Book Swaps Toronto

OSC #5 - Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Welcome to our 5th meetup for the Open Shelf Collective. We have selected Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid as our selection for this event. The first thirty minutes of the event is open social time while we allow attendees to arrive. The book discussion will begin at 8:00 PM. At the end of the meetup, we will accept nominations for the next book. We encourage attendees to stay afterwards and chat if they would like to as well. Out of respect for the venue and people on the waitlist, if you do not intend on attending please cancel as soon as possible and at the very latest 48 hours in advance. To ensure spots go to engaged members, we have limited new sign ups to two weeks before the event — existing RSVPs are not affected. We would like to keep these events free of charge, and continued last minute cancellations or no-shows may require us to introduce a small fee in the future. "Atmosphere" by Taylor Jenkins Reid: Joan Goodwin has been obsessed with the stars for as long as she can remember. Thoughtful and reserved, Joan is content with her life as a professor of physics and astronomy at Rice University and as aunt to her precocious niece, Frances. That is, until she comes across an advertisement seeking the first women scientists to join NASA’s Space Shuttle program. Suddenly, Joan burns to be one of the few people to go to space. Selected from a pool of thousands of applicants in the summer of 1980, Joan begins training at Houston’s Johnson Space Center, alongside an exceptional group of fellow candidates: Top Gun pilot Hank Redmond and scientist John Griffin, who are kind and easy-going even when the stakes are highest; mission specialist Lydia Danes, who has worked too hard to play nice; warm-hearted Donna Fitzgerald, who is navigating her own secrets; and Vanessa Ford, the magnetic and mysterious aeronautical engineer, who can fix any engine and fly any plane. As the new astronauts become unlikely friends and prepare for their first flights, Joan finds a passion and a love she never imagined. In this new light, Joan begins to question everything she thinks she knows about her place in the observable universe. Then, in December of 1984, on mission STS-LR9, everything changes in an instant. Fast-paced, thrilling, and emotional, *Atmosphere* is Taylor Jenkins Reid at her best: transporting readers to iconic times and places, with complex protagonists, telling a passionate and soaring story about the transformative power of love, this time among the stars.

Cookie Swap at the Book Bar🍪

Hello there! This event is exactly what it sounds like: **we meet and swap cookies!** 🍪 Six ladies, six different cookies. Each person bakes their favourite cookie and brings **6 pieces** to share. That means we all go home with 6 different cookies to taste! No need to announce what you’re bringing. Be as creative (or lazy 😄) as you’d like. The only rule is that the cookies should be **homemade**. We’ll meet at **The Book Bar**, a beautiful new café, bar, and bookstore with delicious coffee, croissants, and other treats. ☕📚 We can drink coffee, browse the books, journal, knit, read, or do whatever cozy hobby you’re into. Just bring it along! Maybe I’ll bring my colouring book. 😊 Stay for as long or as little as you’d like, but it would be great if we could all meet at **11:00** so nobody has to wait for the cookies. 😊 If you have food allergies, this may not be the best event for you, as we can’t guarantee specific ingredients or avoid cross-contamination. **Come for the cookies, stay for the cozy company!** 🍪☕📚

Books Up August Meetup

**Books Up Circle** Join us for Books Up Circle meetup! This will be a relaxed, informal gathering where we chat, get to know each other, and share our love for books. **What to expect:** * Casual introductions and open conversation * Socializing with fellow book lovers **What to bring:** * Your book ideas or favorite recommendations * An open mind and a love for reading Come to socialize, discover new books, and make friends along the way. Sounds like a good deal to us—**come join the circle!** 📚

The Girls Book Club: Fantasy/Romance Book Club Meetup #9

Hi everyone!! 💖 This is now our NINTH book club meetup! I can’t wait to get to know you all more, hang out and talk books. For this meeting we’ll be STARTING Gild by Raven Kennedy!!! Please read the first 20 chapters of the book before coming so that we have lots to discuss! Don’t stress if you’re new or didn’t make it to the last meetup! This is a super chill group and we’re mostly here to chat, vibe, and obsess over books together. Can’t wait to see you all!! 📚✨

ABCD Reads "Whistler" by Ann Patchett

ABCD Reads "**[Whistler](https://tpl.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S234C4751790)**" by Ann Patchett [[RESULTS](https://opavote.com/results/5448125428006912) of the poll for this event] **:: ABOUT THE BOOK ::** "When Daphne Fuller and her husband Jonathan visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art, they notice an older, white-haired gentleman following them. The man turns out to be Eddie Triplett, her former stepfather, who had been married to her mother for a little more than year when Daphne was nine. [...] Whistler is a story about two adults looking back over the choices they made, and the choices that were made for them. It’s a story about bravery, memory, the often small yet consequential moments that define our lives, and the endless stream of loss that in time comes for us all. Beautiful in its simplicity, it is ultimately about how love endures, and how the feeling of being known by one other person, even for a short period of time, can change everything." (from [Goodreads](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/242693052-whistler)) "Now fifty-three, Daphne hasn’t seen Eddie for many years, not since the fateful event that changed the direction of both their lives. Meeting again, time falls away; while their relationship was brief, it had a profound impact on them both, and now that they are reunited, they have no intention of ever being separated again." (from [BookMarks.reviews](https://bookmarks.reviews/reviews/whistler/)) **:: ABOUT THE EVENT ::** You are welcome to arrive 30 minutes before the event and stay 30 minutes or longer afterward to connect with other attendees outside the book talk. Please ensure you have read the book before attending (though finishing any book is not a barrier to participating, as long as you don't mind spoilers). First-time attendees can join for free. If the event is full, we maintain an unofficial waitlist. Please send [Michael](https://www.meetup.com/members/55295192/) a direct message for more information, in either case. We request a $3 contribution from regular attendees to help cover our monthly meetup costs. **:: ABOUT OUR NEXT BOOK ::** At the end of each event, we will ask for nominees for our next book. If you have a good one in mind, please ensure it is between 200-400 pages long, available from the Toronto Public Library, and counts as contemporary literary fiction (though these are not hard and fast rules). When enough nominees are collected, Michael will send the members a direct message with a link where you can vote.

Silent Bookclub Meeting #85

The next event is happening on Tuesday August 25 at 6:00 PM at the Deck located in Clarence Square! Please RSVP if you're planning on coming so we can plan appropriately! To help cover the costs of meetup fees, we will be taking optional donations for this event. If you're inclined to, feel free to send any amount you're comfortable with to harresh.s@hotmail.com, or bring cash to the event. Please note that this is entirely optional and not required to join the event! All proceeds will go towards fees for this event and future events, as well as meetup fees

Bookish Bi Reading Club

Silent Bookclub Meeting #89 (Bookstore Crawl and High Park)

The next event will be a two parter, bringing back a fan favourite! We're back with our fourth Bookstore Crawl and we'll be soaking up the sun in the West End! Bookstores are TBD, and then having our typical Silent Book Club event at High Park. Hope to see you there, and bring sunscreen! Please RSVP if you're planning on coming so we can plan appropriately To help cover the costs of meetup fees, we will be taking optional donations for this event. If you're inclined to, feel free to send any amount you're comfortable with to harresh.s@hotmail.com, or bring cash to the event. Please note that this is entirely optional and not required to join the event! All proceeds will go towards fees for this event and future events, as well as meetup fees

Short Reads Social #12: "Why Don't We Dream of Labour?" (Aug 25th)

Short-Read Socials are back! Come meet with like-minded and unlikeminded people to talk about the topic of the month. This time, we're thinking about **work and meaning.** *Why do some people feel like their work is meaningless? Is some work more inherently "meaningful" than others? Should work be something that necessarily has to fulfill us in the first place?* \-\-\- **How does it work?** * The event is casual. You can talk to anyone there with or without our prompt sheets, either about the month's topic or about whatever you want. * Open philosophical discussion, including for controversial topics, is welcome but be respectful :) * If you've read/watched/heard anything related to the topic of the month, feel free to bring it in! Not necessarily physically, but you can if you want... * If not, here are some thought-provoking reads to start you off (read as many or as few as you want): * [Why Is Everyone In Tech So Sad?](https://www.noemamag.com/why-is-everyone-in-tech-so-sad/) * [Workism Is Making Americans Miserable](https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/02/religion-workism-making-americans-miserable/583441/) (paywall-free version [here](https://archive.is/20260808071246/https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/02/religion-workism-making-americans-miserable/583441/)) * [The Nature of Meaningless Work](https://thestillwandering.substack.com/p/the-nature-of-meaningless-work?r=2zfszx&utm_medium=ios&triedRedirect=true) * [What do Japan’s hikikomori reveal about our lonely world?](https://psyche.co/ideas/what-do-japans-hikikomori-reveal-about-our-lonely-world) * And as a throwback to our second book club meeting ever, Chapter 6: Why Do We as a Society Not Object to the Growth of Pointless Employment? of [David Graeber's Bullshit Jobs](https://nextcloud.quackhouse.ca/s/DMqpQD8wSR8WPcy) (pages 103-135 in the pdf or 193-244 in the text) * Feel free to post other recommendations (blogs, movies, tv episodes, video essays, etc.) in the comments!

☕️ Coffee, ice cream & book chat

Come join us for a fun and relaxed kickoff meetup for Toronto ladies who love books, hobbies, good conversation & a little treat! 📚☕🍦💗 We’ll grab coffee and ice cream, get to know each other, chat about what we’ve been reading, share our favourite hobbies, and talk about our summer plans 🌸✨ No pressure, no assigned reading — just a cute afternoon/evening to meet some new people and make new friends! 🫶🏻

LIMITED SPACE - NEW Korean x English Language Exchange, Class & Board Games

### 👨‍🏫 **KOREAN X ENGLISH LANGUAGE EXCHANGE** * Mini English Class with Certified Teacher + Board Games 🎲 ### **⚠️ Space is VERY LIMITED** so register ASAP to save your spot! *We can only accept a limited number of guests due to the venue's space limitations.* \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\- ### **📍 LOCATION: CAFÉ PRINCESS** * 5590 Yonge Street, North York * Across the street from **F**I**NCH SUBWAY STATION** near Shoppers Drug Mart ### *📅* **DATE:** *Thursday, August 27, 2026* * 🕡 Time: 6:15 PM – 8:30 PM **Please register ASAP** if you want to attend on Aug 27th so we can save your spot! *We had roughly 80 people sign up for the last event... but we only have space for 30 people max.* \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\- **After registering, please do the following on Aug. 27th :** 1. ✅ Do your best to arrive on time @ Café Princess (6:15 PM) 2. ✅ Tell us whether you want to focus on learning/practicing ENGLISH or KOREAN 3. ✅ Tell us your level: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced or Expert 4. ✅ **Buy 1 item from the Café Princess Menu** \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\- **✨ SPECIAL PROMOTION COST: This class is FREE! Simply buy 1 item** from the Café Princess menu to participate. Popular menu items include: * *🍓 Strawberry Cheesecake Bingsu* * *🍧 Mango or Oreo Bingsu* * *☕ Matcha & Tiramisu Lattes* * *🧇 Princess Waffles with Ice Cream & Much More* ### **What to Expect** * *🇰🇷 Guided Korean & English language practice* * *📚 Interactive mini-lesson led by an award-winning certified teacher* * *🗣️ Structured conversation activities with native and fluent speakers* * *🎲 Board games and social activities to practice language naturally* * *🤝 Make new friends while improving your communication skills* ### **Learn From an Expert Language Teacher** *John Dias (OCT, PhD researcher, MA, BEd, HBA & EELC) is an award-winning certified language teacher with 10+ years experience* ### **Who Should Attend?** * *English learners (ESL)* * *Native Korean speakers wanting to practice English* * *Korean learners of all levels* * *International students, newcomers, professionals, and anyone interested in language and culture* **Feel free to e-mail [info@tilelearning.com](mailto:info@tilelearning.com) if you have any questions.** **Check out our [website](https://www.tilelearning.com/) and [instagram](https://www.instagram.com/tilelearning/) accounts for more details.**

The Bloom Collective (TBC)

Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman #TBC 1