Nine members of the Mercer Island Preschool Association met on Nov. 11, 1995 at the Mercer Island Library with the idea of forming a book club. The official first meeting was two months later, and the book club has been going strong ever since.

Calling itself Life Before Kids (LBK), “because reading books was something we all did before we had kids and wanted to try to get back to,” the club celebrates its 20th anniversary this month.

“We started out as mothers of toddlers, always discussing our children and our book. Later, we became mothers of tweens and teens discussing school, sports and activity issues and our book. Then we became mothers of college kids discussing our kids’ futures and our book,” said LBK member Pattie Reutimann. “Now we are all empty nesters, some even retiring, and two members are even grandmothers. Throughout these 20 years, we have had one common bond that has tied us together, and that is our desire and love of reading books.”

The club gets together once a month, skipping the summer months, to discuss the book. If a member did not finish he book, she has to pay $1 to a kitty fund used during the celebration of an anniversary.

The club has added and lost members over the years and currently has nine, five of which were original members. They have read 185 books in 20 years.

Members of LBK shop at Island Books, which give book clubs a discount, though some order through the library and others use Kindles.

“Most of our members will agree they like having a hard copy of the book and enjoy passing the book onto another avid reader,” Reutimann said. “Our list of books is always in demand by friends, coworkers and family members.”

The members agreed that their top five favorites are “Life and Death in Shanghai” by Nien Cheng, “Girl with the Pearl Earring” by Tracy Chevalier, “The Glass Castle” by Jeannette Walls, “Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage” by Alfred Lansing and “Middlesex” by Jeffrey Eugenides.

The monthly meetings have been held at various locations, including Starbucks, the Roanoke, Mercer Island Country Club and members’ houses.

“We try to mix up our meeting by also attending places pertaining to our books,” Reutimann said. “When we pick from local authors or visiting authors, we go to see them speak, like the authors of “The Boys in the Boat” and “Three Cups of Tea.” We [also] attended a Nancy Pearl seminar.”

They often go to movies based on books they have read, including “Seabiscuit,” “Gone Girl,” “The Martian,” “Water for Elephants” and “The Help.”

“When we read “Nine Parts of Desire,” we had an opportunity to wear and took turns wearing a burqa during a meeting to experience the women in the book,” Reutimann said. “We often have meetings at restaurants that serve the same cuisine as a book, such as Mexican, Asian, Indian, Moroccan or Southern food.”

During LBK anniversaries in January, there are special meetings where the women go out to dinner, play games or watch movies. During the holidays, they have a cookie, book or sock exchange.

“Being together 20 years is quite a feat,” Reutimann said. “We are very proud of it and look forward to many more.”