The Lakemont Book Club of Bridgeville, PA consists of eleven members whose ages span four decades of "knowledge, opinion and experiences." Having recently celebrated their third anniversary, spokesperson Jean Hackett shares the little details of what makes their dynamic so successful, stressing the importance of keeping an open mind, having an eclectic group of members, and conducting each meeting with very few rules. She also shares experiences of chatting with authors and reveals why they no longer take reading suggestions from their husbands.

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

A: Our name is the Lakemont Book Club since the majority of the members live in the Lakemont area. We formed our club in September of 2003, so this past September began our third year.

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

A: We have eleven women in the club ranging in age from late forties to early seventies. So we cover four decades of knowledge, opinion and experiences.

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

A: We meet the first Thursday of each month from 1 to 3 pm. The meetings are held in the Lakemont Club House.

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

A: Yes, we eat, but it's usually something light since this is early afternoon. The member who has selected the book acts as hostess and supplies the food. Lately, we have become so creative and have matched the food to the theme of the book. We had bon bons when we discussed Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons, bone-shaped cookies for The Amazing Gracie, almond cake for The Kite Runner, tea and scones for The Reading Group. Well, you get the picture. It's fun to see what the hostess will come up with.

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

A: The hostess --- the one who chose the book --- leads the discussion. If a guide is available, we do usually use it. It helps to get the discussion going.

Q: What kind of books do you read?

A: So far, we have read fiction and mystery, but we are open to anything. We enjoy variety and reading books that you may have not chosen to read on your own.

Q: How do you choose 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: We take turns choosing books. It's very casual though, and if someone says they heard about a new book or makes a suggestion, we decide then and there if it would be a good read for the group. We usually have books planned for about two months in advance.

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

A: Sometimes the books that we liked the least have given us the best discussions. One member's husband kept suggesting Brave New World, so we read it. Not many of us enjoyed it, but it did lend itself to a lively discussion. We don't take suggestions from husbands anymore. The Kite Runner was a favorite and also provided a thought-provoking discussion.

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: It's a nice casual mix of members who sometimes don't see one another except at the meetings. So we catch up on family, vacations, work, etc. Our common bond is our love of books and reading.

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

A: Keep it fun and don't have too many rules.  

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

A: No, thankfully we don't have any horror stories yet! We did take our first "field trip" this week and had a great time. We went to the Pittsburgh Arts and Lecture series to hear Alexander McCall Smith. We had read his No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency and took our copies to be signed. What a fun evening that included dinner, a little wine, and a very charming author in a kilt who had us in stitches with his humor.

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

A: We have been very fortunate to have had three author phone chats this past year. Several of us subscribe to the ReadingGroupGuides.com newsletter and have taken advantage of contests and made author chat requests. We have "chatted" with Elizabeth Noble, Roxanna Robinson, and Lorna Landvik. It is wonderful to be able to ask the author about her writing. They enjoy the firsthand feedback, too. We are expecting a chat with Adriana Trigiani early next year. These chats add so much perspective to the authors' writing. We hope to continue chatting away.

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