Dianne Kochenburg of San Jose, CA discusses her reading group, Rapunzels. For over two decades, these women have gathered to support one another on special occasions --- and still find time to talk about a wide variety of books. Read on to discover what has made this close-knit group stand the test of time.

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

A: Our group's name is Rapunzels and we've been reading together for over 20 years now.

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

A: At present we have 12 members, all women. Our age ranges from 80 (our two senior members) to several women in their late 50s. Eventually we'll have to bring in some "younger" members.

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

A: We meet once every month on the first Monday, except August. The majority of our meetings are held in our living rooms, but occasionally we "go out" for a meal or to the library.

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

A: The hostess provides the food. Since we meet in the afternoons (from 2 to 4:30 or 5) we usually have coffee or tea, cookies or cake, fruit and nuts (something like that). At the end of the meeting we might stick around for a glass of wine.

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

A: For the first 12 years or so we had a leader, but lately we have decided to go "leaderless." The hostess is the default leader for each meeting. She starts the discussion and keeps order. We do not use reading group guides but are working on one.

Q: What kind of books do you read?

A: We read eclectically: serious fiction, biographies, travel essays mainly. We have read so many books over the years that no matter what we are reading, we can make comparisons to previous books.

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: Every September we choose 10 books for the upcoming reading season. Everybody brings several choices and we vote on the 10 "winners" from that list. This year, for the first time, we made the rule that somebody in the group had to have read the book before it could be placed on the list. We are hoping to eliminate some of the sort of dreadful mistakes we have made in the past.

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

A: Last July we read Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God and enjoyed the discussion immensely. There had been some grumbling during the month by several group members because the vernacular was a little difficult, but as we got into it and began to appreciate the writing, it became one of our memorable "reads." Over the years we occasionally invite a scholar to help us. An English teacher helped us with James Joyce's Ulysses. We were quite relieved to learn that it's nearly impossible to understand this novel without a guide. When we read Proust, we ate Madeleine and laughed.

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: We keep things fun by having a wonderful Christmas party every year --- in a restaurant without our husbands. We have known each other for so long that we would be bereft without each other. We try to keep our discussions focused on books rather than our personal lives; we appreciate our differences and never have cross words.

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

A: Advice: don't take yourself too seriously. The fun is in getting together. You don't have to be right about everything. It's not a contest to be the smartest or most well-read.

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

A: Too many to tell. Sometimes some of us take trips together, sometimes we share milestone birthdays, and we have attended funerals together.

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

A: Probably the most noteworthy thing about our group is that we have lasted so long, and it looks like we'll continue. Over the years we have had to bring in new members but they have assimilated nicely. Our group is strong and truly an important part of our lives.

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