RUMFORD – Once a month on Thursday at 2:30 p.m., a crowd of women, many retired teachers or other professionals, gather in a living room somewhere in the River valley.

A dining room table may be filled with sandwiches, desserts and a silver coffee or tea pot.

But the important thing is what happens as each reports on a book she had read during the previous month. Twice a year, club members read the same books, then discuss them with each other.

“Reading takes you anywhere you want to go and lets you be anyone you want to be,” said Gail Parent, a retired teacher and 42-year member of the club Wednesday afternoon as she and two other members spoke about the club.

Next month, the group will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the club that meets purely for the joy of reading and social interaction.

There’s no fundraising, although each member pays $5 a year to belong. That money often goes to support local libraries, Santa’s Helpers, or some other organization.

With the centennial coming up, President Clarice Hodges and members Parent and Peggy Jones, among others, have been trying to learn how and why the club began.

So far, they haven’t had any luck.

They’ve researched local papers for mentions, but haven’t found anything. And the minutes only go back 30 or 40 years.

Regardless, the celebration will take place at Hotel Harris, a historic downtown building that is also celebrating its centenary on Sept. 14. The 20 club members are looking for former members to take part in the celebration.

Planned is a fashion show from each decade of the club’s existence, as well as reports on what people were reading during each of those decades.

The club has remained at 20 members, just enough to fill the living rooms of the hostesses, said Hodges. There’s a waiting list, too.

“No one retires. They stay in the club,” said Hodges, a retired nurse who has been a member for the past eight years.

Jones, a member since 1962 and a retired teacher, remembers how different the club was when she began.

“When I first joined, we wore hats and white gloves and dresses and we served just tea. The reviewer would have the reviews typed out and copied and everyone would make corrections,” she said. “People could also be black-balled,” which meant they were not allowed to join.

As time passed, the meetings became less formal, although members still enjoy dressing up, maybe not in dresses, but certainly not in shorts and T-shirts.

“We don’t get a chance to dress up often,” Parent said.

Belonging to a book club is important to the women.

“Reading is as important as eating,” Jones said. “People who read all the time are educated and interesting people.”

She is also a member of the Friends of Ludden Memorial Library in Dixfield and of the Gold Leaf Institute at the University of Maine at Farmington where she reads other books.

Parent is also a member of the Friends of Rumford Public Library and the Mystery Readers Club at Rumford Public Library.

Membership in a book club gives readers a chance to talk about books.

“I was curious about all these people who like to read,” Hodges said. “All the good discussions we’ve had, all the introductions to a lot of books.”

Parent likes the camaraderie of other readers, and Jones likes to hear various interpretations of books.

“Reading is just great fun. You learn something from every book you read,” Hodges said.

Former members are asked to phone Hodges at 562-7125, Jones at 562-7172 or Parent, at 364-7482 so plans may be made to include them in the 100th anniversary celebration.