The Book Club of Bloomfield, New Jersey
"The Book Club" of Bloomfield, New Jersey talk about their reading group. Group members read all different genres, and the friendships they've maintained as a result of their meetings are sure to last for many years to come.
Q: Does your group have a name and/or a theme? How long has your group been in existence?
A: Our group doesn't have a name, it's just The Book Club! We like to read a variety of books, including literary fiction, biographies, essays, short stories, poetry, self-help --- basically almost anything.
Q: How many members do you have? How many men, how many women? What age are most of your members?
A: We have four core members, all females in our mid-20s and good friends from college. We've had a handful of members over the years, but they eventually lost interest. We're always on the lookout for new people. We would be open to male members too, although the level of openness that we have as close female friends might be slightly compromised with guys. But it would be interesting though!
Q: How often do you meet? Where do you meet?
A: We ideally aim to meet once a month, but in reality we meet once every 2-3 months. We alternate locations, usually at one of our apartments or at a restaurant.
Q: Do you eat at your meetings? What do you eat? Who brings the food?
A: We usually do eat, but it's rarely planned. We'll just go to a restaurant or order pizza or Chinese food.
Q: Who leads the discussion? Do you use reading group guides?
A: We don't have a leader. Everyone discusses the book in a collaborative manner. Usually at least one person is the most passionate about the book and may informally take on the role of the "leader." But we've never even discussed having a leader. This spontaneous democratic approach usually works for us. We used a reading group guide for the first time recently and it served as a good structure for us.
Q: What kind of books do you read?
A: We'll read just about anything and everything. Some examples are Sex and the City, On the Road, Angela's Ashes, K is for Killer, Eat the Rich, a Natalie Wood biography, and much more.
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: When our book club started four years ago, we had no rules. But sometimes it seemed that a few people were picking books more often than other people, or that people would object to certain titles. So we decided to have a simple "schedule" or order to make it objective and fair. Although we encourage a wide variety of genres, we try to make it overtly clear that no one is ever forced to read something she really doesn't want to!
Q: What were some of the best discussions or favorite books the group read?
A: One of our most interesting discussions was on When Chickenheads Come Home to Roost. It's a modern feminist discussion about issues that any woman can relate to. Some of our other favorites include A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and a biography about Natalie Wood.
Q: How do you keep things fun?
A: We naturally have fun when we get together because we're such good friends. Although we all love books, this group also serves as a way to regularly keep in touch when our lives get busy.
Q: What advice would you give to other reading groups?
A: Try to set a few rules just to keep things objective. Basically just try to be honest with each other and have fun.
Q: Do you have any horror stories, amusing anecdotes, or other special tales to tell?
A: We once had a discussion in a car on a road trip and once on a plane ride to Europe. Although we usually meet in person, we've had a few online discussions while one of our members relocated across the country. Those online chats were among our most interesting discussions, probably because we usually end up catching up with each others' lives a lot when we talk in person.
Q: Is there anything else unique or noteworthy about your group that you would like to share?
A: Although we all have different lives and love different types of books, our book club might be one of the biggest threads that have allowed us to remain good friends. We didn't lose touch after college ended, like many people do.
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