Book ‘nerd’ helps others develop their love of reading

PATRICK Bonello loves a lot of things – technology, most kinds of media, and much more – but ranking possibly at the top of his list of interests is books.

The self-confessed sci-fi and fantasy nerd has a massive collection of them, featuring some of the biggest names in their genres: Arthur C. Clarke, Frank Herbert, Isaac Asimov, JRR Tolkien, and countless others.

It was Mr Bonello’s love of science fiction and fantasy stories that led him to join the Ballan Neighbourhood House Book Club when he moved to the town from Melbourne about 17 years ago.

“When I moved here I wanted to get involved with the local community,” he said. “Having a passion for reading, I noticed the neighbourhood house offered a lot of different programs – and the book group jumped out at me.

“I also wanted to broaden my repertoire of reading; I love sci-fi and fantasy, I’ve loved it since I was a kid.

“I figured I’d make new friends and be able to sit down and talk about books that I enjoy reading, but also take on other books that I wouldn’t normally jump in and read.”

Such is his dedication to the group, Mr Bonello has been its facilitator for at least the past decade.

He has also served on the neighbourhood house committee and teaches tai chi at the premises while running his own marketing and design business, as well as podcasting.

The book club meets on the fourth Monday of each month, which gives members a month to read selected books supplied by the local library.

“The focus is a lot on Australian authors, and we’re very lucky that we have such an amazing talent base to draw from,” Mr Bonello said.

“I’d say 60 per cent of the books would be by Australian authors.”

Mr Bonello said he certainly had uncovered some gems through the group, including the 2020 novel Honeybee by WA author Craig Silvey.

He said everyone in the group loved the book, with some even grading it higher than the usual scale of 1 to 5.

“I’ve read some amazing books that I wouldn’t have picked up previously,” Mr Bonello said.

“In fact the first book I picked up (as part of the group) was a book by Jodi Picoult called My Sister’s Keeper – a beautiful book, and subsequently I’ve read more of her work.

“So I think I’ve been very lucky to have been able to join the group and it’s been great for my repertoire of reading.”

And Mr Bonello encourages more locals to sign up.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity to just dive into a book but also meet with like-minded people to discuss the book,” he said.

“And living in a smaller town, connecting with people is what the real catalyst is – and book groups are a great way to do that.”

The group’s membership consistently hovers around 10 or 12 people, and anyone interested in getting involved can do so through the neighbourhood house website at ballanneighbourhoodhouse.com.au.

The next program begins at 6.30pm on Monday 23 February at the neighbourhood house in Inglis Street.