The revolution of books passed down from mothers to daughters

BarcelonaOf all the changes the publishing sector has undergone in the last decade, one of the most significant has been in young adult literature. Against all odds, this genre has become a key driver of growth for the market in the last two years, thanks in large part to the increase in readers it has gained—and continues to gain—since the coronavirus pandemic. This was confirmed last Monday by the Publishers' Guild. in the presentation of the annual balance sheetwhich (pending Christmas campaign data) forecasts a 4% increase in the sector, driven by young adult literature, which they predict will grow by nearly 15%. This trend is not new: in 2024 Young adult literature has also increased by about 15%. and boosted the sector's revenue.

What has happened to suddenly transform a genre that suffered from the stigma and the perception of being second-rate literature into one of the most profitable slices of the publishing market? There are two main factors that explain it. On the one hand, the increase in readers between 14 and 24 years old, a phenomenon closely linked to the impact of social media, which exploded during the lockdown between 2020 and 2021. On the other hand, the rise of literature labeled for young adults, but which has also managed to attract readers in their 40s. All of this has resulted in one of the most diverse and prolific niches in the market, which is driven primarily by romance novels. These are stories with a number of shared elements (impossible loves, prolonged sexual tension) that seduce readers through a narrative capable of hooking them from the first page and often for a long time, since many of the stories take the form of sagas.

The rejuvenation of the reading pyramid

One of the first indications of the effects of social media on the publishing market came during the pandemic, when publishers began to notice that backlist titles were suddenly rising to the top of the bestseller lists. "The lockdown significantly increased reading rates, especially among young people, and in a large part It was thanks to the booktokers (Influencers specializing in recommending books), who revived older books and put them back into circulation. They have democratized and broadened the readership base; they have been fundamental in introducing teenagers to reading,” says editor Patrizia Campana, head of Fanbooks, the Grupo 62 imprint specializing in young adult literature as well as romance and fantasy novels for adults. The study also reflects the influence of social media, where user profiles exist dedicated exclusively to recommending books through short, imaginative videos. Reading and book buying habits, From the Catalan Institute of Cultural Enterprises. In 2015, 67.7% of young people aged 14 to 24 read for leisure. By 2024, this figure had climbed to 75.3%. "For young people, reading is no longer an intimate and solitary act. They share everything they read through social media. They make videos with book covers, attend authors' events, and take photos. It works like a snowball: if you want to be in tune with your surroundings, you have to read what you read," says Patrici Tixis, who points out that the reading pyramid has turned upside down: "Ten years ago, we saw readers getting older. Now there's a massive rejuvenation."

The influence of social media has changed the value of the book: now it must not only contain an interesting story, but the cover must also be beautiful, because it will be an object to show off. "The book has become a cult object, and readers place great importance on its image. That's why, for the last couple of years, there have been major releases with tinted edges and very particular finishes in luxury editions, which are very expensive to produce," Campana points out. In parallel, along these lines of sharing reading and showing it to the world through mobile devices, Tixis explains that reading parties are starting to arrive from the United States: gatherings of strangers in a warm and welcoming space, where each person reads silently for a while and then shares their thoughts over drinks and food.

One of the first to start posting videos recommending books in Catalan It's Ania Posada, who now has over 11,000 followers on Instagram and almost 8,000 on TikTok. "I started making videos simply because I enjoyed it. Back then, there weren't many role models; Juliana Canet was the only one I saw talking about books in Catalan. Over time, I've seen that there's a community interested in reading. I receive many comments and messages asking for recommendations, and others thanking me for them," she explains engagingly, "and many people who thought I wasn't interested have started to give it a try."

Romantic and Transgenerational

Although social media has a strong presence among younger people, it has also managed to attract an older audience. And this, in turn, has broadened the readership. "Despite being categorized as young adult, these types of books are primarily consumed by women up to 35 or 40 years old. In reality, the rise of young adult literature is due to the fact that it is read by young people, but also by adults," emphasizes Paloma Fernández-Pacheco, an editor at Penguin Random House specializing in international fiction. To illustrate this, she cites two titles. On the one hand, Break the ice (Rosa dels Vents, 2024) by Hannah Grace, a romantic novel about hockey in a university setting. On the other hand, Until the moon falls (Plaza y Janés, 2024), a romantic fantasy with dragons. "Both have many readers, some of them young and others much older, from different generations," says Fernández-Pacheco.

The ability to attract a cross-generational audience has been sheltered under the label of books crossover, which are those books that both mothers and daughters in the same house can read for pleasure. "With phenomena like Twilight and The Hunger Games“The adult audience has already made significant inroads into the young adult market, but now we see very clearly how these books are being passed down from mothers to daughters,” Campana explains. In the Fanbooks catalog, there is a title that is very representative of this trend: The summer I fell in love, by Jenny Han (2023). "I published it before the Amazon series"...which finally made it work," explains the editor, who also mentions A court of roses and thorns (Fanbooks, 2025), by Sarah J. Maas, as one of this year's most successful books.

Often, the dress of these stories is the romantic novel that travels through tropes (common tropes) such as a couple giving their relationship a second chance, two friends falling in love, attraction to someone the protagonist considers her enemy, or forbidden love. "There's always a very strong romantic component and explicit sex. This is fundamental. From there, some stories are set in magical worlds and are categorized as romancewhile others are realistic. Then there are subgenres like the Dark Academy"...where everything unfolds in dark magic academies, or series about women in love with mafia men," Campana explains. These titles also frequently feature toxic relationships and violent sex scenes. That's why some publishers indicate this on the cover, making it clear that they aren't always educational.

Catalan, the unfinished business

In this celebration of romantic literature, our language dances, but not quite enough. "Catalan suffers for two reasons. Firstly, these are very long novels and, therefore, expensive to translate. There are few Catalan women writers dedicated to the genre; often the authors are Anglo-Saxon," says the editor of Fanbooks. "The other reason is social media: many readers buy the book to show it off, and they want the edition plus the Catalan version." Instagram and TikTok also encourage consumption in Spanish because the community that seeks booktokers The Catalan market is still small. However, things are changing. "In the last year, especially, many people have emerged creating content about books in Catalan. There are more and more of us, and it's necessary," emphasizes Ania Posada.

Publishers like L'Otra Tribu, which steer clear of romance novels and have a catalog made up primarily of realistic titles aimed at readers between 12 and 14 years old, have also seen how teenagers' interest in books has increased in recent times. "Each year we've seen organic growth in revenue, and we've noticed the good health of the publishing market," notes L'Otra's editor, Eugenia Broggi. L'Otra Tribu's books circulate, above all, thanks to the support of librarians and booksellers, to whom new influencers have now been added: social media content creators. The fact that they have two books that were finalists for the Atrapallibres award –The Little Soldier's Songby Pep Puig, and The wolf—by Saša Stanišić— has also contributed to the imprint's strong performance in 2025.

"The stigma surrounding young adult literature has finally been broken. It wasn't talked about as much before, there weren't as many awards, and the media paid little attention to it. That has also changed and contributed to its appeal to adults," emphasizes Liliana Pedro, editor at La Otra Tribu. Broggi agrees, adding that young adult literature has gained the prestige it has always deserved: "I don't quite understand why it was sidelined for so many years. Young adult literature is what creates readers; it grabs you at an age that can accompany you through painful experiences and can change your life."