Christie Gause-Bemis of Wisconsin Rapids, WI talks about her book club, Changing Chapters. Read about their favorite personal selections, their eclectic members, and their firm belief that women should be allowed to be immature "every once in a while."

Q: Does your group have a name and/or a theme? How long has your group been in existence?

A: Changing Chapters Book Club. The title has to do with the changing chapters in our own lives through marriages, divorces, jobs, unemployment, babies, boyfriends, children leaving home, etc. We have been in existence since the fall of 1998.

Q: How many members do you have? How many men, how many women? What age are most of your members?

A: We have 12 members, all women. The ages range from the youngest, 33 years, to the oldest, 60 years.

Q: How often do you meet? Where do you meet?

A: We meet monthly, the third Wednesday of the month. We meet in the homes of the club members, rotating based on who picked the book that month. The furthest that we drive is about 40 minutes away.

Q: Do you eat at your meetings? What do you eat? Who brings the food?

A: Oh yessssss...the person hosting the book club that month will provide anything from light snacks and refreshments to a full meal or a potluck meal. It is up to the person hosting to decide. Generally we have wine, cheese, fruit/salad, and a sweet treat.

Q: Who leads the discussion? Do you use reading group guides?

A: Again, it is up to the person hosting to decide. They lead the discussion and it is up to them to do some research on the book, subject matter and/or author. Sometimes we will use reading guides depending on availability and if the guides provide useful discussion questions and topics.

Q: What kind of books do you read?

A: We generally will read fiction. We have read nonfiction books like The Art of Happiness, My Country, Travels with Charley, and others. We read modern fiction as well as the classics --- East of Eden, For Whom the Bell Tolls, etc.

Q: How do you choose your books? Do you choose one new book at each meeting, or do you choose the books for a number of meetings ahead of time?

A: About once per year we bring a book or several books to select for the upcoming year's list. The person hosting the chosen month will get to choose the book; some hosts like a bit of input, and so they will bring several possibilities with them. They do not have to bring a copy of the book, but can just bring a title and author selection.

Q. What were some of the best discussions or favorite books the group read?

A: It varies depending on who you ask. The group was incredibly divided between love and hate on Gabriel Garcia Marquez's novel, One Hundred Years of Solitude. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd was well-received by all. The Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells was well-liked and one of the firsts. We like Barbara Kingsolver and have read several of her books. We were divided on Toni Morrison's books. We read Caucasia by Danzy Senna when she was picked for Dane County's author of the year, and took a field trip to listen to her speak in Madison, Wisconsin.

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: We laugh until our sides ache as often as possible!!! We have become close-knit as the years go by and are there for one another at different times. We pontoon on the Waupaca Chain o' Lakes every July and forego reading for fun that month. In December we get together and have potluck, also a no-reading month. We do a present exchange then. We had a Woman's retreat with members at another member's home, where we were led in various journaling and art exercises by members of the group. We just have a great deal of respect and admiration for one another as individual women and celebrate that. We also begin discussion at 7 pm, but there is a social time if you want 1/2 hour before the discussion.

Q: What advice would you give to other reading groups?

A: Have one person organizing, even if you rotate that department as far as lists of books, phone numbers and addresses, disseminating information. Don't just invite your friends...branch out and invite strangers to join, new members. Some of these women came together by flyers I sent out. I never would have had the pleasure to meet some of these fantastic women had I not invited outside my group of family and friends.

Q: Do you have any horror stories, amusing anecdotes, or other special tales to tell?

A: Many of our amusing stories are not fit for human consumption --- we can be fairly immature when we want to be. I think it is important for women to come together and be immature every once in a while. The only horror stories involve some internal conflicts between one or two members a few times over the years. These are quickly brought to surface and are frankly not tolerated too much. I instill a strong belief in the group that, as women, we are faced too often in the world with degradation, challenges and conflict, so there is absolutely no reason that we should be doing it to one another.

Q: Is there anything else unique or noteworthy about your group that you would like to share?

A: We have a cancer survivor, mothers, women who have chosen to be without children. We have women who have lost a child, a sister, a brother, fathers, mothers, and friends. We have women who have made the choice to stay single, divorced, married. We have women who have had careers and women who stay at home. It is such a mix of religions, beliefs and politics. This keeps our discussions so rich and full of flavor.

© Copyright 2001-2012, ReadingGroupGuides.com. All rights reserved.

ReadingGroupGuides.com interviews special reading groups around the world, spotlighting a different group each month. We hope that you enjoy reading about their experiences and might find some new ideas to try with your group. If you belong to a group that you think should be spotlighted, click here to answer our interview questions.

Back to top.