In this interview, Darlene Reilly --- founder of “The Page Turners” in Dodge, ND --- talks about the good times she enjoys with members of her group and their focus on books that address current issues relevant to females. Reading such works, she says, allows them to share experiences with women around the world. She also tells a humorous anecdote involving books and candy at their local Fourth of July parade.

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

A: Our name is “The Page Turners.” We have been in existence for about 16 months.

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

A: We have between 5-8 members. All our members are women. The median age of our members is about 60 years of age. We range from 53 to 72 years of age.

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

A: We meet once a month. We rotate member's homes, so each of us gets to host the meeting about two times a year.

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

A: Of course. When women get together we need to eat. We have a variety of goodies: sandwiches, cheese, crackers, desserts, and of course, wine. The person who hosts the meeting provides the goodies for that meeting. We have also tried new recipes for snacks, and this is fun.

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

A: Darlene Reilly, the person who began this group. Yes, we use reading group guides. If we can't find a guide, each of us needs to bring a question to discuss at the meeting.

Q: What kind of books do you read? 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 have read different genres, including biography, historical fiction and fiction. Darlene chooses our books after discussion of several books. We try to address current issues with women. One new book for the next few months is discussed.

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

A: The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, Petey by Ben Mikaelsen and After Anne by Roxanne Henke were some of the favorite books we have read.

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: So far no one has quit. Everyone seems to look forward to the night out. It is a way to stay connected with the world through companionship and discussion.

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

A: Just begin, and the books will carry the group forward.

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

A: We decided to enter a float in our annual 4th of July parade. We each made big glasses and decorated them and carried books in the parade.

We decided to throw candy during the parade and tried to hold a book to help promote literacy. We finally gave up juggling the book and candy and just stuck with throwing candy. We all had a great time and pictures to document our attempt.

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

A: We are from very rural North Dakota, and this is one way for us to share experiences with women around the world. It has definitely made us more aware of how lucky we are to live in the US.

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ReadingGroupGuides.com interviews special reading groups around the world, spotlighting a different group each month. We hope that you enjoy reading about their experiences and might find some new ideas to try with your group. If you belong to a group that you think should be spotlighted, click here to answer our interview questions.

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