Rebecca Yarros, Colleen Hoover and Andrea Longarela are among the writers making waves with a younger audience. Classics like Federico García Lorca, Miguel de Cervantes and Gabriel García Márquez still resonate as well, but their appeal has grown broader. TikTok now shapes Generation Z, and the newest trends on the platform have turned reading into a fashion statement. Teens read a mix of teen and adult titles, and the spark of virality on a social network can turn a book into a bestseller overnight.
The latest Reading Habits Barometer shows the highest levels of book consumption among young people aged 14 to 24, with 74.2% of readers in that demographic. This surge is linked to social media power, especially TikTok, which hosts a large young audience that forms a vibrant community of book lovers. Hashtags like #BookTok boast hundreds of billions of views, including #BookTokSpanish, which highlights Spanish-language literature and culture through storytelling.
The trend even has its own advocates who discuss and recommend new reads, analyze character arcs, and reflect on plots. Publishers, bookstores, and authors have recalibrated their approaches to boost sales and revive interest in older titles. A number of bookstores now feature dedicated #BookTok recommendations and maintain social media profiles focused on curating reading suggestions.
digital reading club
The #BookTok community emerged organically and is described as the world’s largest digital reading club by Luisa Ramos, a social networks officer. “This phenomenon acts as a catalyst, promoting literature and inviting millions to read,” Ramos explains, calling it a ‘global stage for local culture’. It also marks a shift in how the publishing world supports writers and connects them with readers.
Rosa Samper Montena, literary director at Random Cómics, Molino, and Penguin Kids at Penguin Random House, notes that reading needs space and quiet as well as depth, yet TikTok provides a platform where products in bookstores can be showcased to young audiences.
Raquel Brune, an author and bookseller, observes that reading has shed its previous geeky stigma among young readers. This change makes reading feel accessible to more people and helps break down genre barriers. Brune points to titles like The Song of Elijah, a modern reinterpretation of classical epic themes, as evidence that younger readers are embracing a wider literary spectrum.
youth literature
The appetite for youth literature has evolved with what is written and published. Tamara Molina, a writer and TikTok creator, notes that novels for younger readers can be entertaining, lively, and accessible, using language that they can identify with.
Editor Rosa Samper adds that youth fiction and fan communities have long been underestimated, yet many titles now outsell well-known authors. For example, Bloody Wings by Rebecca Yarros and the surge in sales for The Maid’s Daughters by Sonsoles Ónega indicate that younger readers are driving the market. Fnac has highlighted a growing shelf of bestsellers in this space, underscoring the rise of youth-focused titles.
Be part of a community
Within this trend, FOMO, or fear of missing out, drives engagement. Cristina Jiménez, product manager for Juvenile, Crossover, and Comics at Penguin Random House, explains that people want to join conversations and share their take on a book as soon as it becomes a topic of discussion.
The movement began during the COVID-19 period. A large number of young readers discovered new hobbies or returned to reading, and TikTok then began to grow even more. Publishers continue to face challenges from the sheer volume of audiovisual entertainment, but the trend remains resilient. Jiménez adds that young readers still find a niche for their moment of reading and social sharing.
Meryem Assakat, a bookseller, notes that many young customers visit the store after seeing a title on TikTok and ask for it by name. Fnac likewise reports rising demand for the latest literary novelties as readers line up for book signings and new releases.
Reactivation of the classics
TikTok is a powerful marketing tool, opening doors for new works and reviving beloved classics. Titles such as Very Few Lives and The Goldfinch have reappeared on sales lists years after their initial publication. Patricia Fernández, a cultural disseminator, observes that Lorca’s works now feel more mainstream than before. There is a sense that reading classic literature can reach broader audiences when digital sharing is in play.
The same happens with older novels. Maryam Assakat explains that when Colleen Hoover published a title in Spain, it initially went largely unnoticed, and the rights holder paused publishing. A wave of online chatter changed that, turning the work into a blockbuster. It isn’t that the books were bad then; today’s social tools simply enable more expansive sharing of reviews and recommendations.
The speed of social networks means that a single video can propel a book to bestseller status almost overnight. Editorial teams at Grupo Planeta emphasize that the right moment and the right exposure can turn a title into a viral hit. Yet Assakat cautions that prices are rising, and some young readers may struggle to afford 25 euros for a new release.
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Young readers continue to visit bookstores as a place to meet and share the reading experience. Physical books remain a preferred format for many in the new generation, even in a digital era. Patricia Fernández believes a printed book offers a tactile journey—picking it up, turning pages, smelling the ink, and feeling the progress of one’s own reading. These sensory moments keep bookstores alive, even as readers explore thousands of digital options. The generation that thrives on screens still chose the timeless appeal of a paper book, valuing the intimate act of reading.