TikTok is launching a virtual book club, and it’s going back more than 200 years for its first selection.
The video hosting service, which is very much on the radar of publishers because of its popular #BookTok reading community, is launching the TikTok Book Club—and Jane Austen’s Persuasion is its inaugural pick.
“The TikTok Book Club will serve as a virtual space for the TikTok community to discuss new titles together, and the best thing about the TikTok Book Club is that anyone can join,” the company announced Monday in a news release.
The club will read a book each month, and encourages users to “start creating and sharing their own reviews, book aesthetics, or newest literary crush.”
The selection of Austen’s 1817 novel coincides with the release of a film based on the book, starring Dakota Johnson, Cosmo Jarvis, Henry Golding, and Richard E. Grant.
“This choice recognises the #BookTok community's passion for the classics, with other much-loved titles like #thegreatgatsby and #prideandprejudice also finding a fanbase on TikTok,” the company said. “Jane Austen herself even has a dedicated community of followers on TikTok who share their love her books collectively under the hashtag #AustenTok, which now has 16.2m views.”
The club will be led by five “BookTok Laureates.” One of them, Sarel Madzebra, released a video about the club, saying, “[The] book club is basically where we pick up some amazing books, and we’re just going to read and chat together as a community.”
Michael Schaub, a journalist and regular contributor to NPR, lives near Austin, Texas.
