‘Bookshelf wealth’ is the latest design trend capturing social media, encouraging people to display messy bookshelves to combat minimalist home styling. However, many people have criticised the trend, arguing it is just another way of glorifying the aesthetics of the upper class.
Books have had a growing influence on social media over the last few years, with the #booktok hashtag on TikTok currently raking in 240 billion views on over 30.5 million posts and counting.
This speedy rise to social media fame is encouraging a wave of new avid readers to spotlight new trends in the book space – but not all of these trends are made equal.
Bookshelf wealth is one of the trends currently making a stir on socials. It focuses on curating a careful selection of books, art and photographs on people’s bookshelves or bookcases, encouraging them to use books as a form of aesthetic self-expression.
Many claim the trend counters popular rich and opulent home aesthetics by embracing cluttered bookshelves and making homes appear cosy and lived in. But it also inadvertently reinforces the idea of books as status symbols associated with class and materialism.
Critics including TikToker @breana_reads have condemned the trend for encouraging overconsumption for the sake of design and prioritising the portrayal of intellectuality rather than enjoying the act of reading for reading's sake.
At a time when 54% of Americans read a book in 2023 and the number of books being read by kids in the UK is increasing as BookTok makes its presence known in real-world settings, personal branding has begun to overshadow genuine interests.
Bookshelf wealth is, in part, designed to show off people’s literary tastes as social media users zoom in to see what titles their fellow book lovers have stacked on their shelves.
But are people actually reading what’s stacked on their shelves? Or is it all just for show?
Whether or not bookshelf wealth is simply a digital flex remains to be seen. As this anti-decor trend raises questions surrounding status symbolism and repackaging popular aesthetics, it also offers up a way for people to intentionally curate their spaces according to their interests.
Social media has become a town square where bibliophiles gather to swap stories, recommendations, and aesthetic inspirations. In an age of digital domination, trends such as bookshelf wealth have brought together vibrant communities bound by the love of books and the art of shelving.
