Colin Telford, co-owner of the Hayling Island Bookshop says: ‘Reading has never been more important than now for people s mental health.
‘It s a very relaxing activity and it does make people feel better – they can explore different worlds, different places, different characters – escape from the awful situation we re in.
Novelist and teacher William Sutton will be running two novel-writing courses and interviewing crime author Mark Billingham in this year s Bookfest.
‘Therefore bookshops and book festivals are as important as ever, if not more so.
‘It s important that the festival continues during this current situation – we encourage everybody to take part, and if they d like to support us, and buy books, they can buy from us and we do free delivery in the local area to people s doorsteps, and postal deliveries to those further afield.’