Photos: Our top 10 Oprah's Book Club titles

 

Oprah recommended 69 books in her original book club, establishing the careers of many authors and spurring millions in book sales. Her books were often controversial and almost always sad; some were made into Oscar-winning movies while others stirred up controversy in the literary world. Take a look at our favourite titles over the years.

 
January 20, 2013
 
 
 
Oprah recommended 69 books in her original book club, establishing the careers of many authors and spurring millions in book sales. Her books were often controversial and almost always sad; some were made into Oscar-winning movies while others stirred up controversy in the literary world. Take a look at our favourite titles over the years.
 

Oprah recommended 69 books in her original book club, establishing the careers of many authors and spurring millions in book sales. Her books were often controversial and almost always sad; some were made into Oscar-winning movies while others stirred up controversy in the literary world. Take a look at our favourite titles over the years.

Photograph by: From, Oprah.com

 
Oprah recommended 69 books in her original book club, establishing the careers of many authors and spurring millions in book sales. Her books were often controversial and almost always sad; some were made into Oscar-winning movies while others stirred up controversy in the literary world. Take a look at our favourite titles over the years.
Here on Earth, by Alice Hoffman (Berkley): I can't really remember the actual plot of Here on Earth, but it's here on this list because of my admiration in general for Alice Hoffman, who has written 28 novels including Practical Magic, which was made into a movie starring Nicole Kidman, and The Dovekeepers, which is an impressive work of historical fiction set in Israel in 70 A.D., when 900 Jews held out for months against Roman armies on Masada, a mountain in the Judean desert.
The Pilot's Wife, by Anita Shreve (Little, Brown and Company): This book really surprised me with the twist in its plot, and that rarely happens. The book opens with "the pilot's wife" learning that her husband has died in a plane crash. From there, I can't say where it goes, for fear of ruining the book. Shreve has written 16 novels, many of which include a quirky surprise for readers, including several novels that are not connected, but that all take place in the same house.
The Poisonwood Bible, by Barbara Kingsolver (Harper Perennial): Kingsolver is a powerful writer and The Poisonwood Bible is perhaps her strongest book. It tells the story of an American missionary family with young children that moves to Africa in 1959. The book is alternately narrated by the wife and daughters in the family as they navigate life in the Belgian Congo, which becomes independent during the course of this compelling book.
The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follett (NAL Trade): Long before writing The Pillars of the Earth, Ken Follett was a bestselling author of spy thriller novels, including The Eye of the Needle and Lie Down With Lions. Here, he continues writing in the same page-turning style, but tackles the subject of building a cathedral in 12th-century England. The history is fascinating, but the plot propels readers through nearly 1,000 pages.
Night, by Elie Wiesel (FSG Adult): Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel wrote this book at least partly based on his experiences in the Nazi Germany concentration camps, including Auschwitz. It's a heartbreaking, staggering and important work contained in less than 150 pages. Published in 1960 in the U.S., Oprah chose this book for her club in 2006. Wiesel was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986 for his work speaking out against the Holocaust.
Black and Blue, by Anna Quindlen (Delta): Anna Quindlen writes here about a marriage marred by domestic violence. It has been many years since I read this book, but I still remember vividly the descriptions of the mother's life and how painful it was for her to run away with her young son to save him from a life of violence. Quindlen, once a Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times columnist, has written several novels, non-fiction books and children's books.
Midwives, by Chris Bohjalian (Random House): Midwives was the first Chris Bohjalian book I read, and I enjoyed the way he set up a moral dilemma that forces readers to look at both sides of a contentious issue. Here, he writes about what happens when a mother-to-be dies while under the care of a rural midwife. When the woman appears to have died in labour, the midwife tries to perform an emergency caesarean section to save the baby's life.
The Bluest Eye, by Toni Morrison (Vintage): Toni Morrison had four books chosen for Oprah's Book Club, more than any other author. As well as The Bluest Eye, Oprah chose Sula, Paradise and Song of Solomon to be on her club's reading list. The Bluest Eye tells the story of black, 11-yearold Pecola Breedlove, who prays for her eyes to turn blue so she will fit in. The Bluest Eye is Morrison's first novel, written in 1970, and contains a story that is both extremely painful and very true.
Fall on Your Knees, by Ann-Marie MacDonald (Seal Books): It's Canadian! This multigenerational story takes place in a Cape Breton coal-mining community and covers four generations. It has been nearly 20 years since I read this book, so the details of the plot are no longer clear, but the extreme turmoil and family drama contained within its pages will never be forgotten.
The Deep End of the Ocean, by Jacquelyn Mitchard (Penguin): This was the first book chosen for Oprah's book club, and also the first for author Jacquelyn Mitchard. Although it has been at least a decade since I read this book, I still remember the terrible shock the mother felt when her child disappeared. Mitchard has written a number of other bestselling novels and children's books, but only The Deep End of the Ocean reached No. 1 on the New York Times bestseller list.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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