The Reading Room (2pm in the Library for a start @ 10.30am – 12noon)

This volunteer run reading and discussion group meets monthly. It is anticipated that members will read the selected book prior to attendance.
If you would like to be a part of this group (free to BMI members) please complete the Expression of Interest. We welcome your feedback through this form as we progress this great new initiative. 
 
Expression of Interest to participate >

 

For more information go to

Books That Saved My Life | Michael McGirr

More about the Author.

JUNE SESSION

Here are forty texts to read at some stage in your life- forty texts that can enrich you in all manner of ways. Some are recent, like Harry Potter; some ancient, like Homer and Lao Tzu. There are memoirs (Nelson Mandela), poetry (Les Murray) and many of the world’s great novels, from George Eliot’s Middlemarch to Toni Morrison’s Beloved. Our guide, in entertaining short essays about personal encounters with each of these works, is Michael McGirr- schoolteacher and former priest, reviewer of hundreds of novels and lifelong lover of literature.

His humour and insight shine through in stories that connect the texts he has selected with each other, and connect us to them. Never prescriptive, and often very funny, this book is an invitation to reflect on-and share with others-the extraordinary gift of reading. ‘It is a gift that is taking me a lifetime to unwrap,? McGirr writes. ‘The excitement has never worn off.?

About the Author

Michael McGirr is the bestselling author of Snooze- The Lost Art of Sleep, Things You Get for Free and Bypass. He has reviewed almost one thousand books for various newspapers; his short fiction has appeared in Australian and overseas publications; and he has been a publisher of Eureka Street and fiction editor at Meanjin. 

Review a title

Why not review a book for the benefit of our members. We will publish these reviews in our social media and website from time to time.

My Book Review >

This event is a BMI Community Art Project – Ballarat’s Oldest Cultural Institution

Rosemary’s Book of the Week

02/12/2025 No Comments

Dead Man’s Tale Quintin Jardine His native Scotland stands on the cusp of a new era of international expansion under its charismatic new leader, but former top cop Sir Robert Skinner is settled happily in Spain with his family, fully engaged in a new and unexpected career. Hs is focused on a business issue, only to be drawn suddenly homewards as a family member finds himself a witness to a homicidal attack, and under fire himself. Skinner drops everything to rush

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Update from Liam Mudge, Venue Manager | Stage Ready

27/11/2025 No Comments

Stage Ready The BMI has received funding to launch Stage Ready — a new non-formal technical-theatre training program for regional creatives. The Ballaarat Mechanics’ Institute (BMI) is pleased to announce it has secured $22,946 to deliver Stage Ready, a training program designed to support emerging production talent and strengthen regional creative capability. Launching in 2026, Stage Ready delivers practical, real-world experience in lighting, sound, stagecraft, and venue operations. The program is non-formal by design, helping participants develop entry-level technical skills through guided

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A Message from the Chair | BMI Board of Directors | December 2025

27/11/2025 No Comments

Hello everybody, it is hard to believe we are writing the December edition of the BMI newsletter, but while the year seems to have dashed by, a lot has been achieved at the BMI, for you the Members and for the wider community. Much of this activity has been internal, with Finance and HR audits almost complete led by the Finance Committee and the Board respectively, cyber security and IT upgrades generously led by volunteer Travis Charlton, website overview and

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Rosemary’s Book of the Week

24/11/2025 No Comments

It’s A Scorcher: Tales of the Australian Summer William McInnes Don’t miss Willima at the BMI on Tuesday 2 December at 6pm If there is a quintessence of Australia at its best William McInnes has diestilled it – The Age From one of Australia’s favourite storytellers There is something about long, hot summer days that stirs our emotions. It’s all about holidays, festivals, family and Christmas; a time for swimming, a hit of backyard cricket or firing up the barbie.

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