Radio National Breakfast
Radio National Breakfast
ABC Australia
Changing Australia: Shay Leighton and creating the Tough Guy Book Club
11 minutes Posted Jun 28, 2026 at 10:15 pm.
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As a teen, a good sci-fi novel was among Shay Leighton's favourite books to read.
But as he grew older and life took over; he read less, worked too much and wasn't very happy.
So, he decided to start a book club, but one designed to focus on connecting men, address isolation and improve mental health.
This group, the Tough Guy Book Club, first met in a pub in Melbourne in 2012 and has now become an international sensation with more than 180 chapters in Australia around the world.