Mary-Lynne Bernald is a member of “The Scripteasers” in Saratoga, CA, a book club that has existed since the 1980s. In this interview, Mary-Lynne discusses the group’s varied reading list as well as its prerequisites for choosing titles. She also talks about the club’s annual “girls’ getaway” and shares anecdotes about their more memorable discussions.

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

A: We have been in existence since the 1980s in one form or another. The group started as a Junior League Sustainer group and has morphed into a non-league-related group of dear friends. About 10 years ago we voted on naming ourselves “The Scripteasers,” a suggestion from one of our most literate and literary members who, unfortunately, has moved out of the area.

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

A: We have 14 members, all women, between the ages of 58 and 72.

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

A: We meet once a month from September thru June. At the September meeting we meet at a member's beach house for a "girls' getaway" and choose our books for the year at that time. Occasionally, we will leave open one or two book selections in case not all the members were able to attend or if the book discussion seems to require a revisit (sometimes caused by the amount of adult beverages consumed that evening).

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

A: Of course! The hostess provides morning snacks (coffee, juice, fruit, muffins, etc.) for most meetings. Our December and June meetings are special events. In December we meet at a restaurant rather than a home --- the seasonal rush has caused a change in this tradition. And in June we have a potluck luncheon at a member's home. Usually over the summer we also try to organize a party that includes our husbands. While we tried getting everyone to read a book to discuss at this event, we have always been having too much fun to ever get to the discussion part.

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

A: The member(s) who recommended the book lead(s) the discussion. She or another member will sometimes bring a reading group guide. It depends on the book selection. Because we are such a talkative group, we try to limit ourselves to a certain amount of time allotted each of us as we move the discussion around the room in a circular fashion. Some attempt is made at enforcing this procedure, but it never inhibits a rousing discussion with a lot of give and take!

Q: What kind of books do you read?

A: We try to pick a diverse group of books each year: one classic title, a couple of fiction and nonfiction titles, some historical fiction titles, self-help and biography. We also occasionally read short stories or mysteries but never poetry. We try to balance out authors and topics. For example, some years we have multiple possible selections from authors from Asia or South America or too many self-help or touchy feely books. We will try to limit ourselves to what we deem the best one of all the options. Anne Tyler and Jhumpa Lahiri are two of our favorite authors, but even they lose out some years.

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: See my answers to the third and sixth question above. For a book to be chosen, one of our members must have read it and be able to recommend it. If too many have read it, we may pass in favor of a book less well known, or choose it because it is so discussable. "Discussability" is a major prerequisite.

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

A: All our discussions are the best! Many times some of us will come to a meeting really disliking the book we have read and somehow that turns out to be one of the best discussions we have ever had. Having up to 14 different takes on a book always brings excitement to the table.

Q: How do you keep things fun?

A: Our members are fun-loving, supportive, intelligent women. Having the beach getaway has offered us an opportunity to really bond. Sleepovers at our age are a hoot. We now also attempt to go out to lunch after our other monthly meetings --- nothing formal, just whoever can go and to some place low key and nearby.

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

A: Give everyone a chance to pick a book and occasionally reach outside your comfort zone in picking books. Give everyone a chance to talk, don't let anyone "hog" a discussion, be sensitive to others' beliefs, support each other, and remember this is a place to grow and have fun.

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

A: Inviting a self-absorbed, self-published author to one of our meetings just because she was local and available was our worst horror story. Other than that all I have to say is: "What happens at the beach house stays at the beach house!"

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

A: I believe our group is amazingly special for so many reasons, but what we each bring from our individual lives to the group and to our discussions is noteworthy. We have a psychologist, an English lit major, a history teacher who knows vast amounts of info about religion, two cynics (absolutely essential), a poli-sci major, a well-known comedian's sister, the mother of a Bravo channel producer, a retired Hospice director, an art specialist, a books on tape listener, a mystery aficionado, an interior designer, and a very special community activist who is ADHD and really keeps us hopping.