A journey of learning in Clarendon

THE inaugural meeting of a new Clarendon-based book club took place early last week.

Held at the Clarendon Recreation Reserve, the meet-up saw five people discuss 2022 novel Sea of Tranquility.

The club has been formed by Lal Lal local Melissa Sellies, who is aiming to increase the monthly get-togethers’ membership.

“I’m really wanting to grow this community and meet new people here, and for me, this is really a journey of learning,” she said.

Ms Sellies moved to the region from Melbourne earlier this year and said she formed the group as way to connect with the community.

“I’m originally from Sydney and my family’s spread across different states. So, I don’t really know anyone here and a big thing for me is community,” she said.

The next meeting is set to take place on Tuesday, 18 October, where readers will discuss The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri.

A self-proclaimed avid reader, Ms Sellies said the book group also serves as a way for her to step out of her comfort zone, and understand different perspectives.

“Reading books is a great non-confrontational way of exploring new ideas. It’s a safe environment for people to do that,” she said.

“Learning from people would be my other main aim for this. I really love getting inside people’s heads, seeing how they perceive things in different ways. It’s how we grow.

“That could be their vices, as seen through different book characters, or the lessons learned through the story itself.”