literary inbox | is “book overconsumption” a real phenomenon?
literary inbox
Literary Inbox is a monthly bookish discussion meme created by 24hryabookblog.
This month’s topic is…
Is it possible to “overconsume” books? With platforms like #Booktok stats show there’s been a definite increase in book buying and book sales over the past few years. As a reader do you collect every book you read? Is there such a thing as “overconsuming” when it comes to owning books? Does the book community push this idea that you should have a big personal library?
In the last few years, I’ve noticed something weird. As people have become more conscious of where and how products are made and thus how and where they want to spend their money with these things in mind, the online book community seems to have caught a case of what I’d call “activism FOMO.” What is “activism FOMO”? Great question! Allow me to explain this phenomenon that I just made up on the fly: “activism FOMO” is when a person or group treats activism as a trend and in their rush to jump on the perceived “activism trend,” said person or group ends up misapplying the principles at the root of that type of activism they have FOMO about to their own community. So. What type of activism FOMO does the online bookish community have? Well, it’s the “ethical consumption” kind. Let’s talk about it
Now, before I say anything further, I want to make something abundantly clear: my following discussion is certainly not to say that there aren’t things readers can be doing to “consume” books more ethically. For example: Amazon notoriously tries to undercut independent bookstores, treats their employees like shit, and uses union busting tactics. Which is why it might be more ethical to try to purchase books from indie bookstores provided you can afford to, and to use audiobook services such as Libro.fm, which allows you to donate the profit from your purchases to an indie bookstore of your choice. Another example of how to consume books more ethically is by weighing the environmental impacts of reading a physical book vs. reading an e-book vs. reading an audiobook. I don’t think a lot of readers know this, but the paper manufacturing process in factories emits a disturbing amount of pollution. Knowing that, some readers may feel that it is more ethical to read e-books and audiobooks. A third example of an ethical issue that a reader might want to combat is if an author has shown support for a harmful cause or belief, a reader may choose to be a more ethical consumer by not purchasing or promoting books by that author and by (respectfully) educating other readers as to the issues with that author and/or that author’s works. So, I say all of this to say that there certainly are ways to “consume” books more ethically. But are these kind of examples the type of things that the online bookish community turns their attention to when discussing ethical consumption of books? No. Instead—infuriatingly—the community tries to apply the concept of “overconsumption” to the world of books and reading…which is a concept that noticeably doesn’t really apply to the bookish world, at least not in the way it can apply to the worlds of items such as fast fashion clothing, “fast furniture,” and plastic goods, among other things.
The thing is this: you can’t overconsume books in the way that the online bookish community talks about. That is, when they talk about things like “purchasing too many books” or “reading too much”…those aren’t really legitimate issues in the literary world or otherwise. Provided you are spending responsibly and not jeopardizing your financial stability, you can’t “purchase too many books” in the way you can purchase too many fast fashion items or too many fast furniture items or plastic items or the like.
The reason why the same principles that apply to such items don’t apply to books as products is twofold: 1) books are not single use items and 2) unhauled physical books are completely biodegradable and, to my knowledge, digital books (such as e-books and audiobooks) do not require an excessive amount of environmental resources nor any unethical labor in their creation and distribution. The reasons why fast fashion, fast furniture, plastics, and the like are difficult to consume ethically is because most items that fall into these categories 1) are single use items, 2) are not biodegradable, 3) are created and/or distributed through the usage of unethical labor sources, or 4) are some combination of the previous three issues. Books, though? Most people unhauling physical books either donate them or reuse them for things like arts and crafts. And even if a physical book is so damaged that it has to be thrown away, every part of a physical book is biodegradable, meaning there is no environmental cost to a book ending up in a landfill. So, that said, we can see why the concept of “overconsuming books” through purchasing and/or unhauling a large number of books doesn’t really work.
Now, the next argument we see is “people overconsume books by reading too much!” to which I think almost everyone who is of sound mind and reason’s reaction is a resounding, “Huh???” I don’t even know how someone would get to the place where they believe that it’s possible to read too much through any train of reasonable thought. I do, every once in a while, see a good deal of the finance and m0tivation bros claim that it’s possible to “overconsume” fiction, because they don’t believe anything can be learned from fiction. To which I say, if that is what you think about reading, it is very apparent that you’re the type of person who doesn’t read, at least not very much. A lot can be learned from fiction, from empathy to imagination to creativity and many other things which are useful not only in the arts, but in all areas of life (yes, including in the business and STEM career fields as well).
So, to conclude, my answer to the question of whether it’s possible to overconsume books in any way is a resounding “No!” I think a lot of the arguments we see in favor of such a statement may come from a well-meaning place but are the product of deeply flawed reasoning. But hey, as bookworms, I think my conclusion is something to celebrate—there’s no need to worry about our reading habits, lol! So, go forth and read on, friends!
spill the beans, friends!Do you think it’s possible to “overconsume” books in any way? Do you think there are ways to unethically “consume” books? If yes, what do you think some solutions to these problems might be?
change the world with me!Before anything: FREE PALESTINE!!! 🍉 For over half a century now, the Israeli government has been enacting a genocide against the Palestinian people. This is more than something that started on October 7, 2023. It’s not complicated. It’s genocide. And it’s important that we witness, raise our voices, protest, and fight against it in any way possible. Below are a list of resources to help educate yourself on Palestine, as well as to donate to aid the Palestinian people. In addition, I’ve added some Palestinian influencers and journalists you can follow to learn more from and who keep track of what’s going on. Peace to all and keep fighting the good fight!
education & information resources
donation & aid resources
PALESTINIAN JOURNALISTS & INFLUENCERS TO FOLLOW & AMPLIFY
InfoRMATION & resources
inforMATION & resources
I love this post! I am a real advocate for ethical consumption when it comes to books (and in all areas of my life really). Overconsumption, as you’ve said, is different, and books is a tricky thing to use that word on.
I have spoken about this topic myself, and while I agree with you that you absolutely cannot overconsume by reading too many books (what a crazy notion!), I personally do think there is one key area where you can overconsume by *buying* too many books. For me, it comes down to the special edition. I have seen people with 20+ editions of the same book, and for me, that does count as overconsumption. The content of the books is exactly the same, the only difference is the cover its wrapped in. These multiple editions aren’t going to be read, they aren’t going to be used. Of course, it’s a small thing in comparison to doing a fast fashion haul ever other month, but I would still count this as overconsumption.
I also want to point out that I don’t think it’s bad to have multiple copies of a book, I have some myself! But to have over 20 copies of a singular book, and then repeat this for all your favourite books/latest obsessions is straying into that territory for me.
Thank you, Emma, I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed my post! I suppose it’s true that you can overconsume books in terms of the number of editions you have, although I also think if you go down that path you risk running into the question of “does something that purely has aesthetic appeal still have value?” at which point, if your answer is “no,” than you risk basically saying every piece of visual art has no value. While I agree buying multiple editions can get *excessive* (in my opinion), if you have the financial ability and it means something to you, then I personally wouldn’t necessarily put that in the same bucket as “overconsumption.”
I like how you considered overconsumption here on a societal level. When I answered the question, I was thinking more on a personal level. What, to me, would feel like I was being wasteful? And, for me, it’s similar to what Emma said about buying multiple copies of books or books that I wouldn’t in some way be using (i.e. reading). I know book collecting is a separate hobby from reading, but it feels a bit weird to me to be storing books that are sitting on a shelf without being read. In that case, I would donate them so they have a second chance at being used.
And, as you mention, I think anyone who feels pressured (maybe by bookish influencers) to buy more than they can afford is overconsuming. But I also recognize that some people face greater odds in trying to refrain from overspending, and the market is designed to break down their resistance. So I’m not judging anyone here, except the people using what I consider to be shady marketing tactics like artificial scarcity. I think we should have more protections in place to help people not overspend.
That being said, I think buying books seems like a relatively harmless pursuit. Paper can be recycled (hardcover books are trickier–some locations won’t accept them). And books generally can be donated over and over again, as long as they remain in good condition. Buying books definitely feels less unethical to me than buying something like fast fashion. I don’t feel like I would have a strong moral argument to go up to anyone and say they shouldn’t be buying books, of all things. So, for me, it does become more of a personal question, of how many books should I myself be buying (and from where).
Thanks, Krysta, I’m glad you liked my discussion! I totally get your take. As a low-income individual myself, I *totally* get how book buying can become overconsumption when you don’t have it in the budget. Part of the reason MASSIVE book hauls on social media kinda give me pause is because I remember when I was a teen starting college with literally *no* money and starting my book blog but feeling like if I didn’t buy a gazillion books then I wasn’t really “a real reader.” I think there’s definitely a point to be made that many bookish influencers are adults influencing teens, who typically don’t have money of their own to purchase books with. Even nowadays, I’d feel odd if I purchased more than two copies of a book—and only of my most treasured books (I do admit that I have a UK paperback of The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty and recently purchased the special edition because I love the book so much, lol)! I, personally, don’t have the funds for that type of buying, sadly—not even for books!
I always think about this question in terms of personal finances. Years ago, I would see people posting on Twitter like, “Just spent $300 on books!” or “Just went to Barnes & Noble and bought 15 books!” and my eyes would be bugging out of my head. $300, not just once, but per month on BOOKS? But, you know, ultimately I don’t care if people actually have the money to do this. It might be “better” if they actually read the books too (Most people do not read 15 books per month), but again, I don’t really care if they have the money to buy books they don’t read. It helps the authors out.
I think the biggest obstacle is people who would then think this is “normal” to do. It’s not. Most people don’t have that budget. But the book community is big, and sometimes people don’t see the differences in income and ages. I would kind of explain to people once in a while that, you know, they were an 19 year old in college (or sometimes it was high schoolers!), so, yeah, they didn’t have money to buy books unless their family was rich. That person posting they spend $300/month on books is 30 and works in medicine and has a nice salary. Very likely they didn’t spend that much on books when they were a teenager and unemployed either.
I definitely agree in regard to the financial aspect of it! I also agree that it can be a bit concerning that most bookish “influencers” are adults with a stable job and their own money who are “influencing” teens, who typically don’t have access to as much money (if any). I’ve always been low income, and I remember starting book blogging as a 19 year old starting college with no money of my own and feeling like I wasn’t a “real reader” in comparison to other bookish “influencers” who could buy HEAPS of book each month, on top of receiving plenty of physical ARCs from publishers. For a while, I felt really embarrassed and slightly resentful surrounding not being able to a lot buy books frequently. Even to this day, I don’t typically purchase books more than maybe three times a year, and I usually purchase one at a time due to being low SES and having budget restrictions. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve also come to realize that it’s not the number of books owned (or even read) that make someone a “real reader,” it’s the love of reading.
Yes, I started blogging a while ago and pretty young and sometimes felt left out, but then the older you get, the more you realize it’s normal to not have much money when you are young! But you see all these people spending all this money or, in some cases, being SENT 50 books/month, and you think that is what’s supposed to be happening! But then the older you get, the more you realize there are always other bills. Most adults even with comfortable salaries, if they had an extra $200/month, probably would find they could do something with it like finally pay for their kid to take dance class, or save more for retirement, or finally replace their furnace or something. Buying 1000 books/year just isn’t responsible in general for most people. Maybe we’d find out, if we dug, that some people are in credit card debt over this. (Which is apparently the explanation for how some people went to 10 different Eras tour stops. People thought they were rich. Most of them were just in debt!)
loved reading your take on this, Lila! I have seen overconsumption mentioned a few times too and quickly scrolled past it but I didn’t stop to think about what it means and how it doesn’t really make sense, and how it is thought about unnecessarily instead of other ways to ethically read. Great post!
Thanks for dropping by, Sumedha! I’m so glad you enjoyed my post and that I gave you some food for thought 😀