Katherine T. Sinicropi and her unnamed book club from Buffalo, NY have been meeting every six weeks for the last eight years and jokingly believe that their lack of moniker has contributed to their longevity. In this interview, Katherine describes how she and fellow members choose their books, stressing the importance of full group participation in this process. She also recommends talking about titles that not everyone will enjoy in order to promote lively and interesting discussions. 

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

A: We have neither a name nor a theme. At this point, there are some among our group who believe our namelessness has sustained us! We have been meeting for almost eight years; we first met in April 1998.

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

A: All our members are women, ranging in age from late 30s to early 70s.

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

A: We meet every six weeks at a member's home.

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

A: Yes, we do eat at our meetings. We leave the food selection to the hostess.

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

A: We do have one person who facilitates the discussion, i.e., keeps it moving. We have used reading group guides to generate discussion, although generally this group needs no prodding!

Q: What kind of books do you read?

A: In the past eight years, we have read mostly fiction, with some nonfiction.

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: Books are selected from the suggestions of the group and we try to choose books for two meetings at a time.

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

A: The best discussions are usually those in which there is no consensus on the book, such as The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. Half of the group loved the book, half felt quite the contrary...that adds up to lively, interesting discourse every time!

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: Our members are fun, really.

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

A: Encourage ALL members to contribute to the book selection process. That way, everyone benefits from the experience by getting the opportunity to read something they might not have otherwise selected. The surprising great read is the second best reward from a book group. The first? The people of the group!

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

A: We are a fun and interesting group, but I must say other than some special celebrations, we have no "special tales to tell."

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

A: We do have two published authors in our midst, which brings an interesting dimension to our discussions.

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