History of the Group:

In February 1993 Borders Books initiated a monthly fiction book discussion group to be held at their store in Baileys Crossroads, Virginia. It was a spirited group of people who attended that first meeting where we discussed James Robert Waller’s "The Bridges of Madison County". The evening was unforgettable as Ernie, still an active member of our group, was the first to start us off as he whipped out his piece of paper and explained that as a retired history teacher who never read fiction until he joined this group, he was going to list the reasons why he did not like this book. Well, he really got the discussion rolling with his comments after we all stopped laughing.

Shortly after we formed, Borders had a name change to Borders Books and Music and a move to a larger location within Bailey’s Crossroads. Change is good as it promotes growth and stimulates the surroundings. As with all change, so things changed with our fiction group as people came and went. A few years later, with a group of people who were regulars to the monthly discussion meeting, we found we all had such varied reading interests -- non-fiction, poetry, mystery, classics, etc. -- that it was decided to rename our group and read a wider variety of material. We had a contest to name our group at this time and the winner was awarded a cup of coffee of their choice from Borders cafe for which we all chipped in. Hence the winning name "Books Eclectic" which we felt encompassed all we wanted to read.

Shortly after all this change in November of 1996, CSPAN asked to film our group for our discussion of Janet Wallach’s "Desert Queen", a biography of Gertrude Bell. Needless to say we were elated and had a lively discussion followed by a wonderful evening of watching ourselves on television when the event was aired in January of 1997.

Currently we read a classic every third month, a biography twice a year and fiction the balance of the time. Our books are selected a couple of months ahead of time so Borders can print the selections in their monthly newsletter. At the beginning of each meeting members are invited to put suggested books for reading on the table where we vote on the selection. Whenever possible one member will present biographical information on the author or introductory remarks regarding reviews of our selection for the evenings discussion.

Books Eclectic’s membership comprises a variety of people who welcome new members with an interest in discussing books, sharing opinions and gleaming new information. All opinions and comments on the reading material under discussion are valid and valuable to the group. There are no right or wrong answers, only interesting views and discussion.

Garnet Tennyson Hadley