Married Ladies Book Club
This interview is with Becky McAndrews of the Married Ladies Book Club from Houston Texas. Read on to see more about this group.
Q: Does your group have a name and/or a theme? How long has your group been in existence?
A: We're called the Married Ladies Book Club (thankfully, we have not had to decide what would happen if one of us becomes "unmarried"). We have been around for 2 1/2 years.
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, all of whom are women. We range from 34 to 45 and we all have children.
Q: How often do you meet? Where do you meet?
A: We meet once a month (skipping July and December) in each other's homes.
Q: Do you eat at your meetings? Who brings the food?
A: Of course we eat! That is one of the main things for us! We have breakfast or lunch. The hostess prepares the whole meal but it can be as simple as eggs and bacon or sandwiches.
Q: Who leads the discussion? Do you use reading group guides?
A: No one in particular leads the group. We just discuss the books. We sometimes use reading group guides.
Q: What kind of books do you read?
A: Our favorites are Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts (our first book), The Testament by John Grisham, Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells (we also went and saw the movie as a group), The Red Tent by Anita Diamant, and Jewels of the Sun by Nora Roberts.
Q: How do you choose your books?
A: The hostess picks the next month's reading Do you choose one new book at each meeting, or do you choose the books for a number of meetings ahead of time? New book each month
Q: What were some of the best discussions or favorite books the group read?
A: Best discussions were on Kalki by Gore Vidal, Ya-Ya Sisterhood, The Red Tent, The Testament and Midwives by Chris Bohjalian.
Q: How do you keep things fun?
A: Sharing thoughts and interacting regularly through email keeps us laughing and wanting more. We try to keep things simple and not too serious. We have no literacy pressure! We do not allow any gossiping. We try to have an annual weekend get away for shopping and relaxation together.
Q: What advice would you give to other reading groups?
A: Keep it light. Don't get so serious that members are scared to come if they haven't read the book. Pick members that don't eat, sleep, work or live on top of each other. Be open about books you read. Don't be offended if someone doesn't like the book you picked. Attendance at the meetings is key, so rather than producing a year-long meeting schedule, we plan our meeting dates from month-to-month so as to avoid any conflicts with schedules. Our attendance continues to be impressive because we all know how hard we try to pick a date that "works" for everyone involved.
Q: Do you have any horror stories, amusing anecdotes, or other special tales to tell?
A: No horror stories, we have only lost one member just after we started our group --- she moved away. We chose not to replace her we felt 10 was a managable number. We have many funny moments but they are too numerous to recount!
Q: Is there anything else unique or noteworthy about your group that you would like to share?
A: While we did not all know each other before Book Club, we have all become dear friends and a special support group for one another. Our semi-annual weekend outings helps to further bond our group together.
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