The Oprah Winfrey Book Club

The Oprah Winfrey Book Club was created by the popular celebrity talk show host to encourage her viewers to read and explore new books and authors -- and it has worked!

The books selected by Oprah frequently rise to the top of best seller lists and have even been made into movies.

Oprah does not get paid for choosing books for her reading club, she simply chooses books that she enjoys.

Oprah Book Club History

The club began in September 1996, with Oprah's selection of The Deep End of the Ocean by Jacquelyn Mitchard.

For the first several years, the reading group continued at a brisk pace, with selections coming one a month.

In 2001, the number of Oprah book selections fell off significantly because Winfrey felt she couldn't keep up with the amount of reading necessary to find great books to recommend to her viewers.

The club has also been hit with several controversies, such as the book A Million Little Pieces by James Frey. The book was billed as a memoir about drug and alcohol abuse and recovery. But after focused attention the book received after being selected for the book club, it was revealed that many of the passages in the book were completely made up.

Oprah confronted the author and the publisher on her show to address the controversy.

The Oprah Book List

Oprah book picks make great reading selections for your book group. Or, just read them for fun on your own. View the list of Oprah book picks here.

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