Members of the charity book club — ShelterBox are supporting families who’ve been forced to flee their homes due to disaster or conflict — with every book they read.
Since launching six years ago, the club has helped deliver emergency shelter and essential supplies — including water filters, solar lights, and mosquito nets — to people in crisis around the world.
Fryerstown resident, Carol Forrest, joined the ShelterBox Australia Book Club three years ago, becoming part of a nationwide community of readers committed to making a difference.
Carol is a registered nurse turned bookshop owner. She created the Alpine Book Trail — 18 second-hand bookshops on the Victorian Alpine circuit and currently has a Street Library.
“I purposely stock global authors and their stories, as I love how a book can transport us to someone else’s reality, simultaneously altering my perspective,” she said.
“Joining ShelterBox Book Club made a difference to me as my eyes were opened to the realities of survival and how everyday families’ lives can turn so quickly into chaos. I feel privileged to live where I do and for my families and friends to be safe.”
Members make a small monthly donation to join the club, then choose their own copy of each shortlisted title — borrowing it, buying it, listening to it, or downloading it in whatever format they love. Every six weeks, the group votes on a new book and comes together online to share reflections, ideas, and conversation.
“All our books have enriched my life and allowed me to deepen my knowledge and understanding,” Carol said.
“It’s certainly very invigorating to have one’s perspective gently and respectfully turned upside down when another’s perspective is completely different. This is a safe community where I feel empowered to speak and listen.”
Carol’s favourite read so far? Mornings in Jenin by Susan Abulhawa.
“Few books have had such a profound effect on me. Discussing a book this raw and politically charged requires an immense amount of trust; the ShelterBox Australia Book Club provides a safe and respectful space to do this,” she said.
Recent selections have included powerful voices from Myanmar, and Sudan, mirroring ShelterBox’s work in those regions. After the devastating earthquake in Myanmar, they explored the continent-spanning novel, Latitudes of Longing by Shubhangi Swarup. While ShelterBox responded to displacement in Sudan and neighbouring Chad, readers were immersed in Reem Gaafar’s spectacular Sudanese Novel, A Mouth Full of Salt.
ShelterBox specializes in emergency shelter and has supported over three million people in nearly 100 countries.
Head Bookworm at ShelterBox Australia Book Club, Peita Byer said that with every story read, the book-loving community is helping shelter people around the world who have been uprooted from their homes – whether by conflict, tropical storms, flooding, or earthquakes.
“We hand-pick stories that immerse readers in diverse cultures and authentic experiences, whether in real life (non-fiction) or in fiction. With every story, members connect more deeply with the people we support, while helping create happier endings for families in crisis,” she said.
“People like Carol are making a difference to the lives of people they will never meet simply through their love of reading.”
ShelterBox is currently supporting families displaced by earthquakes in Venezuela. It’s also responding to the world’s most neglected displacement crises, supporting people with shelter and other essential items in Cameroon, Ethiopia, Mozambique, and Burkina Faso.
To find out more or become a member, visit shelterboxaustralia.org.au/reading-room/