By PHOEBE DONALD ROBINSON / Community Columnist

The Mary Anne King Book Club has been an active group for the last 15 years.

Founded in 2000 by the late Mary Anne King and Linda Blanton, the group has met continuously the last Tuesday of the month at 6 p.m. at the Columbiana Public Library Conference Room.

There are no dues or fees, no refreshments, no homes, no work, just read and discuss a book each month.

King died of cancer in 2009 and her family suggested memorials to the library.

In February 2010, a reception was help to name the book club in honor of King and dedicate a bookcase with the King collection. Since that time, the group has been called the Mary Anne King Book Club.

Original members of the group with King and Blanton were Jane Bailey, Elizabeth Britton, Brenda Harris, Mary Nell Burton, Charlene Ray and Elizabeth Drewry, many still attending today.

Over the years many fun nights have been spent discussing books. One night the group read “My Last Days as Roy Rogers,” and Bailey brought a washtub full of lemonade.

Another night the group had read “Queen of the Road” by Doreen Orion, who called the group and discussed her book on speakerphone.

The group wore their pajamas and tiaras in honor of the book’s heroine.

Another night the group discussed the autobiography “Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail” by Cheryl Strayed, now a current movie starring Reese Witherspoon. The group drank Snapple, the heroine’s favorite drink in her honor as they discussed the book.

The group is open to anyone. Future books and dates to discuss are: “Burial Rites” by Hannah Kent (April 28); “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children” by Ransom Riggs (May 26); “The All-Girl Filling Station’s Last Reunion” by Fannie Flagg (June 30); “Love in the Time of Cholera” by Gabriel Garcia (July 28); “The Girl You Left Behind” by JoJo Moyes (Aug. 25); “Paper Love” by Sarah Wildman (Sept. 29); “The Serpent’s Tale” by Ariana Franklin (Oct. 27); and “Bel Canto” by Ann Patchett (Nov. 24).