Carolyn Branch belongs to "The First Wednesday Book Group" of Fulton, MO. They are sponsored by their local library and hold open meetings to anyone interested in participating. In this interview, Carolyn describes how this open invitation enhances their experience and shares details about how to accommodate the very diverse and always-fluctuating attendants. She also stresses the importance of keeping their discussions loose and casual, shares some of the books they've enjoyed and humorously explains how they've evolved from a "brown bag" group to one that holds potluck meetings at lunchtime.

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

A: We're called "The First Wednesday Book Group" --- we chose that name because we wanted to make it easy for everyone to remember when the meetings are. We've been together for at least six years. We can't agree on what the exact date was.

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

A: Our group is open to everyone and attendance varies. We average about a dozen, but sometimes it is as few as 7 or as many as 16. Only three of us were at the first meeting. We have had two men who each attended one meeting, but usually our group consists of all women. The youngest is about 21 and the oldest about 75. The majority are working women between the ages of 35 and 55 who come during a lunch hour from work.

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

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

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

A: Yes! We eat! Everyone brings food. The idea at the beginning was to be a "brown bag" group, in which each of us brought our own lunch. But it seems that we all had "plate envy" and wanted our neighbors' food, so we started sharing/trading right away. It quickly evolved into "bring a dish to share." It's not one of those meetings where everyone tries to outdo each other with their cooking, though. Sometimes, you might bring a cake or a casserole you made at home. Other times you might stop and pick up a pizza, or grab a box of crackers and a container of cream cheese. It doesn't matter what you bring, or even if you forget to bring something. There's always plenty for everyone.

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

A: If we can find a guide, we try to hand out copies along with the books. We usually use the guides from your site. The librarian started the group, so she usually gets the discussion going, but it is very much a give and take with everyone participating.

Q: What kind of books do you read?

A: We read both fiction and nonfiction. We don't stick with any specific theme.

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: Everyone tosses out titles they're interested in, which get written down, and about twice a year we go through the list and choose several together. Each January, we try to get that year's list tentatively decided --- but then we often change our minds and make substitutions as we go along.

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

A: One of our best discussions was sparked by Life of Pi by Yann Martel. It still comes up in the discussions once in a while, even though we read it more than two years ago. Strange Fits of Passion by Anita Shreve evoked some very passionate discussion. We also found a lot to discuss about the nonfiction books River Town by Peter Hessler, Leap of Faith by Queen Noor and Tortilla Curtain by T.C. Boyle. Those three made us look at current world news events in a new way.

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: We try to mix in a few lighthearted and fun books with the more serious discussions. For instance, we read Skipping Christmas by John Grisham and One for the Money by Janet Evanovich. But having fun has never been a problem. We have such a good time that we have to make sure the door to the meeting room is closed so we don't entertain the whole library with our laughing and storytelling.

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

A: Keep it loose and casual. Don't be tied down with hard and fast rules about what you can read or how the discussion must proceed.

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

A: When we talked about Rocket Boys by Homer Hickam, we had two different people who had each moved to our area from West Virginia. They came because the setting of the book was near their hometown. We had a very interesting discussion and learned a lot more than we would have otherwise. It was a unique and very satisfying way to welcome and get acquainted with new members of the community.

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

A: We have a website for members: http://callaway.county.missouri.org/bookgroup

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