of craft-oriented. I don't want to have to re-read Machiavelli just to build a business strategy of marketing myself (which is already a loathsome idea).

[@_Celine_26]

I got excited about the book club because I've been wanting to join one physically for years now but it never worked out. Then I thought, oh man are you telling me I must re-do all my lists, but on Fable now? But it actually is so easy to export the lists from Goodreads. Just did it now after downloading the app, and joined your book club :) Not sure whether I'll be able to find the books here in South Korea though!

[@InfiniteText]

I could listen to you talk about book culture all day (si in Romaneste si in Engleza)

[@accordingtoalina]

Aaah merci frumos ♥️

[@jaimeerindy4573]

I'm a BookTuber and from what I know of our community (and Bookstagram too), I don't think many people are in it for money. I think people really just want the latest & hottest books for free lol, because it's expensive to keep up if you have to pay for it all yourself. And something I've noticed is that it's very tough to have alligned reading taste. There are people I know for sure I allign with and I for sure don't, but most people are mixed in the middle somewhere, so I don't take it too too personally if someone has a differing opinion on a specifc book

[@fableapp]

So excited for this book club!

[@dannyletcher5873]

If King really had to pick one of his own books why would he choose Under The Dome and not 11.22.63?

[@QuestionsIAskMyself]

literally

[@MrBoJangles]

Years ago he said that Under the Dome was his chance to write about serious ecological problems we face. So it being different from his usual topics that is probably why he picked it over 11/22/63

[@acerrubrum5749]

I think I'll just carry-on wandering through the bookstore or library and choose what I think might be good and interesting.😮

[@deardsco]

Whenever I picked a book to read, I always checked the brutally honest reviews first over the five stars rating, because to me, the amount of people giving the book five stars review are become bullshit, people's pleaser kind of thing.

[@GenWivern2]

Thank you Alina, and I hope you settle in quickly. There's a lot of entertainment to be had from tracking reactions to lists like the NYT's, I find.

[@heatherhaven1268]

I couldn’t stand ‘Moby Dick’. There. I said it! I love ‘Treasure Island’; ‘Madame Bovary’; ‘Anna Karenina’; ‘Crime and Punishment’….all classics. One thing I always found curious is that I couldn’t finish ‘Tom Sawyer’ but LOVED ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’. 🤫

[@auroradimitre2568]

generation x seems like an interesting book--i do love just picking books up in thrift stores and secondhand stores. it is sad when people get wrapped up in reading in such a commercialized way like this; yeah, i read a lot and i read a number of popular books, but i do love some random paperbacks that were free or ten cents.

[@madelinesingh1629]

DOUGLAS COUPLAND?!! Microserfs is one of my fav books of all time. He is a renowned canadian author, there is a massive mural on the side of a building in Vancouver :-) i love to see other ppl enjoying canadian media !

[@alexandragutu8652]

I have to say, in regards to negative reviews, I have seen a lot of negative criticism for books that I love that I can get buy and understand and respect that person's opinion, but I think it also comes down to how you express such opinion. For example, I saw a review once that said "I dnf at 60 pages but I hated it and also if it was written buy a woman it would be better", and to me this doesn't really count as a review.. I didn't even understand what that person meant with the review, it just left a lot of empty space for an actual interesting conversation to be had in regards to their opinion, but hey it is what it is. And they are also apparently a well known book influencer, so it made me sad.. 😅

[@accordingtoalina]

Yes this is exactly what I’m talking about when I talk about being a “hater”. I’m all for being blunt with your unpopular opinions, but it would be nice if there was some substance behind them

[@oazasumraka]

yayyy a book club ^^

[@alanalan-tc8no]

Could someone explain this new unhaul trend to me? I see videos of people getting rid of even more than 100 books. But what the hell is happening? How do you manage to have so many, often unread, books to give away? Are these videos children of those videos of the past when they bought 60/70 books all at once?

[@ellyra412]

Pretty much. The big unhaul is a result of the massive haul. Though it really depends on the reader : I unhaul as I go which means that if I didn't like a book I don't keep it but other readers keep all the books they've read and then one day to a masive cull when they ran out of space. The 100+ unhaul are usually special occasion when the person is about to move and decided to cut their personal library. That or the person has a massive overconsumption problem and realised that they bough so many books that they are never going to read

[@pauieeepau]

Some reviewers buy too much, while some also get too many free books from publishers. Some booktubers get boxes of books unsolicited from publishers sometimes. So it can add up. The comment before me mentioned overconsuming, and I've heard book hauls get more views, so some booktubers may do hauls for the views😬 In one unhaul i watched, the person unhauled even their school books, which meant they hadn't gotten rid of books since high school and college.

[@Paperworms2nd]

I just checked out the list, and barely anything in the top 20 sounds interesting to me. I like to rely on personal recommendations by online friends instead of following any trends.

[@RockstarWizardess]

Thank you, Alina for the video. I spoke about booktok and booktube in my own videos before. I am not a fan of mainstream booktubers/booktokers jumping to whatever is mainstream in the moment without considering other factors surrounding the book. The book's popularity isn't a problem per se, it's the focus on popularity alone which sucks. I like watching (and making) bookish videos. It's kinda sad that it's mostly the same ~10 books everywhere. Most of them I am not going to read because I have no interest in them whatsoever. Nonetheless influencers (I don't really like that word to be honest) keep promoting them. If influencers (big or small) can't criticize the book, then the book should be kept off the screen or at least receive a very laconic review. That's what I did. Not because of the deals with all the big shots (my channel is too small for that) but for my own being. It's better to dedicate time and videos to books that bring you joy and ignore all the stuff you consider irrelevant. Who cares what mainstream influencers think, lol? And your audience is more likely to trust you, I think. Well, speaking of negative reviews and being laconic, here's what I think about a certain mainstream book: Normal People by Sally Rooney is a Hipster literature and nothing more. Glad I borrowed it and never paid money for it. Oh, and I hate Rooney's random commentary. It was out of place and it ruined the book for me. There I've said it (both here and in my videos).

[@lewartofstory]

Great vid. I agree to the most part but I don't think blindly liking something is the same as blindly hating something...both are bad but the later one is bad b/c people tend to lash out and insult authors which makes it worse in my opinion.

[@Ink_Spills]

I don't believe I have observed a decline in negative reviews at all. It still seems to be quite common to hate-read popular books and create negative reviews of them for the rage bait views.

[@Ink_Spills]

"I read X So You Don't Have To" type of content.

[@MrRosebeing]

I'm not. I'm never negative but I'm often facetious and most creators on KZbin don't seem to get it. It often makes me smile, which is nice.

[@Amora5503]

I like your balanced views. So may content creators either talk about these topics as being the end of intellectualism and literature, or just say it's not that deep and to let people enjoy things

[@dustinneely]

The incestuous relationship between authors and book reviewers has destroyed the credibility of the "influencer".

[@williamowen4706]

Video idea: the 100 worst books of the 21st century. You could read them in your book club and come up with negative reviews as a community.

[@pgrzesina]

I think there are a couple of things that are making reviews worse now than in the past. Media consolidation has resulted in fewer professional reviewers. For example, back when they were still around, I enjoyed watching Siskel and Ebert. I wouldn't necessarily agree with their views on a movie, but i could get a decent idea of what the movie would be like and why they liked it or not. Now you're lucky to get more than a sentence and most often all you really hear is the aggregate rating of multiple reviews. The other problem is social media and engagement farming. You can either give a glowing review or a horrible review and get fans/haters to engage, but if it's mediocre it will just get ignored. Bad reviews are harder to give though because you get attacked by the true believers. I remember seeing an unflattering review for an AI assistant device and the reviewer got so much flack he felt it necessary to give a follow-up. If it were me, and I had to deal with that kind of response, I'd probably just delete my review and let them find out the thing sucked on their own.

[@Linklex7]

I see people say all the time that if you can’t give something a 4 or 5 star review you shouldn’t post a review at all. That’s horrible advice. You can give critical advice without being a dick. This doesn’t help newer fans when they search for a book cause all they will see are the perfect 5 out of 5 reviews, it realizing that’s probably only about 10% of Everyone who read it. Negative reviews are just as important as positive review. It’s your job, as a fan, to sort through both sides and see which one resonates with you,

[@yuristeaparty]

I think in the book influencer space, there are a lot of invalid negative reviews. I hate seeing 1 star reviews that say something like “too much profanity!” or people who go into a book blind but have triggers. There’s also book influencers whose profit model is based on criticism and snark, and their content does the best when they tear books apart. You go on goodreads and you see 1 and 2 star reviews that are 8 paragraphs long and filled with GIFs, it’s obvious that people are having a bit too much fun being negative. EDIT: it’s also nuts when people tag authors on negative Instagram reviews? I see it more often than I should. Why would one want to do that lol

[@chocolateoreo6489]

I’m sending you love❤

[@SparkPup]

I wanted to join your club but I pretty much only read on my phone (Kindle app). I looked for Generation X by Douglas Coupland and it seems to only be available as a physical book. Maybe I can join on the next book

[@accordingtoalina]

No problem at all! I’m happy to have you whenever you can xx

[@pjovieira]

Love it.

[@giorgiamichelin6817]

non c'entra nulla col video ma ho appena scoperto che sei cresciuta in italia, nulla pazzesco😂❤

[@accordingtoalina]

Hahaha sorpresaaaaa!

[@88crabb]

Hello I love you my beloved beautiful angel

[@soundslikeknee]

Some of these fans treat their favourite books or authors like their gang. But only a matter of time till they throw gang signs 🖖🏿🫰🏿👋🏿