Hamilton Book Club

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Is this for me?
• This group is here for anyone who enjoys reading, chatting, and making friends. We welcome people of all ages and walks of life. :)
What events typically look like...
• It's relaxed conversation, usually with guided prompts and questions to facilitate the conversation and to help people get to know one another. We meet for about 1-2 hours at a time at a designated location in Hamilton or via video chat.We host three types of book clubs: an Ambitious Reads where we read a big book over three months (on our own) and discuss it the third Wednesday of the third month, a themed read where we read a book of our own choosing that fits a theme on the second Tuesday of the month, and a flagship where we read a book that's not too big at the last Thursday of the month.

• Fun book-ish events like book store crawls, checking out author talks, plays, etc.

May I come even if I didn't finish the book?
• While the conversation is guided around the book, this is equally a social space so please don't let not having been able to finish a book stop you from coming out!
Location
• Details & a map for the venue (in Hamilton, ON or surrounding area) can be found on the event page, or a link will be provided there if it is an online meetup.
Event Updates
• Please keep an eye on events as things shift. Some events may change locations (e.g., moving outside), be deferred, or moved online.
Cost:
• TBD.
Limit of people.
• The limit of people per event is listed on each event page.
What if I forget to update my RSVP?
• Please RSVP appropriately. We have started marking no-shows in accordance to our no-show policy, so that we can accurately predict how many to expect at each book club - especially due to venue limitations.

Attendance / no-show policy: The following policy has been created in response to a rising demand in our group, which means the waitlist is getting longer. The frequency of no shows is increasing means taking away precious spots that someone on the waitlist could have taken.

Hamilton Book Club has an attendance policy for all events. If you can no longer attend, please provide notice at least 3 hours before the event by changing your RSVP status and/or messaging one of the hosts.

Members who no-show without notice or fail to provide at least 3 hours notice before cancelling twice in a row will receive a warning. After three no-shows/late cancellations, members will be moved to the waitlist for future events.

For other members who join the event waitlist, please still plan to read the book as spots may open up and waitlisted members can be moved onto the Going list with little notice. Please ensure that you have notifications on to be notified if you have been moved to the Going list. 

I'd like to facilitate a meeting. Where do I begin?
• If any of you who have previously attended a meetup wish to facilitate a meetup please shoot me a message on here. If you're interested but are nervous/overwhelmed/not sure how or where to start, I'm happy to help along the way.

Community Rules/Guidelines

By attending any of our meetups, you agree to abide by our following community rules/guidelines:
• Respect and tolerance of others and their perspectives (no harassment of any persons; no hate speech);
• Adherence to local legislation and by-laws, including COVID-19 rules/guidelines.

Release of Liability

Lastly, in consideration for being allowed to participate in any of this group's activities, you release from liability and waive your right to sue Hamilton Book Club, its associates and volunteers and agents (collectively “HBC”) from any and all claims, including claims of HBC's negligence, resulting in any injury, illness (including death) or economic loss you may suffer or which may result from your participation in HBC events, travel to and from HBC events (including air travel), or any events incidental to this HBC events.