Why Is Our Book Club So Awesome?

Every month it is reinforced to me how amazing our book club is! I think the main reason it works is the diversity we all bring to the table. I sent out a little questionnaire to the group today. I knew the answers would not only be fun but also show our differences.
Our ages range from 24 to 50's. We are all women. Some are single, divorced, newly engaged, married for a few years, married for many years. We have realists, dreamers, romantics. If you believe in horoscope signs we have: two Geminis, two Taurus, a Scorpio, Aries, Capricorn, Leo, and an Aquarius. Even as I write this it does not surprise me but I feel surprised.
Here is a question that I love, it can be a corporate interview question. If you were a tree what kind of tree would you be? Nine people, 7 different trees. I love that. Here is some of the answers: Weeping Willow, Japanese Maple, Catalpa, Magnolia, and Palm Tree. I am not sure what all of that means, but it seems interesting. One Page Turner answered Sequoia. I think it does show we are well read. We are not going to give run of the mill answers like, Maple, Elm, Apple. If I had to guess Palm Tree would be a free spirit. Sequoia is a person that perceives them self as strong. I cannot imagine anyone in the group as a Weeping Willow.
I had my doubts about pulling together a book club with everyone being from the same department. I thought, how will we be able to let loose from our day. What if the meeting turns into a session of whining about work. Our department is made up of teams. The Page Turner brings together people from four different teams. Two different jobs. Some of the members are my very close friends. Some members I only knew to say hi, maybe exchange polite conversation.
When asked what our favorite book genre is the answers were: history, suspense, mystery, chick lit, vampires, period stories, and true crime. How in the world do we all read the same book and have most people enjoy the story?
Most of the members prefer living in small town than city. We like country music, lite rock, jazz, rock, old school punk rock, hip hop, big band. Crazy!
I asked the question if a sign says Do Not Enter, Would you enter? Four said, NO, 3 said yes, and two were unsure. That means most of us are cautious with a few live on the edge, roller coaster girls thrown in.
So how does it all come together? Why does it work? We share a passion for reading. We are focused on the books. When we sit down at the table, work is over. We discuss books, food, and the discussions have been known to go off course to shared stories of life experiences. We laugh quite a bit. We never argue. We get caught up in the discussion and will interrupt each other once in awhile. We respect every one's opinion. For our quiet members, we try to draw them out. Everyone always has a great point to be made. During our meetings we are living in the moment, enjoying great conversation with intelligent women.
Each meeting we become a tighter group. It is interesting. We are not all each other's best friends. We do not all lunch together. We do not get together and hang out. Towards the end of the month as we finish our books you can find small groups gathered book talking.
If you were to see us at our monthly meetings, you would probably hear our laughter, watch our animated conversations, and think, "I wish I had a group of women friends like that." It is a great group of women. If you asked me when we started how long we would last, I am not sure I would have said a year. I would have been surprised to see this many members still active. It is a pleasant surprise. Every single month. Thanks to my Page Turner Group, you have exceeded all my expectations.
Today we discussed blog names. Here is the list of our group: I am The Page Turner. In addition we have the Old Lady, My Girl T, Stella, Rose, Rapunzel, Easy Rider, Bride To Be, and Jersey Girl.