Susan Williams of Nashville, TN is a member of the Ebony Pages Book Club. In this interview, she explains that their group was formed to share their love of books, as well as to strengthen the bond between African American women. She conveys the close friendship among her fellow members and offers advice on what to do when things get stressful.

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

A: Our book club is called Ebony Pages Book Club (EPBC), and we started in January 2003.

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

A: We have 10 members with a maximum of 12. Our group is made up of all women. Most of our members are in their mid-30s with a couple younger than that.

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

A: We meet once a month except for July and December. Where we meet is generally up to the hostess for that month. It could be in her home, at a restaurant, or even at the library.

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

A: We do eat at our meetings --- the food and drink are the choice of the hostess for that month.

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

A: The discussion is generally led by the hostess. We use reading guides and often contact the author and ask for discussion questions.

Q: What kind of books do you read?

A: We read African American Authors in all genres.

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: At the beginning of each year, all of the members suggest books they would like to read, and then we vote on 10 to be read during the year.

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

A: Some of the group's favorite books are Coldest Winter Ever by Sistah Souljah, Addicted by Zane, and Pretenses by Keith Lee Johnson.

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: We hang out together and also do other activities outside of the book club.

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

A: It takes time to get everything organized and running smoothly. Whenever it gets stressful, just always remember the reason why you started the group. We started because of our love of reading and fellowship among African American women.

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

A: Not really --- every meeting is a special tale at Ebony Pages Book Club.

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

A: The women in our group come from diverse backgrounds and belong to various professional careers. We also have diverse outside interests. Some of our members are single, while others are married; some have children and some do not; but we grow from each other's experiences. Since 2003, we have added new faces and lost founding members, but the book club continues on.

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