BookTuber Nathan says reading is sexy

Nathan Truong / Courtesy of nathan's nook

Reading is sexy, and if you’re not reading, you’re not sexy. At least, that’s what Nathan Truong likes to say on his YouTube channel, nathan’s nook. Based in Seoul, Nathan blends literary content with lifestyle vlogging, carving out his own space on the platform with a stylish approach to storytelling and his heart on his sleeve. Far from being overshadowed by the many other BookTubers out there, Nathan is having his moment. And his success makes a compelling case that reading is, indeed, sexy.

An avant-garde take on BookTube

Hailing from Los Angeles, Nathan is a Vietnamese American creator whose content resists easy classification. Nathan’s videos often blend literary commentary with snippets of avant-garde films, ambient street sounds he’s recorded and vignettes from his daily life in Seoul. A well-versed cinephile, he takes an experimental and deeply personal approach to video production.

“I live as I shoot it. Or shoot as I live it?” he told The Korea Times. Citing Lithuanian filmmaker Jonas Mekas, Nathan explained the importance of seeking out small details others might miss. “It’s the fine details I’m after — the light in the day or the way someone holds a book.”

Video editing is an intentionally unhurried process for Nathan, who also works a separate full-time job. “It takes me about a month to go back to what I’ve shot and recreate or restructure it in a way that tells a different story, an adjacent story, but one I’ve lived,” he said. “Everything is unplanned! I make the videos as I feel them, current feelings mixed with past feelings, to Frankenstein my way into something that is fieldwork, art, diary. I think the form of the vlog allows this reflexivity.”

In the saturated landscape of lifestyle vloggers, Nathan’s refreshingly honest literary discussions and vulnerability set him apart. “The heart, oh blessed curse! My biggest fault is that I’m too romantic about life,” he said. “But I think that’s what drives everything. My art. The channel. Me! There’s a balance in everything that I share. I still try to keep a private life but sometimes everything slips through the cracks.”

Nathan Truong / Courtesy of Emily Serby

Reading through the noise

Nathan describes his mental pace as “running on a 72-hour clock” due to his constantly active mind. He attributes this malady to the world now revolving around a 24-hour news cycle. “There used to be recursive ends to our doomscrolling — think back to Tumblr in the early ages, Facebook too — but now it’s impossible to escape the loop,” he said.

Faced with the impossible task of quieting his mind, he shifted to reading. “I wanted to limit my screen time as much as possible, and though I’m still perpetually online, my mind has felt less busy, with a better focus on other things.”

Mindfulness plays a central role in the books Nathan chooses to read and share on his channel. Rather than discussing trending titles, he chooses books based on the insights they offer. This doesn’t mean he limits himself to highbrow titles. Nathan champions everything from children’s books to literary fiction and essay collections.

“Being a well-rounded reader not only shows what you like to read, but also gives you different viewpoints and perspectives you didn’t know existed,” he said.

Nathan’s tone became more serious when asked about the discussions the book community should be having. “We need to talk about how reading is changing our lives,” he said. “I’m after books that are creating impact — because books are inherently political, whether you like it or not.”

The desire for literature to serve as a catalyst for real-world change is rooted in Nathan’s reading preferences. “Books are about choices,” he said. “And choices define a life, real or not. Choices influence. Choices carry over. Choices round out a life. I want passions aroused out of people. Then we can really talk.”

Nathan Truong / Courtesy of nathan's nook

A call to queer creators

Nathan’s nook is part of a growing number of queer literary channels, and he makes it a priority to live his life genuinely, even on camera. “Selling your personality is a full-time job!” he joked. “But it’s just who I am. Goofy. Pseudo-intellectual. Boy. Gay. It’s a lifestyle! I think that’s what keeps it so grounded. Making it a lifestyle.”

While BookTube can create a vital sense of online community online, Nathan explained, “When we bring it offline, it becomes an entirely different organism, a habitat that brings the great sense of being alive. I want everyone together. In such a black-or-white world, the dividing lines need to be erased!”

Not satisfied with the status quo, Nathan wants more queer creators to share their perspectives online. “I love that there are more queer creators every day!” he said. “They’ve not only created safe havens out of their platforms but safe havens in the places they frequent. It still feels cool and underground, a secret, and we could always use more queer readers, more queer storytellers.”

He left our interview with one last thought. “Fran Lebowitz said, ‘A book is not supposed to be a mirror. It’s supposed to be a door,’ but I’d like to change that. A book should be a window, one where you can still see through to the other side but also catch your reflection in plain view.”

Nathan is also the author of the novella “Adolescence Leaves.”

Visit nathan’s nook on YouTube to see his videos.

Emily Serby is the host of Seoul Silent Book Club and a literary designer/marketing consultant currently working with dbBOOKS. She’s committed to building a more engaging literary community in Seoul.