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TikTok starts its own #bookclub, kicking off with Jane Austen's Persuasion

With 65 billion views, #BookTok has seen a meteoric rise on TikTok as booklovers eagerly share their love of reading with friends and followers. As one of the most active communities on TikTok, it influences book sales worldwide. Now, the platform itself is joining in by launching an official TikTok Book Club.

TikTok UK has picked five #BookTok Laureates who will guide readers through a new book every month, starting with Jane Austen's Persuasion. At the end of each month, the laureates will host a joint TikTok Live session to discuss the book. A dedicated hub within the app will help readers find the month's title and share their own thoughts and reviews.

No word yet on whether TikTok will stick to public domain classics — allowing anyone to read along for free — or whether it will lend its clout to newly published titles, too.

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The original #booktok's magic is that it sprouted organically from the minds and hearts of bookish users. So what's the value of TikTok itself launching its own book club?

Depending on how much effort TikTok puts into promotion, creating an official, app-wide book club has the potential to reach a truly massive audience. By encouraging a wide and diverse range of people to hone in on a single book, the initiative could expand the collective, social experience of reading to a whole new level.