Chris Caccamo, a reference department staff member at the Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library in Stow, Ohio, talks about her book club, The Morning Book Group. Members enjoy pondering which celebrities they would like to see featured in possible film adaptations of the books under discussion. Read on to learn more about this diverse group of women.

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

A: We are the Morning Book Group from the Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library. We will soon be starting our sixth year.

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

A: The number ranges from 20 to 30, depending on what is being discussed. There are always at least 20 in attendance. All members are women and we have all the decades covered --- from 20s through 80s!

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

A: We meet the second Friday of each month at the library, 10 a.m., 11 months of the year (we do not meet in September).

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

A: Yes, we eat and look forward to a really good cup of coffee as well. Our Friends of the Library group provides the refreshments, and sometimes members bring in goodies as well. Sometimes I bring in something special at the holidays. Flavored coffees and teas are a big favorite!

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

A: My name is Chris Caccamo, and I lead the group. I am a reference department staff member at the library. Sometimes I use guides for question ideas, but mostly my group members have many good thoughts and we find we do not need them.

Q: What kind of books do you read?

A: We read all kind of books: fiction, nonfiction, classics, biographies, mysteries --- there are no restrictions. We do tend to read a lot of stories about women overcoming obstacles in their lives, but we are not bound by any particular 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: At first, I picked the books to read for the season (we have two seasons, October through May and June through August) Now, the group chooses the schedule. During the April meeting and the August meeting we set the schedule. Each person brings two suggestions and we talk about them and pick what we will read. It is very democratic and it works very well.

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

A: We have read many good books in the last five years and a few stinkers. (Sometimes the best discussions happen for the books no one likes!) Best books are A Tree Grows in Brookyln by Betty Smith, The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester, Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, An Hour Before Daylight by Jimmy Carter, Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire, Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind by Ann B. Ross, Girl with the Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier, The Queen and I by Sue Townsend, And Never Let Her Go by Ann Rule, The Trials of Mrs. Lincoln by Samuel Schreiner, Travels with Charley and To a God Unknown by John Steinbeck and The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd. The best discussion we ever had was for Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov. It brought forth some very strong emotions.

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: One thing we always do is to pretend the book is going to be made into a movie soon and we cast the major roles. (If it already is a movie and we don't like who starred in it, we make our own version!) The fun part is that we can use any movie star from any generation and he or she can be any age we want them to be. We get some pretty funny combinations. Especially funny is one woman who puts Robert Mitchum in every single one of our productions!!

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

A: Avoid a lot of structure. People don't want to feel they are returning to school. Make everyone feel non-threatened and that their opinions matter, and you will never have to worry about a silent group. Keep it light! Laugh a lot!!

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

A: No anecdotes really. But we all share a lot about our personal lives and we have become very close. Many people have developed friendships that now go beyond a once-a-month meeting at the library.

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

A: This group is extremely special and I am honored just to be a part of it. There are many different people from different backgrounds and we always find something important to share.

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