As it heads into its third year, the Lonely House Book Club has shown that reading does not have to be a solitary act. Recently it tested that idea somewhere new, with a full weekend at the Y's camp at Mount Evelyn.
Founded in Melbourne in 2023 by Natasha Way and Bella Raymond, Lonely House runs a monthly calendar of events, a different activity each time, all built around books and the people who read them.
"Reading is a solitary hobby," Bella says. "So we're trying to provide the community you'd more commonly find in sports clubs. A lot of these women miss out on that because they don't play netball or footy. We're giving them the social side of a hobby, with people who are like-minded."
The camp was a new experiment for the club, and by every measure a resounding one. Many of the women arrived on their own, having never met.
There were a couple of people there who had never come to any of our events before. To have the confidence to attend a whole weekend away with a group of women, having never met anyone, we were blown away. Bella Raymond
What a weekend away offers that a monthly meetup cannot is the camp itself. Across two days the group worked through archery, high and low ropes, the giant swing and orienteering, all included and all run by the Y's camp team.
These are the parts you do not find in a cafe or a bookshop, and the Y's camp team are the reason they work for everyone. Soph and Sarah, in particular, talked people up the ladder, steadied the nervous ones and made sure nobody felt they had anything to prove.
"Soph made everyone feel so comfortable," Bella says. "Sarah told us we were the most supportive group she'd ever had. That was lovely, because the women really are so good at encouraging each other."
The connections were helped along by design. A Friday night bonfire opened with a book swap, and the activity groups were deliberately mixed so nobody stayed in their corner.
"We split them into different groups, so their cabins were split too," Natasha says. "It doesn't feel like a forced conversation, especially orienteering, when you're trying to be a detective and find things."
"We needed something to disarm everyone, but where they also feel confident," Bella adds. "They're all readers, so a book swap gives them something to talk about, even with someone they've only just met."
For the members, the camp sat on top of something that had already changed their year. Alannah Kemp had moved to Melbourne with a single friend in the city when she found the club.
"Over a year ago, I got lost with two other girls on my way to my first Lonely House bookclub. I'd moved to Melbourne in January with one friend in the city. Going to Lonely House was one of the best decisions I made in building community. Wandering fruitlessly around the cotton mill, I had no idea I'd just made a new best friend. Since being a part of Lonely House, I've found life long friends, reinvigorated my love for reading, and celebrated girlhood in all the best ways. Getting to go to Mount Evelyn Discovery Camp with these girls was the cherry on top. As someone who grew alone, it's been a joy to find belonging, to welcome others in, and share happy moments."
Kate Anderson tells it much the same way.
"Making friendships and finding a sense of community as an adult is hard, but in joining Lonely House Book Club that is exactly what I've found. I've developed a new found confidence, profound friendships and a place to share our common interest in books with a lot of laughter."
Lonely House is already planning its return to camp later this year.
