June 2006

The Tecumseh Book Club of Tecumseh, Ontario consists of 13 women and one occasional "ghost" male member who contributes to the monthly discussions by having his wife share his opinions with the rest of the group in his absence. Their spokesperson, Cindy Melanson, shares with ReadingGroupGuides.com the group's passion for reading about the extraordinary, their love of baked goods, and even some of the members' unusual reading habits.

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

A: Our book club name is The Tecumseh Book Club, simply because that is the name of the town where we meet. We have been together for 3 years.

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

A: There are presently 13 members, although it fluctuates from month to month. Most of our members are "forty-somethings." We are all women, although a few times we have had a "ghost" male member who gave his views of the book we were reading to his wife and she gave his opinion at the meeting (he didn't want to sit with ALL women).

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

A: We meet the first Monday of every month from September to June (10 months/year) at a local grocery store's community room. That way there is no muss, no fuss for anyone to be hostess.

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

A: Do we eat? Does rain fall from the sky? Truthfully, not one of us would show up if there wasn't a "goodie" to look forward to. We put all the members' names into a hat, and pick one for each month. They become the "baker" for that month and will bring a dessert.

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

A: We have one lady who usually starts the meeting. We always use reading group guides if there is one available. They're great!

Q: What kind of books do you read?

A: We read just about any kind of book, from classics to science fiction.

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 usually start gathering ideas in May where each member submits a book idea. In June, we meet at a restaurant for dinner and fine-tune our list of 10 books for the next season (as well as discussing our June pick). 

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

A: We have many favourites! Our very first book, Rush Home Road (Lori Lansens), is still one of our all-time favourites. We've also enjoyed The Speed of Dark (Elizabeth Moon), A Blade of Grass (Lewis DeSoto), The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold), Tempting Faith DiNapoli (Lisa Gabriele), Good Grief (Lolly Winston), The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd), and The Time Traveler's Wife (Audrey Niffenegger), just to name a few.

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: We don't limit ourselves to just talking about the book. More often than not, one of the guide questions will lead us into a discussion about current events or happenings in our area. Many of the books we read inspire us and often relate to our own lives.

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

A: Keep it fair. Let everyone express his or her opinion and have a turn to pick a book. There are many tastes and people don't like to always read the same kinds of books. (Also very important: don't expect the "baker" to bring homemade goodies --- store-bought works too!)

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

A: We've had a member show up at the meeting, feeling very good that she was able to finish that month's book with her busy schedule...only to find that she'd read the wrong book.

We have another member who likes to read the endings first. That way, she says, you can see what's coming...

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

A: We are just ordinary women finding enjoyment in reading about extraordinary circumstances in the paragraphs of a good book. We share a love of reading (of course) and can always count on having a good laugh at least once a month!