Amy Baird of Middletown, Maryland talks about her book club, the North Pointe Readers. She emphasizes the importance of having fun at meetings and allowing members to incorporate a variety of topics in their discussions. Read on to learn more about this group.

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

A: We are the North Pointe Readers and have been together 2 years. We are a neighborhood book club.

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

A: We are a group of 10 consistent members with a few more who sometimes join the group. All the women are between 30-50 years old. Most are in their 30s.

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

A: Once a month, we alternate meeting in our homes.

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

A: We eat finger food; the host prepares the food.

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

A: Usually whoever picks the book leads the discussion. Yes, we use reading group guides.

Q: What kind of books do you read?

A: All kinds … Fiction, nonfiction, classics, mystery...

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: We try to choose 2-3 months in advance, especially during the summer.

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

A: Cane River was great. Also, The Hot Zone, The Da Vinci Code, Gods and Generals and Of Mice and Men. Harry Potter was a fun book club read. Most of our book discussions are great!

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: Our group always has a great time. I sometimes will do a game that relates to the book, which keeps things fun too!

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

A: It must be fun or people will not enjoy the night out!

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

A: After a couple of serious books we will do a fun one (like Harry Potter) and it really breaks things up, even if the discussion isn't too analytical. We try to stay off the subject of religion (that can get ugly), but all other topics are fair game --- even politics and sex!

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

A: We are a fun, diverse group of women. We can talk about anything and everything. I have done book clubs before, but this is the best group!

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