Booktube Made Me Do It! | Blind Book Recs

Hey hi hello friends, and welcome back to my blog! 

I thought I would do something a little different today. I'm going to give you a list of books that I bought purely on the word of a Booktuber. This means that I first heard about the book from that Booktuber, immediately caught interest, and then read/bought it. Some of them I haven't read yet, so keep that in mind. I really just want to share some Booktubers that have incredible influence over me, so here we go! 

(PS: Starting with my unread books, which are the first three. Also, there is one book in this list that I don't own, because I literally can never find it when I go shopping. It has eluded me for months!)

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The Essential Rilke by Rainer Maria Rilke - Emma, from *e m m i e*

If any of you watch Emma, you'll know that Rilke is probably her favorite author, ever. I don't know much about Rilke, but I think she has all of his works? But I just recently bought The Essential Rilke as a sort of entry point, to see if his writing is for me. Honestly I'm really hoping it is, because Emma and I have very similar reading tastes and I've found so many books to add to my TBR from her videos, so it'll be cool if I end up liking her favorite author (she didn't like my favorite book, which is sad, but not the end of the world, lol). 

Blue Horses by Mary Oliver - Ariel, from Ariel Bissett

Ariel has been a Booktube staple for like ten years now, and at least in the past year or so she's been talking nonstop about Mary Oliver and her poetry. I've gotten a ton of blind book recommendations from Ariel, but Blue Horses was in my last book haul so I thought I would talk about this one. I've been on a huge poetry kick lately, and my collection has grown so much, so honestly I'm not mad at this purchase. I'm very excited to read it. 

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir - Raviv, from rabid raviv

Another Booktuber that I've gotten a ton of recommendations from, but two years ago Raviv would not shut up about Gideon the Ninth, from when they first got an arc of it. So, naturally, I got a copy the day it was published, and I still haven't read it. Oops. But I am planning on reading it this year, so hopefully that will happen soon! 

The Diviners by Libba Bray - Olivia, from oliviareadsalatte

Is anyone surprised by this? Olivia will take any opportunity to mention The Diviners and how it is her favorite series. Also, I think this might be the most wild blind rec, because I literally have the entire series. Yep, all four books, sitting unread on my shelves. Well, I did read The Diviners I think three years ago, but it's been so long that I'll have to reread it before I actually move on with the series. 

Don't Date Rosa Santos by Nina Moreno - Raquel, from Blonde With A Book

I could have also said the Charlotte Holmes series for Raquel, but I feel like she really sold me on Don't Date Rosa Santos more than she did for A Study in Charlotte. It's been a few years since I've read the book, so I don't remember details, but I do remember how much promo work she put into this book. I do have a full review of it on my blog, but I'm not sure if I would recommend you go and read it, because like I said, it was a few years ago. 

Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner - Monica, from monica kim

This is more recent with a 2021 release, but I think this was the biggest trust jump of this list. Meaning, I hardly ever read nonfiction, let alone memoirs, but I read this and I loved it, and now I have so many memoirs on my TBR because I want to feel the way I felt when I read this again. Monica really pushed me so far out of my comfort zone, and I am so grateful for that. 

The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling - Boston, from boston reads books

I read The Luminous Dead last month I think, and while it wasn't a new favorite, I did really like this book, and the only think I knew about it before reading was that it had Boston's stamp of approval. Boston definitely has a nose for queer horror books, so I get most of my horror recs from her. She also influenced me to read and then buy The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones. 

The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell - Hannah, from A Clockwork Reader

Again, I feel like I've gotten so many recs from Hannah, but The Last Magician was definitely the first blind rec I bought because of her. It was also a leap of faith because at the time I bought it, I had a bias against historical fiction: mostly I wasn't reading any aside from WWII historical fiction and I honestly can't stand reading books about that era. Pre-WWII, sure! Post-WWII, why not? I just don't want to read about the war itself. So I wasn't sure I would like The Last Magician as it takes place (partially) in 1902 New York, but this book series gave me a new appreciation for the genre. 

Aphrodite Made Me Do It by Trista Mateer - Heathur, from aphroditereads

Ahhh, Heathur come back! We miss you! If you want a mythological book rec, Heathur is the Booktuber for you. Obviously, based on her channel name, she loves Aphrodite but also just Greek Mythology in general. Anything to do with religion, mythology, gods and goddesses, she will automatically pick it up, and hype it to all hell. Aphrodite Made Me Do It was her biggest hype a few years ago. It's a modern poetry collection all about self love and accepting yourself for who you are, and learning to put yourself first above romantic relationships. I did really like this poetry collection, and it actually got me into modern poetry and now I have a whole shelf dedicated to poetry so, thank you Heathur!

Radio Silence by Alice Oseman - Kat, from paperbackdreams 

Pick any video by Kat and you'll hear about her love for Radio Silence. I'm completely serious, she posted like yesterday and she talked about Radio Silence. She is Alice Oseman's poster girl, honestly. And rightly so, of course, because Radio Silence deserves all the hype. It was the first book I read that had an asexual main character, and this book is just so unapologetically queer and I think anyone who is about to graduate high school and is maybe a little nervous about the next chapter of their lives should read this, because it will just help you slow down and evaluate what you really want to do. It also talks about how hobbies are so beneficial to your mental health and how important it is to have something creative in your life. Anyway, 10/10 would recommend, and also would recommend Kat because she's hilarious. 

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Okay, there you go, there are ten Booktubers and book recommendations from them! And I guess from me too. Let me know if you've read any of these books, and if you watch any of these Booktubers! 

Until next time!