Debi Honnol is a member of “The Magnolia Tree Book Club” in Batesville, MS. In this interview, Debi talks about the importance of strong organization to maintain scheduling and reading selections, and points out her group’s efforts to take field trips together despite their busy schedules. As a teacher, Debi also explains how her book club’s reading choices influence the faculty and student body of the local high school.

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

A: Our group is called “The Magnolia Tree Book Club” because we are from Mississippi! We have been together for exactly one year.

Q: How many members do you have? How many men/women? What ages are most of your members?

A: We have about 10 members who come regularly. There's only one brave man who comes, but he hangs in there with us. We have an open group, and anyone is invited as long as he/she likes books. Our ages range from 28 to 60. What's age but a state of mind?

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

A: We meet once a month at our public library.

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

A: Yes! Food is very important to us. We try to eat thematically according to the book we are discussing. For example, when we discussed The Secret Life of Bees, we brought appetizers made with honey. Whoever wants to bring food may do so. I usually send out an email before the meeting as a reminder.

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

A: As facilitator, I usually start us off and try to keep us on track. We all enjoy books, and we enjoy talking, so there's no lack of discussion. When I can find guides for us, I send them out via email, and we use them at our meetings. Otherwise, we take turns asking questions.

Q: What kind of books do you read?

A: Generally we like mysteries. We also like fiction in general. If someone feels strongly that we should read a book, we will. We don't particularly like to read just popular stuff, either. We make it a point to read Mississippi authors when we can.

Q: How do you choose your books?

A: Last year, I would read books suggested by members and then recommend them to the group. This year, each member is supposed to find a book for us to read. I don't know how it will work out, but most of us like to read just about anything. We try to select our books up to two months ahead, so everyone will have plenty of time to read it. If a favorite author comes to our favorite bookstore, we try to choose a book by that author so everyone will have a chance to know him/her.

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

A: Our best discussions were for The Kite Runner, The Secret Life of Bees, Them Bones and Nineteen Minutes. All of us enjoyed our Mississippi authors: Greg Iles (Dead Sleep) and Carolyn Haines (Them Bones).

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: We don't have to try! We like each other, and we enjoy being around each other. Sometimes we take field trips to book signings or restaurants, but most of us work full-time jobs, and it's hard to find the time for all the extras.

Q: What advice do you have to give to other reading groups?

A: There really needs to be one person in the group who is responsible for keeping up with dates, books, reminders and organization in general.

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

A: Last month's meeting was held in a new restaurant. Not a good idea! It was so crowded that it took an hour for us to get water! We had a hard time hearing each other above the din of voices. We've decided that the library is much more to our tastes.

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

A: We keep a copy of our monthly books in the library, and we send it out on the high school's email to teachers. In my classroom one day, I noticed a student (high school) with a copy of one of our books. I commented on it, and the student replied that she had seen it on our book list and it looked interesting. Since then, I have noticed several students reading books from our list. Hey, it's better than TV!

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