Walking through the Victorian-style mansion of Goodwin House is like walking through the pages of an old fiction novel. Creaky stairs and furnished rooms lead to a pavilion where book club members sit and enjoy the warm weather while discussing their books.
Open Pages is a queer-friendly Ottawa-based book club created by Matt Van Abbema, a human rights student at Carleton University.
“I wanted to make a space for people to meet each other genuinely,” Abbema said. “I love reading and I love books and I wanted to meet people like me.”
Inspired by the concept of a silent book club where participants read their own books instead of a shared specific one, Abbema pitched his idea to Ian Heide, chairperson of Amnesty International Ottawa-Gatineau community group, in April 2024 when they were discussing initiatives for LGBTQ+ rights.
Part of Abbema’s reason for forming Open Pages was to have a community to fall back on.
“It seems like such a difficult time for people to find friends in their 20s and 30s, especially after you leave university,” Abbema said. “Belonging is such an important thing.”
Now partnered with Amnesty, Open Pages meets at Amnesty Canada’s headquarters at Goodwin House every second and third Saturday of the month. Members are encouraged to bring their own book to read for an hour before discussing together afterwards.
“Anybody can come in. Any expression, any age, any kind of queer person,” Abbema said. “I try to organize it in a way that is non-judgemental.”
“I like blabbering about the books that I like and not having to read books I have no interest in,” she said. “It also means I don’t have to read at the same pace [as everyone else].”
Ali Umali, a fourth-year student at the University of Waterloo, said they discovered the club through an Ottawa queer events Facebook group.
They said they prefer the format of Open Pages compared to other book clubs, which can “feel like work” when participants are asked specific questions at the end.
“I really like that it’s very chill and low-stakes,” Umali said. “It’s a nice break from work.”
After joining the club while looking for more queer friends, Umali said they feel accepted in the club because of its queer foundation.
“In a queer setting like this, I can be more myself,” they said. “It was definitely what I was looking for.”
Abbema said the community’s reaction to the book club has been positive so far and is excited to continue to watch it grow.
To those interested in joining, Abbema said he hopes they find as much comfort in it as he has.
“The ultimate goal for this book club is just to bring people together,” he said. “I found a lot of comfort in finding people like me and finding a place where I belong.”
Featured image provided by Matt Van Abbema.
