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A few months ago my mom told me about a trilogy of books that she and her friends were reading that they could not stop talking about. She went on and on about the books, talking about the sweeping stories with endless details and the writer who wove intricate plots that twisted and turned. She told me that a number of people were reading them --- and they ALL loved them. They were not new books but rather had been published a while ago.

Today Mary Kay Andrews shares her dual perspective as both an author and a book club member.

Today's guest blogger is Patti Callahan Henry, who offers an author's perspective on book club gatherings --- and how a novel can speak to each reader in a different way.

Last week Pam Cox shared selections read by her nonfiction book club and talked about how she formed a spin-off group for fiction titles. Today she has a tip for making sure your book club stays up to par --- by regularly having members offer their thoughts on what works and what doesn't. Here is how the members of the "Ladies of Pleasure, Reading" book club do it.

Today guest blogger Elizabeth Brundage, author of the novels The Doctor's Wife and Somebody Else's Daughter (which is on sale today), shares some observations about book groups --- the different perspectives members bring to a conversation, what she finds most satisfying as a writer and why it's i

I got a note from a loyal reader a few weeks ago asking this question that really made me laugh."Do you think God forgives reader-mothers who give their kids a quick and easy pasta or sandwich because we MUST FINISH a book and don't want to cook?"For all of you looking for absolution from overlooking dinner for your reading addiction, I hereby do absolve you. I know there are many time that I not only have rushed dinner, but also have slept through the morning alarm after staying up way way too late at night reading a book.

If your book club has too many great page-turners to read, Pam Cox has an idea. When her nonfiction book club in Harrisonburg, Virginia, wanted to start reading fiction, she solved the issue by creating a spin-off book club. Several ambitious members even belong to both. Here Pam shares some of their nonfiction reading selections.

If there are one or two members of your reading group who tend to dominate discussions, contributor Andrew McCullough has a solution...

From time to time I am going to use this space to write about books I have read that I think would make for great discussions. Some of them may not be published yet since I read advance copies of many titles; but because my best thoughts often come as soon as I close a book, I will write as I finish them and if they are not published yet I will include a notation of when the book will be in stores. Thus keep your "Books to Be Read" list handy so you can make notes.

Novelist Chris Bohjalian reminisces about how roles were reversed when he spoke with a book club recently about his new novel, Skeletons at the Feast, which was published in May. Chris is the author of 11 novels, including such book group favorites as Midwives and The Double Bind.