WINDSOR — A new after-school book club at Mountain View Elementary School has just a few simple rules: Be enthusiastic; be prepared to discuss a selected book’s plot and characters; and absolutely, positively no girls allowed.

Four male teachers at the school, with the help of school librarian Joann Perko, started the all-boys book club this year to give reading a boost among the guys.

Girls, according to club members, would only be a distraction.

“They would pick a book that would be boring, and I wouldn’t read it at all,” said Trevor Webb, 9.

That seems to be the crux of a growing problem among male students in the U.S., say some education and reading experts. Boys like certain books — especially those featuring action and adventure — and anything else kills their willingness to curl up with a good yarn.

“Boys often have to read books they don’t really like,” said Jon Scieszka, author of “The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales,” on his website guysread .com, aimed at getting boys to crack open a book. “And what they do like to read, people sometimes tell them is not really reading.”

The written word is exalted at the Mountain View book club, where students sit on the edge of their seats discussing certain passages.

The club, which meets every other Wednesday, usually attracts about 20 boys, says organizer and teacher Evan Netzer. In the last session, students broke into three individual groups to talk about “Mr. Tuckett,” “Wild Man Island” and “No More Dead Dogs.”

Perko said she got the idea for the club after attending the Northern Colorado Children’s Literature Conference at the University of Northern Colorado. “Well, we had four male teachers here — which makes us very fortunate — and I thought it would be a great way to pool these resources and get boys interested in reading,” Perko said.

Netzer has seen a difference in his male students since the club started. “They seem to dive into reading more and more now,” he said.

Club selections are usually anything about adventure or survival.

“Anything that’s a non-girl book,” he said.

Mountain View girls are showing signs of wanting equal time.

“Some have said they want their own book club next year,” Perko said.