Tasmania’s first Book Doof, described by organisers as “a rave for readers”, will be held in Hobart this month as the Melbourne-born reading movement expands into the state.
The event will run from 2-5pm on Saturday, November 21 at the University of Tasmania’s Forest venue on Melville Street.
Participants bring a book and read alongside each other while music plays, with time to chat at the end. Tasmanian duo Bing/Santospirito will perform an improvised live soundtrack.
Grant Krupp founded Book Doof in Melbourne in 2025 and chapters have since started in Perth and Canberra.
Krupp described the concept as “the opposite of a silent disco: instead of everyone dancing to music you can’t hear, everyone’s reading to music they can”.
The Hobart event is a partnership between Krupp and The Woman Booker Prize Club.
Its organisers contacted Krupp in July after coming across Book Doof online.
“When we saw Book Doof online our reaction was pretty immediate: we want to go to this! Why don’t we have this here?” they said.
“Tasmania – and especially Hobart – has one of the strongest literary cultures in Australia.”
Hobart was designated a UNESCO City of Literature in 2023, joining Melbourne, which received the title in 2008.
According to the organisers, the event complements more traditional reader gatherings, such as their recent sold-out Love at First Cite event with Fullers Bookshop.
“Book Doof sits on the other end of the spectrum,” they said. “Sometimes it’s enough to simply share space and time with people who love the same things you do.”
Attendees can also write, sketch, chat quietly or dance, as long as they do not disrupt others. A mini library will be available for people who arrive without a book and a separate listening lounge will cater for audiobooks.
Tickets cost $25 or $15 for concession holders.
Food and drink is BYO and readers of all ages are welcome.
The local team plans to host Book Doofs around the state from next year.
