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The Reading Room (This session will start at 1030am until the resumption of normal operating hours)

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

The House by the Lake | Thomas Harding

FEBRUARY SESSION

The House by the Lake | Thomas Harding

In the summer of 1993, Thomas Harding travelled to Berlin with his grandmother to visit a small house by a lake. It was her ‘soul place’ she said – a sanctuary she had been forced to leave when the Nazis swept to power. The trip was a chance to see the house one last time, to remember it as it was. But the house had changed.

Twenty years later Thomas returned to Berlin. The house now stood empty, derelict, and soon to be demolished. A concrete footpath cut through the garden, marking where the Berlin Wall had stood for nearly three decades. Elsewhere were signs of what the house had once been – blue tiles showing behind wallpaper, phographs fallen between floorboards, flagstones covered in dirt. Evidence of five families who had made the house their home over a tumultuous century.

The House by the Lake is a groundbreaking work of history, revealing the story of Germany through the inhabitants of one small wooden building: a nobleman farmer, a prosperous Jewish family, a renowned Nazi composer, a widow and her children, a Stasi informant. Moving from the late nineteenth century to the present day, from the devastation of two world wars to the dividing and reuniting of a nation, it is a story of domestic joy and contentment, of terrible grief and tragedy, and of a hatred handed down through the generations. Breathtaking in scope, intimate in detail, it is the long-awaited new history from the author of the bestselling Hanns and Rudolf.

Review this title

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

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

Rosemary’s Book of the Week

Wild Dark Shore Charlotte McConaghy. From the New York Times bestselling author of Migrations and Once There Were Wolves, a novel about a family living alone on a remote island, when a mysterious woman washes up on shore. At once a gripping mystery, an exquisitely written ode to the natural world, and a taut, psychological thriller, Wild Dark Shore is a triumph. Charlotte McConaghy is masterful in her ability to show the intricate connections between place and the human heart, and Wild Dark Shore shows her at

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Rosemary’s Book of the Week

Peter Stevens: Much More Than Cars Dr Phil Roberts OAM. This is the story of a successful Ballarat businessman involved in multiple community enterprises. The book, lavishly illustrated with images from his time in the motor industry, traces Peter’s early life, recounts the intriguing story of his business adventures and pays testimony to his community spirit through his long-time support of many worthwhile causes. The book can be purchased at the Library during regular operating hours – $50 with $10 of each

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Rosemary’s Book of the Week

The Florentine Quilt Chrissie Bellbrae. The Florentine Quilt is a beautifully written tale woven over multiple timelines connecting three women and a medieval quilt. The woman are also connected in an ancient tale of forbidden love. Australia 2024- Upcycle boutique owner and textile conservator Theodora Harris is still grieving her grandmother’s death when she finds herself accepted at the OPD (The Opificio) in Florence, Italy on an opportunity to work on restoring a fourteenth-century quilt. Theo has also experienced the unique

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

Hello everyone. Autumn is here, and as the leaves start to come down here are some updates from the BMI! Mark has done the usual fabulous job of putting everything together for you below, I just wanted to highlight a few things here. You will note that Twilight Talks and Author talks are well and truly happening again, and Rosemary is getting a great response from publishers in generating in the BMI author talk program, what a great position to

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Rosemary’s Book of the Week

Dancers on the Sea: Stories of Atauro Island, Timor Leste. 1994 – 2002 Gabrielle Samson. Dancers on the Sea This story tells of a woman’s life on Atauro Island, learning its history and culture as she worked with the community to improve living conditions through education. The memoir shares the stories of some of the people with whom she lived in a time of great change… During the period of East Timor’s occupation by an Indonesian military regime which was

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portrait of author with book cover

Australian Heritage Festival

Natasha Lester in conversation

1 May at 6pm

guides dressed in period costum

Australian Heritage Festival

Minerva's Secrets

25 April – 2 tours: 7.30pm & 9.30pm

portrait of author with book cover

Australian Heritage Festival

Natasha Lester in conversation

1 May at 6pm

Dame Nellie Melba Birthday Celebration

Fundraising Dinner
17 May. 

  Performance – 18 May.

Ballarat Heritage Festival Events at the BMI

16 to 25 May 

Connections to War from a Ballarat Perspective

Wed 2-30 April, 5.30pm

Australian Heritage Festival Events at the BMI

18 April to 18 May

Dame Nellie Melba Birthday Celebration

Fundraising Dinner
17 May. 

  Performance – 18 May.

Christmas Holiday Closures | Library

Monday 23 December – Sunday 5 January

Devonshire Tea & Fashion Parade

Bubbly on arrival & Featuring quality items from our Vintage Shop | $60

The Ballaarat Mechanics' Institute 2025 Calendar

Featuring the BMI Image Collection | Now $20

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BMI Fundraiser

Featuring:
The Hideaways,
The Harmonies &
Surf Shadows. 

2 course dinner & lots
of dancing