BookTok hits like 'Fourth Wing' and 'Sunrise at the Reaping' are saving brick-and-mortar bookstores across the country | A Story Worth Sharing

Why this story matters: Data-driven progress often moves at a pace that is too slow for breaking news, but its impact is far more permanent. This story takes a closer look at a long-term success that is finally reaching a major, positive milestone.

Quick summary: This story highlights recent developments related to sunrise, showing how constructive action can lead to meaningful results.

According to Publishers Weekly, after two years of declines, print sales rose in 2024 with unit sales of print books up 1%.

And in 2025, they rose again — this time 0.5% higher than the previous year — reaching 762.4 million units.

That increase has been a godsend for brick-and-mortar bookstores, even the major chains. After a $1 billion loss and countless store closures, Barnes & Noble has bounced back in a big way, with plans to open 60 new locations across the country in 2026.

For the “why” behind the surge in sales, Publishers Weekly pointed to BookTok, an online community of readers that is predominantly female. And BookTok’s hottest picks from the last year — “Onyx Storm,” “Sunrise At The Reaping,” and “Great Big Beautiful Life” — were all written by women.

“Books have had an interesting ride,” Elizabeth Lafontaine, who tracks consumer foot traffic at the location analytics company Placer.ai, told CO—, a digital platform from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. “Consumers are not only visiting bookstores, but they’re also spending more time inside the stores once they’re there.”

And for authors like Lisa Jewell, who have been publishing since 1999, BookTok has also helped reintroduce them to younger generations of readers.

“Nobody could have predicted that BookTok was what the publishing industry needed — it was a huge shot of adrenaline,” Jewell said when receiving the TikTok Book of the Year award for her 21st novel, “None of This is True.”

“BookTok has given me readers that I would never have had access to otherwise.”

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A version of this article was originally published in The 2026 Feminist Edition of the Goodnewspaper.

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Header image via Ian Ramírez

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