Erika Fallon of Rochester, New York talks to us about her group "Girls Night Out." The fact that its twelve members are between the ages of 16 and 60 is remarkable, but the relationship shared by six of them is what makes this group so unique. Read on to learn more.

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

A: The name of our group is "Girls Night Out" and in January we will have been in existence for a year.

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, who range in age from 16 to 60.

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

A: We meet once a month, and one member hosts the meeting at her house.

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

A: We do eat at our meetings as well as drink wine. It is up to the person hosting the meeting to supply food and drink. For the past several meetings, the host has incorporated themes from the book into food choices --- a neat way to try new things!!

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

A: Whoever hosts the meeting leads the discussion and most women use the guides that you supply on your website (THANK YOU)!!!

Q: What kind of books do you read?

A: Fiction, nonfiction, bestsellers.

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: We just started to come up with a four-month schedule. I put it out about a month ahead of time. I ask who wants to host at one of the next four meetings and they pick the book. We found this is the best way since people have different tastes. It's a nice way to expose people to different types of literature.

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

A: Definitely The Lovely Bones, Kindred, and The Hours.

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: We have the most vivacious group of women and there is nothing that isn't fun. It always helps when life experiences are tied in.

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

A: Keep it light, stay on track, and try to engage people who are too quiet!!

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

A: Not really.

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

A: Three sets of mothers and daughters!


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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.