Book haul videos—content showcasing recently purchased/received books—became BookTube and BookTok staple, with creators displaying stacks of new acquisitions from bookstores, Amazon, Book Outlet, library sales, or publisher mailings. The format combined unboxing video satisfaction, collection-building aspirations, and recommendations through enthusiastic reactions. Hauls normalized buying multiple books monthly (sometimes 20-50+ books), feeding into consumption culture while providing vicarious shopping experiences for viewers unable to afford similar spending.
Haul culture traced to YouTube’s broader unboxing/shopping haul genres (fashion, beauty), adapted for book community. BookTubers developed haul conventions: showing covers, reading synopses, explaining why they bought each book, discussing upcoming reading plans. The videos functioned as marketing—generating hype for new releases, discovering authors, spreading word-of-mouth. Publishers loved book hauls for free promotion; indie bookstores benefited from haul videos showing store shopping trips.
Overconsumption & Guilt
Critics noted book hauls exemplified problematic consumer culture: glorifying excessive purchasing, creating TBR (to-be-read) piles so large books would never be read, and fostering FOMO (fear of missing out) pressure to buy every hyped release. Many BookTubers/BookTokers admitted owning hundreds of unread books, yet continued hauling new acquisitions. The disconnect between buying and reading became running joke, but also source of guilt—were they book lovers or book hoarders?
Defenders argued hauls supported authors and publishers, celebrated reading culture, and provided affordable entertainment (watching hauls cost nothing). Collection-building brought joy beyond reading—surrounding yourself with books felt comforting. Besides, people collected vinyl, sneakers, Funkos; why not books? The practice also created community: shared excitement over releases, comparing preferences, discovering new books.
The rise of e-readers and audiobooks didn’t diminish physical book hauls—if anything, digital reading made physical collecting more intentional. Special editions, sprayed edges, illustrated covers, and signed copies became collectibles. By 2023, book haul culture remained strong despite cost-of-living pressures, proving books retained special status as both consumable media and treasured objects worth accumulating.
Related: #BookTok #BookTube #Bookstagram #TBRPile #BookCollecting