Why we won’t be using the “Reading” Banner on Instagram

9th August 2026

There has been a lot of enthusiasm – apparently – for the “Reading” Banner on Instagram, which has quietly been introduced on the platform in recent weeks.

Day 1: I enthusiastically worked out how to add my first book title, which was Roman Mornings (by Matson Taylor, should you wish to know). All good so far. But then it dawned on me that there is actually no room for the author’s name, which feels a little disrespectful.

I pondered  considering adding a novel called “The Villa”, a great, short title. But then there are many authors who have chosen this as their title for a book. So is it the book by Rosanna Ley, or Ruth Kelly, or Rachel Hawkins, or Jess Ryder, or Clare Boyd (I could go on)?. So, really, this would impart nothing to anyone who comes across your “reading” banner. There is also no facility to add an image of the book for clarification in this instance.

Day 2: I added my next read. The Knife Maker of Venice by David Gilman. Well, that went down like a ton of bricks because – given there are only 20 characters available – I got as far as the “V” in Venice. The banner therefore by default will rule out a huge swathe of books with slightly longer titles. I mean, you can’t add a novel like The Divorced Lady’s Companion to Living in Italy (by Catherine McNamara), which is a great read, by the way.

Clearly the person behind this new feature has no idea of the book world and this really isn’t fit for purpose in its current form.

And frankly as a book blogger / reviewer, who needs substandard, ill-thought-out devices that take up even more time? Not me. As you have probably guessed, I have deactivated our banner. Good luck to those who have engaged with it.

Tina for the TripFiction Team

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