English speakers in Spain’s Costa del Sol and Costa Blanca form Online Book Clubs to Combat Lockdown

TIME hangs heavily whilst we are all forced to spend most of our time indoors and there is only so much interest in watching TV or a movie but there are a number of other things that you could consider to keep yourself alert and benefit from this down time if you are not working from home.

For some time now there have been book clubs in different parts of Spain where English speakers meet on a regular basis to discuss the latest books that they have read and to have a chat.

Whilst you can’t go out to meet people any more it is very easy to get hold of books either by purchasing paperbacks online for home delivery or by downloading them to a Kindle or tablet.

Many are arranging with friends to set up their own virtual book club, agree the book that they all want to read and then meet on a weekly basis online to discuss the contents.

Although the Zoom conferencing facility has been criticised for poor security, this is really a matter to worry governments and big businesses who have been using it, but it is unlikely that the insidious Chinese who are accused of being behind the company will be able to obtain state secrets from a book club.

One possible book to consider which has plenty of book club questions online is The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows which tells the story of life in Guernsey during the Second World War.