✨ Welcome back to another week of LTB! ✨

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @Eternity Books and co-hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits and myself! In this discussion meme, participants get to talk about certain topics, share opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts! Learn more about LTB, past topics and future topics HERE.

This week’s topic is:

A Change in Bookish Opinions

Prompts: Have your bookish opinions changed over the years, and if so, in what ways have they changed? Do you think your bookish opinions have changed because of being part of the bookish community (including on social media), reading more books, or book blogging? Have your bookish opinions changed in ways you didn’t expect?

Now that I’m sitting down and thinking about this question, I’m finding it a bit difficult to answer because it’s pretty broad, isn’t it? On the one hand, that’s great because it gives room to tackle the topic from any angle, but it leaves me feeling uncertain about how I want to answer it. It probably also doesn’t help that my brain is kind of scream-asking “do we have opinions?!”, so that’s kind of where I’m at mentally, lol. 😆

Have your bookish opinions changed over the years, and if so, in what ways have they changed?

Looking at it from book-related and book-specific perspectives, I can say with certainty that my opinions have changed over the years. I have concerned myself less with getting my hands on the “hottest books” making the rounds, I make a concerted effort to diversify my reads and prioritize diverse reads, even if it’s not always so easy sometimes when I look at my backlist books. I’ve learned a lot from book bloggers and book-fluencers who talk about their different lived experiences and perspectives, and its made me more critical (positively) about the books I choose to consume and how I consume them. There are also certain books that I think if I read now, I probably wouldn’t love as much, and as weird as it sounds, I’ve also learned to judge myself less for what books I choose to read.

Here’s a more specific list of different ways my bookish opinions have changed—of course, this isn’t exhaustive but it’s what first came to mind:

• I don’t need that ARC! — I’ve mentioned it before that one of the reasons I started a blog was so that I could get access to more ARCs and for a long time, it’s what motivated me to keep being so active in the book community. I’ve very much gotten over that though and I’m grateful for it! While of course, there are still ARCs that I wish I could get, especially when I see my other bookish friends reading them together (FOMO is still so real), I’m also better recognizing my capacity. It has been pretty freeing to read without the deadline pressure!

• You don’t need to have thousands of followers, recognition from all the “cool” publishers, and access to all the ARCs to be considered a “legit reader” (whatever that means). — You don’t even need to read “serious” books like classics and non-fiction to be considered a reader. You just need to read and hopefully, you’re reading whatever makes you happy!

• There’s no shame in reading romance of any kind. Similarly, there’s no shame in reading fiction or purely for escapist reasons. — For a long time I used to be ashamed to admit that I read romance because of how it was so negatively looked upon by readers and non-readers alike. Same with also choosing to read books purely for the fun it gives and joy it brings. I’m so glad that I shed those opinions because yeah, I’m definitely happier now, thanks! 😂

• I don’t need to own all the special editions of books, nor do I need to own physical copies of all the books for social media. — It’s so easy to get caught up in the material side of things when you’re part of the book community on social media and seeing everyone post their stunning shelves, and even more stunning special editions. I can’t lie and say I never indulge in SEs, but they’re not what makes a reader or book-fluencer!

• Unlikable and unreliable characters can make for pretty interesting protagonists. — I used to hate and dread encountering unlikable or unreliable characters but my appreciation for and understanding of flawed individuals has increased a lot over the years. I think that’s due to age but also having my perspective of people and society widen through reading more.

• YA Contemporary/Romance isn’t entirely for me anymore. — I used to be of the opinion that YA would always be for me but in recent years, I’ve started to feel more and more like I’ve outgrown it, especially the contemporary/romance genres. While it used to make me pretty sad, I’ve come to terms with being OK letting a genre go when it doesn’t work for me anymore!

• Non-fiction can be for me; it’s just a matter of finding the right ones that really pique my interest. — This has been a slow-going process and I still aim to read more non-fiction than I actually end up reading every year, but I find that I can enjoy them when I find the right book for me. I’ve also learned that the immersive reading experience works best for me with NF!

Do you think your bookish opinions have changed because of being part of the bookish community (including on social media), reading more books, or book blogging?

It’s a combination of all of the above for me. Being part of the community online has given me the chance to learn a lot from what others post and discuss about different topics, as it always makes me reflect on my own thoughts on the subject. For many of the opinions I mentioned above, a lot of that change stems from my experiences in the “early days” of bookstagram, as well as through blogging. As much as it sucked to experience a complete burn out on social media, I’ve wound up feeling pretty glad about it because of how it allowed me to take a step back and breathe.

Have your bookish opinions changed in ways you didn’t expect?

Hmm… I think I was pretty surprised by how my opinion on ARCs changed because that was such a big part of how I identified “belonging” in the book community initially (and why I created a blog). As I mentioned before, it’s liberating to not feel that way anymore, but if you’d have told me that back when I first started, I’m not sure I would’ve believed you. 🤭 I think the same goes for my opinion on book buying and owning all the SEs. I still love them and I still love getting physical books, but I’m so glad that I don’t feel that need to get every hyped book I saw because it only wound up making me feel overwhelmed!

Don’t forget to check out the other bloggers who joined the discussion this week! 👇🏽

---

Annemieke @ A Dance with Books
Elle @ Unwrapping Words
Abyssal Librarian
Leyre @ Read You Leyre
Emma @ Pages of Emma
Alli @ Alli the Book Giraffe
Keira @ Keira’s Bookmark
Raji @ World Unlike Our Own
Kristina @ Books and Daschunds

---

If I’ve missed your post this week, don’t hesitate to let me know in the comments, and I’ll add you to this week’s list of community posts ASAP!

What about you? Have your bookish opinions changed over the years? Did a change surprise you in any way?

• Follow me on Goodreads!
• Follow me on Bluesky
• Follow me on Instagram!
• Follow me on Twitter!