TikTok is partnering with the National Literacy Trust (NLT) to place bookshelves in 11 UK areas identified as lacking in literary provision.
20 “BookTok Bookshelves” will be placed in Birmingham, Blackpool, Bradford, Doncaster, Manchester, Middlesborough, Newcastle, Nottingham, Peterborough, Stoke and Swindon.
While TikTok will be funding the initiative by paying for the books and shelves, NLT youth volunteers will be choosing selections of titles for the shelves. The bookshelves will be located in places with a high footfall of over-13s, such as youth clubs and community centres.
This comes as part of TikTok’s “BookTok Summer” initiative, which encompasses the return of the TikTok Book Awards and a renewed partnership with the Hay Festival.
TikTok said: “All of these locations have been identified as areas facing the biggest challenges with literacy where we can make the most difference. Our bookshelves will be located in places with a high footfall of over 13s and will be supported by local youth volunteers.
“We are proud to be working with The National Literacy Trust to harness the appeal of the TikTok platform and its ability to connect and inspire young people, to motivate reading for pleasure, striving to boost literacy levels by increasing access to books across the UK. The BookTok Bookshelves initiative is part of our ongoing commitment to championing and supporting young people and their wellbeing, through collaborating with organisations that place community at the heart.”
The social media company drew attention to recent NLT research, which found that one in 12 children aged five to 18 do not own a book of their own, and that fewer than three in ten children aged eight to 18 read daily.
In recent years, BookTok – the corner of TikTok in which users share book recommendations – has been credited for driving book sales in particular genres, such as romantasy, and increasing interest in reading among young people. NLT said that each bookshelf will be different, covering a “range of different themes and interests” specific to the groups of young people curating the bookshelves in the 20 locations. The first bookshelf in Nottingham “will have titles from homegrown and international author talent”, including Malorie Blackman, Holly Jackson, Hafsah Faizal, Neil Gaiman and lice Oseman.
The NLT will recruit and train 50 youth volunteers from the 20 communities for the project. Along with choosing the titles, volunteers will also promote the bookshelves to their peers.
The collaboration, which was initiated by TikTok, will see each community receiving around 100 books. “The idea is for young people, who may otherwise struggle to access books of their own for financial or other reasons, to borrow a book which appeals to them, share it with a friend who might enjoy it, too, and return it to the bookshelf for another young person to enjoy,” said Vit.
“We hope the BookTok Bookshelves will increase young people’s appetite for reading and therefore the demand for books, forming part of a reading ecosystem that includes schools, libraries and bookshops.”
This comes alongside TikTok’s announcement that it will once again be the official digital media partner to the Hay Festival, the world’s leading arts and literary festival, for the 37th spring edition in Hay-on-Wye. As part of the partnership, it will post content on the @hayfestival TikTok account and host a free #BookTok panel at Hay on 28th May, featuring TikTok creators @bcemercer and @cultofbooks alongside industry experts.
The TikTok Book Awards for UK and Ireland has also returned, with a longlist including three new categories, International Book of the Year, BookTok Breakthrough Author and TikTok Shop Book of Year, based on UK TikTok Shop sales and the “impact the book has had on the platform”.
The longlist, which has been curated based on #BookTok data and community contributions, will be reviewed by a judging panel including TikTok stars Eden Victoria and Jack Edwards, Publishers Association chief executive Dan Conway, The Bookseller editor Philip Jones, Black British Book Festival c.e.o. and founder Selina Brown and authors Samantha Shannon and Sara Cox.
