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TGBC Monthly Challenge - #liftheavy
Every month, the Tough Guy Book Club issues a challenge to its members. Something to push them, to challenge them, and to give them something interesting to add to their story. Challenges take all different forms…getting your cholesterol checked, designing a T-shirt, writing a…
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Goon Profile - Neil Grant
Name: Neil Grant Chapter: Diamond Creek What is your story? I was born in Glasgow in the Year of the Fire Horse and came to Australia at age 13 to escape the rain and deep-fried Mars Bars. I’m a dad of 3 and a grandad of 1. I became a beekeeper during Covid to take up a hobby I…
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Redcliffe Chapter Opening
Welcome to Redcliffe, QLD. It’s a beautiful seaside town just over the bridge from the hustle and bustle of big city Brisbane. They have a team in the National Rugby League now. You can go down to Scarborough and sit in the brewery and watch the fishing trawlers come in and out…
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Song of Solomon - Toni Morrison (1977)
I kept asking myself as I read the book when will Solomon, an ancient king, will start playing into this story about an African American man, Macon ‘Milkman’ Dead III, that is trying to find his place in a deeply fractured world, and honestly, part of me is still asking the…
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Goon Profile – Peter Machell
Name: Peter Machell (rhymes with Rachel) Chapter: Fortitude Valley What’s your story? I've been on this planet for just over half a century. But I still learn stuff every day. I may be an over-opinionated geek but I generally prefer analogue to digital. I'm a amateur musician and…
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TGBC Monthly Challenge - #TGBCshirt
At Tough Guy Book Club we are into our merch. You will be hard pressed to find a group photo of one of our meets without someone in the trademark black t-shirt, proudly displaying our logo. We also love to issue our members a challenge every month, something that will push them…
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Reaper Man - Terry Pratchett (1991)
As cliché as it sounds, I don’t even know where to begin with this review of the literary triumph that is ‘Reaper Man’ by Terry Pratchett. The eleventh book in the Discworld series, the second in the Death narrative, I didn’t know anything about Reaper Man going into it apart…
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Goon Profile - Amal Amarsi
Name: Amal Amarsi Chapter: Ringwood (I originally started at the Warrandyte chapter) What is your story? So many chapters, and stories within them - but ultimately I’m just a guy who is fortunate to be where I am in life, (alive) living in a great part of Melbourne’s outer east…
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Canberra South Chapter Opening
If you’ve ever spent any time in Canberra, you will know that the north/south rivalry runs deep, those North of the lake don’t like to venture South and vice versa. When the two existing chapters in town, both on the North side, started getting some big numbers each week we…
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Camp of the Broken Road
There’s a certain sound to a bunch of goons arriving at Licola Wilderness Village. It’s not quiet. Cars pulling up, boots hitting gravel, backs cracking from the long journey, shouts across the way when you spot someone you haven’t seen since the last time we did this. Old mates…
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Austin Chapter Opening
Austin, deep in the heart of Texas, bills itself as the “Live Music Capital of the World”. It hosts internationally-recognised events like South by Southwest (SXSW) and Austin City Limits, and has been home to some fucking legendary musicians including Willie Nelson, Janis…
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TGBC Monthly Challenge - #sauce
Every month Tough Guy Book Club sets a challenge to all members. These challenges are to add a page to your story, because at TGBC we are obsessed with stories. For March 2025 the goons were asked to go get their cholesterol checked and post the evidence in the Pool Hall Facebook…
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