The COVID-19 lockdown has helped people rediscover the magic of books and lovers of the written word are pulling out all the stops to spread the habit of reading. Marathon webinars, book challenges, and YouTube channels introducing books that one may have missed are among the ventures spreading the word around.
The lockdown has increased the appetite for reading, says Ravi Deecee, publisher and CEO, DC Books, who pointed out a 15-fold jump in online sale of books since the lockdown began in March.
Around 3,000 people from different walks of life participated in a recently concluded series of webinars over 44 days. Writers and public figures introduced 44 books during these sessions, organised under the aegis of the Purogamana Kala Sahitya Sangham (PuKaSa). The organisers were pleasantly surprised by the huge response, says Joshi Don Bosco, PuKaSa district secretary. “It was a wonderful experience. No repetitions and each day we had a book being brought to us live,” says art teacher M.V. Vijayakumari in Aluva, who participated in the webinars.
Inaccessible libraries
The webinars reassert the place of books in society at a time when libraries have become almost inaccessible because of the fear of COVID-19, says V.K. Prasad, treasurer, Ernakulam Public Library. He says the library has financial constraints but is considering introducing web-based facilities to give access to its 11,000 members as footfall has come down from about 700 on holidays to about 50 now. Josey Joseph, a retired professor of Malayalam in Cherthala, who is also a book collector, hit upon the idea of a regular session on YouTube to introduce “some rare books that an avid reader may have missed”. Called Pusthaka Bhranthan, the channel is a “way of sharing my books with like-minded people”. The idea evolved out of his earlier involvement with new media and as a means of getting out of the isolation brought about by the lockdown, he says.
The continuing book challenge on fora like FaceBook has seen enthusiastic response from Malayalis. Rammohan Paliyath, an avid reader, says that he had become part of the book challenge in which the participants are challenged to post book covers. Once seven book covers are posted, another participant posts a fresh set of covers, and the process goes on as a chain reaction.
“This expression of love for the books is in order as the world of hard books and visits to the shops are passé. Online publications and sales are in,” says V.C. Thomas, consultant editor for a big online retailer in Kochi.
