Two years after Oprah Winfrey abandoned us (and the publishing industry) in a dark world where we could only guess at what was on her bookshelf, the queen of TV (except for maybe cable) is ready to share her reading choices once again. But this time she’s giving it an “interactive, online†twist. In a video first posted to the New York Times’ Media Decoder blog, Oprah clued us in on her first pick.
So I was reading this book, as a book, as a real book, holding up the book, and I was on the edge of my seat reading the book, and I was like where is the Oprah Winfrey Show when you need to announce and tell everybody about this book. I. Need. The book club. So I created Book Club 2.0 for this book, Wild by Cheryl Strayed.
Oprah gave the book, a chronicle of the author’s 1,100-mile on-foot trek along the Pacific Crest Trail in the wake of her mother’s death and her failed marriage, her patented over-the-top endorsement: simultaneously “stimulating,†“thought-provoking,†and “soul-enhancing.â€
The book club will differ from its TV ancestor in that readers can now purchase special e-reader version of the books, complete with Oprah’s notes and the ability to share favorite passages. With Wild, the book’s author will also be taking questions from readers, who can alternatively discuss the book in Facebook and Twitter forums.
Meanwhile, Oprah isn’t ready to give up on good ole paper-and-glue books altogether. Just revisit her announcement up top and pay close attention to the first sentence, when she mentions multiple times how she was holding, feeling, reading (and caressing?) a book book. As for Wild, starting on Tuesday it will appear in bookstores carrying that sorely missed Oprah sticker of approval.