How virtual book groups are changi ng the way we read with others

‘Books and doors are the same thing. You open them, and you go through into another world’

JEANETTE WINTERSON

It’s Tuesday evening and a group of keen non-fiction readers gather to discuss Adam Higginbotham’s Midnight in Chernobyl. There’s book-themed cocktails, friendly banter and lots of lively debate – just what you’d expect from a successful book club.

Only this one involves around 300 readers from diverse cities around the world. And before they discuss what they thought of the book, they hear from Dame Sue Ion, a government advisor on nuclear power. There’s also private networking going on and an online exhibition space to explore. Welcome to the fascinating world of virtual book clubs.

Of course the concept of remote book groups is nothing new. We can thank Oprah in the US and Richard and Judy in the UK for helping to bring TV book groups to the masses. But with social media and a plethora of digital communication platforms continuing to influence our leisure time, things have become a little more sophisticated. Organised online communities are springing up across the web to connect people, start conversations and cater for different reading tastes.

This particular Tuesday-night event was one of a regular series of online meet-ups coordinated by Rebel Book Club – exclusively for non-fiction. Established in London by ‘the two Bens’ – Keene and Saul-Garner – it started as in-person meet-ups taking place in various co-working spaces across the city. Over the past five years, branches have opened in Berlin, Barcelona, Brighton, Oxford, Bristol and Manchester and as the club has grown, there’s been a greater need to connect digitally.