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Catching Up with Oprah

Oprah recently announced a new Book Club pick, and I'm super excited.

(Geek = Me = Not Ashamed.)

The book "Say You're One of Them" was Entertainment Weekly's Best Book of the Year in 2008. People can criticize Oprah, but the truth is, she has actually picked some exceptional books as part of her book club.

That's not to say ALL of them were exceptional.

So, for those of you who would like to catch up with Oprah, I'm going to let you know which books to read, which are worth a look, and which were just her trying to win over some of the Midwestern housewives who got turned off by Stones from the River.

Ps. I'm not counting the Classics. Should you read East of Eden? Absolutely!

Pass on--

The Deep End of the Ocean - Even Oprah admits she went easy on everyone by picking this one.

Here on Earth
Black and Blue
Midwives
What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day

Where the Heart Is - If you saw the movie, you know what I mean

The Pilot's Wife
Tara Road
Jewel

A New Earth - Possibly one of the dumbest things I've ever read. Self-help at its worst.

River Cross My Heart
Vinegar Hill
Open House
Drowning Ruth

The Story of Edgar Sawtelle - Hamlet, it's Hamlet. Tah-dah, you've read it.

Worth a Look:

The Rapture of Canaan
Breath, Eyes, Memory
Mother of Pearl
Gap Creek
Icy Sparks
Cane River
We Were the Mulvaneys
Song of Solomon and The Bluest Eye

The Must List:

A Fine Balance
Fall on Your Knees
The Corrections
The Reader
House of Sand and Fog

A Million Little Pieces -- Who cares if it's fiction or non-fiction? It's damn good. That's all I care about.

Middlesex
The Road
Sula and Paradise
The Pillars of the Earth
I Know This Much is True
The Poisonwood Bible

I'm still hoping she'll officially choose "Let the Great World Spin" since she already endorsed it on the website.

Now that's a book that everyone should read.

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