In this interview, Susan Nadeau talks about her book club, “The Bibliomaniacs,” of Northern Colorado. Susan describes how each member plays the role of discussion leader by asking questions and sharing ideas about the books they read. They often have themed discussions, such as the time when they read My Life in France by Julia Child and prepared food with Child’s recipes. She also explains how group members plan social activities outside of their meetings to further the friendships among them.

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

A: We are the Bibliomaniacs. We have been together for almost eight years.

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

A: Currently we have 11 members, all women. We range in ages from 35-55 and come from a variety of backgrounds, such as business, higher education, healthcare and manufacturing.

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

A: We meet every month, usually at a member’s home for dinner and our book discussion. We have also met at restaurants when it is more convenient as our members come from several small towns in Northern Colorado.

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

A: Of course! The hostess usually prepares a meal related to the current book and all members chip in $5 to help cover expenses.

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

A: We really don't have a leader to guide us in discussions. One of us just throws out a question and it builds from there.

Q: What kind of books do you read?

A: We have read many different genres of books, more fiction and nonfiction bestsellers, though.

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: Our books are chosen by a variety of methods --- members will suggest books they have heard about or have read. Most recently we made a list of several book suggestions from members, and the group voted on the top three. If we don't have a book picked out for the following month, we make sure to pick one before we leave the meeting.

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

A: This past spring we read My Life in France by Julia Child. Not only did we have a great discussion, we also had a great meal. Each member brought a dish prepared from one of Julia's recipes, and we ended up having a delicious 7-course meal. Other books that we have enjoyed are The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint, A Prayer for Owen Meany, The Omnivore's Dilemma, Bel Canto, Girl with a Pearl Earring, Pope Joan and The Secret Life of Bees.

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: Not only do we read, but we also plan social activities when we aren't reading.  We've painted pottery, gone to plays, hiked together, and most recently went on a 4-day cycling trip in our own state of Colorado. We had so much fun, we've already planned next summer's trip!

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

A: It's good to be organized and establish a few rules for your group. We stick to our monthly meeting schedule and try not to change the meeting dates or times. We also don't get too fancy with the book choices and respect members’ points of view on the books we've read. Socializing outside of our regular meetings has been a great way for us to learn more about each other and become closer friends.

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

A: Every year we have a Miss America Pageant Party around the time that the real pageant is on television. We all dress up in our gowns (usually found at thrift shops), wear tiaras, serve food like spare ribs, lady fingers and anatomically correct cupcakes, and watch a taping of the pageant. This past year we had the party up in the mountains and had to snowshoe or ski into a cabin. One of our members wore her gown, tiara and skis as she made her way to the cabin. As mentioned above, we also just went on our first cycling trip this summer and plan to make it an annual event.

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

A: For the past several years we have opted out of reading and discussing a book for our December meeting. Instead, we choose a charity, such as Santa Cops or our local safe house for women, and purchase items for families to give to one another for the holidays.

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