Algospeak is what you want to read if you can't be bothered to read more in-depth studies of how language is changing in response to online memes and tropes, and advertising. It's full of interesting anecdotes, but light on analysis, a superficial accounting of topics the author finds interesting. It's hard to write about the influence of the ephemeral things language does, that's true, but even if some of the terminology Aleksic writes about here is passe already, there's so much more to be said that is passed over for more examples of memes. And speaking of memes, the author isn't very good at defining them, or tropes, or any other terms he uses throughout. Even just a little extra scholarship would improve this.

An interesting exploration of how the internet or rather, social media, is helping create new slang (and how this is similar and different to how humans have generated slang words historically). I learned a lot and would recommend it to anyone interested in language and how social media shapes our lives and the way we speak.

Thank you to Knopf and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a copy.

A look into social media's influence on language. Details how language borrowed from different groups changes
over time as it is adapted by others. Technology and culture also impact the changes. Interesting read of how
social media language is constantly changing.
#Algospeak #KnopfPantheonVintageandAnchor #Knopf #NetGalley

Algospeak by Adam Aleksic--Fascinating and important, this book by a linguistics-loving TikTok creator aims to explain everything you never considered about the omnipresent algorithm and its influence on language. From appropriation to Deaf creators to the Flanderization of individuals and identity, every page of this short book drips with knowledge and insight. It's rare that I read a nonfiction book where every chapter brings something thought-provoking to the table, but Aleksic really cooked here. At its height, this book explores conformity through the lens of linguistics, studying how otherwise niche turns of phrase seep into the "chronically offline" culture. I thoroughly enjoyed this and would recommend it to anyone intrigued or bewildered by the attentionmaxxing algorithm. I was given an advance copy of this book to review, but it's already out, and you should read it. Two thumbs up.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this advance reader copy in exchange for a review.
If you are a language nerd - you will love this. Aleksic does a great job explaining how language has evolved with the dawn of social media in a very similar way to his videos you find online.
I follow him and enjoy those, and I enjoyed this.
Enjoy!!
4*

This book is so boring, i cant get past the second chapter. I will not be finishing it or reviewing it on other sites.

I think I wanted this book to be something that it wasn't intended to be. I really find linguistics and its development fascinating but this book focused more on the viralness of today's internet culture. I wanted to learn the background of words and phrases used today, not how I could use them to gain followers.

I am online enough to recognize the majority of the words and phrases mentioned in this book. Still trying to decide if that's a good or bad thing. It's interesting to read about the origins of these words, but this book feels made for people who have never been online, and I'm not sure they would be able to follow it very well. While some chapters were very insightful, others felt like they stretched on and on and a few had opinion asserted as fact. I'm sure the author's videos would be better than reading through the book, as some of the best parts of the book are recaps of his videos.

3 1/2 stars.

If you spend way too much time online and have ever wondered why people type like that—or what happened to punctuation—this book might be for you. Algospeak takes a deep dive into how social media platforms (and their mysterious algorithms) are quietly reshaping the way we communicate, often without us even noticing. From weird slang to workarounds designed to dodge content moderation, Adam Aleksic explores how digital language is evolving in real time.

The tone is sharp, smart, and at its best, really entertaining. Aleksic clearly knows his stuff and has a real knack for making language trends feel both important and fun to think about. I especially appreciated the moments where he stepped back to show how some of these changes connect to bigger ideas about identity, culture, and power. The book made me pay closer attention to the way we borrow and bend language online—and how that shapes the way we see ourselves and others.

That said, there were parts where the book lost a bit of steam. Some sections felt like they were added just to stretch the page count, and a few chapters veered off course in ways that didn’t really serve the main argument. It wasn’t unreadable by any means, but there were moments where I found myself wishing for a little more focus and a little less filler.

Still, I’m glad I read it. It’s an interesting snapshot of internet language right now, and even if it occasionally got a little too in the weeds, it kept me turning the pages. If you’re into language, social media, or just want to understand why people are suddenly saying things like “feral vibes only,” give it a shot.

Thanks to NetGalley, Adam Aleksic, and the publisher for the ARC!

Algospeak is an overall good book to get an overview an how algorithms changed the language of people active on social media, helping creators to pander to the algorithm they rely on, the youth to find their own identity away from their parents and helping circumvent censorship online (especially on TikTok).
If you’re a language nerd, chronically online and want to understand where your language comes from or out of the loop and just want to know what alpha brainrot is this book is for you.

I didn’t give the last star as I missed a discussion how that can effect the offline world. It’s clearly not only etymology fun facts in this book and he starts mentioning problems that can occur but eventually leaves the impression that the problems stay online. Incels and their language for example are discussed in length but it isn’t discussed that the rise of this culture leads to a real world rise of violence against women.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

This book does provide some clarification as to why I feel detached from today’s language. I didn’t give more stars because it provides a lot of information, but too much was from the standpoint of how influencers can beat the algorithm and gain likes. While that is critical to understanding the why and how of our changing language, at times it was more a how-to than an examination of linguistics. While I don’t necessarily agree with some of the author’s viewpoints, it opened up an internal conversation of today’s fast-growing cultural shifts.

Halfway through this book, quite coincidentally I listened to a podcast discussing another book, The Coddling of the American Mind by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt. I haven’t read that book yet, but the podcast touched on some of the same subjects with a different viewpoint. A great example is the use of the word “unalive” versus dead. Is the usage to shield, or is the shield causing fragility? I’m not sure changing the word softens the actual meaning, and perhaps facing truth and reality is needed for maturation.

Another example is the recent trend of uptalk. I’ve noticed it especially among young women, making each sentence sound like a question. The author explained uptalk as part of today’s on-line culture wherein creators use this way of speaking to constantly seek your opinion thereby keeping you interested and engaged. Perhaps next time I hear uptalk from an intelligent or highly educated woman, I’ll change my perception that they don’t possess enough self-confidence to believe in themselves and their opinion.

Most disturbing to me is the “inadvertent” normalization of extreme behaviors resulting in us versus them conditions. To be an influencer, you need to keep the algorithm happy. In the fight for views and likes, the audience is led to believe extremes are more normal than they are, and each side goes further down the rabbit hole to be the most extreme us with the furthest distance from them. The author indicates that it’s harder for elite powers to set the agenda by manufacturing consent through traditional media. I don’t agree that the algorithm is the ultimate equalizer as it is biased, but I do agree with the author when he says, “Our brains have been hijacked.”

https://candysplanet.wordpress.com/

In "Algospeak," Adam Aleksic brilliantly connects our digital linguistic present with the timeless evolution of language. As both a linguist and social media creator, he offers unique insights into how algorithms are reshaping communication.

What makes this book exceptional is how Aleksic explains complex phenomena—from "brainrot" memes to content moderation workarounds like "unalive"—with scholarly depth yet accessible clarity. His passion for language is evident as he unpacks how users creatively adapt to algorithmic constraints.

The research is impressive, combining original surveys with internet archival analysis to document this unprecedented linguistic shift. Yet despite its academic foundation, the writing remains engaging and witty throughout.

"Algospeak" ultimately serves as both a celebration of human linguistic ingenuity and a thoughtful examination of how our words are being shaped by invisible algorithmic forces—a timely, fascinating read for anyone interested in how we communicate today.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 stars)

A must-read for language lovers navigating the digital age.

As someone who has always been fascinated by etymology, Algospeak by Adam Aleksic was an absolute treat. It’s smart, timely, and utterly absorbing—a deep dive into how language is evolving in real-time, shaped by algorithms, censorship, internet culture, and the human instinct to adapt and be understood.

Aleksic strikes a perfect balance between academic insight and pop-cultural relevance. Whether he’s unpacking TikTok slang, decoding euphemisms born from moderation filters, or tracing how new digital dialects echo older linguistic trends, he does it with clarity, wit, and genuine enthusiasm. It’s clear he loves language, and that passion is infectious on every page.

What I found especially compelling was how Algospeak explores the tension between control and creativity, how platforms try to police speech through algorithms, and how users respond by inventing entirely new vocabularies to sneak past them. It’s a reminder that language is not static, and it never has been; it bends and shifts with us, often in ingenious ways.

Whether you’re a linguist, a content creator, or just someone who enjoys thinking about why we say things the way we do, this book offers a fresh and fascinating perspective. It’s both a celebration of human ingenuity and a quietly provocative look at the future of communication.

Highly recommend for fellow word nerds and digital culture enthusiasts alike!

A great book about the power of linguistics in the age of internet algorithms. The author does a great job of breaking down each chapter with how linguistics plays such a huge part in shaping our understanding and the importance of language and internet slang/lingo. He talks about internet censorship and how each generation creates their own code language. Well written and entertaining. Such an unexpected surprise.

This is really an impressive book because of its deep knowledge of what is going on in language today and its ability to connect it to the past effectively. The author obviously comes from a deep knowledge of language and linguistics, and yet he also has an incredible facility with modern usage. By bridging the history of human language, he’s able to effectively put the strange ways in which language is developing in the age of AI and algorithms into proper perspective.

I found the thoughtful analysis throughout the book to be satisfying and fascinating, having learned new things about the history of human language, as well as getting an in-depth understanding of how technology is having an outsized impact on the way that we communicate these days, whether it is to optimize or to attempt to avoid restrictions put in place by various authorities. It’s fascinating to see how language will always find a way and it was thrilling to learn so much that subject in this exceptional book.

thanks to NetGalley for the eARC

⭐️=4.75 | 😘=3.5 | 🤬=4.5 | ⚔️=2 | 17+

summary: etymologynerd talks about how the internet, especially TikTok censorship, has changed language

thoughts: fascinating! loved this—exactly my type of deep dive into internet history linguistic nerdiness. etymology nerd you will ALWAYS be famous

I am a sucker for linguistics and TikTok/Reddit. I could NOT put this one down. I learned about the use of different words from younger generations, the origin of certain words, and even how we are losing the origins of certain words as they get gentrified.

The second half of the book really dove into the social aspects of the origin of certain words and how they are currently used, and some of the issues surrounding it which I found most interesting and was all new information to me.

Internet nerds, rejoice! ALGOSPEAK is, without a doubt, one of the most fascinating nonfiction reads of 2025. From cottagecore aesthetics and brainrot to “unalive” making the leap into everyday language, the internet’s influence on how we speak is impossible to ignore.

Viral linguist Adam Aleksic dives deep into how algorithms and social media are reshaping our lexicon—and, in turn, the way we connect, create, and communicate.

Algospeak is a must read for anyone who is chronically online, a fan of languages, or is desperately trying to understand Gen Alpha brain rot. A master of hooking in his audience, Adam Aleksic writes this debut book as if books had been his platform of choice for his whole career. The book is informative, funny, and utterly addicting! His analysis of how alogrithms have influenced language (and how they in turn have influenced us) will shift the way you consume social media, resulting in you paying more attention to the ways we "borrow" language from different groups (notably the Black and LGBT+ communities) and redefine ourselves based on evermore specific classifications (from cottage-core to dark academia) to help feed the metadata loop. Most surprisingly is the way Aleksic is able to connect our seemingly "new age" online brain rot to trends and phenomena that have spanned human history.

A five star read, through and through.

Thank you to Net Galley for this advance copy.

This book is exactly at the intersection of my interests (linguistics, language change, the internet, pop culture, etc.) so I’m not surprised that I really liked it! I did think that at times the topics wandered a little too much, some chapters were less linguistic focused, but overall all the chapters were engaging. This will also be a fun time capsule of internet slang as it exists right now. Recommend if you want an accessible book about language topics (if you liked things like Wordslut and Because Internet).
Thanks to NetGalley for this arc!