The Reading Room

The reading room is really just as the name suggests — a room in the heart of the city done up in a retro lounge-​room style with books and games and coffee and couches. I love attending exhibitions and events here due to the laid back atmosphere and the charming people who run the room on a volunteer basis. Great to drop in for a cheap DIY tea and coffee, read a book, play some board games, catch up with friends. Great for young and old alike and a great ‘safe haven’ in the city where you can meet up with friends without feeling pressured into buying things! Always good art on the walls, and check out their roster of regular events like dancing room, weekday mediation, feminist reading club and more. You can become a member now with discounts at other local stores as part of the perks.

The reading room is quite a cool place. I won’t go into any of the history of it as Chloe has already covered that, save to say that Renew Adelaide is a spin off of a project which started in New Castle, and that they did it much better than us.
The Reading Room is unlike anything else in town and I am very thankful for its existence. It is quite a dingy little one room converted shopfront, decked out with couches and bookshelves, with work from local artists shown from time to time on the walls.
There is a two level effect going on with a raised section at the back which serves something like a stage.
It is a very friendly and welcoming environment, and there should be more of it.

The Reading Room is like a council community youth centre, except that it is *actually* engaged with a community of young/​creative people in Adelaide, instead of being hindered by the infinite uncool, disconnectedness of council-​run ventures. Supported by Renew Adelaide — a local initiative that supports creative people to do projects in disused space — The Reading Room is a little room full of books and fairly-​lights on Hindley St, tucked between the Rosemont and every other late-​night venue. A team of volunteers have refurbished this place on a budget of almost nothing — and it is pretty damn sweet. The first and foremost function of The Reading Room is that it serves as a free book exchange, where you can bring in books, swap them, or sit on the couches and read what is there already. Or you could play boardgames, or do whatever you like really, as long as it isn’t obnoxious or inappropriate and you have a word with the volunteer staff.
As well as this, The Reading Room runs a buzzing schedule of small events — exhibitions, a dancing night, feminist reading night, chess nights, fundraisers, movie nights, open mic poetry, acoustic music, etc. Some of these events you will like, others you will loathe. But it shows what a community space can do when it is run independently instead of by out of touch public servants.