Oprah Winfrey started her famous book club back in 1996, and she just chose her 100th book–Ann Napolitano’s “Hello Beautiful”. Oprah, known as the “queen of books”, said the book pays homage to Louisa May Alcott’s “Little Women”.
“Hello Beautiful” follows four sisters over three decades in the city of Chicago as they are tested with trials. Oprah called it “one of the best books” she’s read in a long time. Napolitano is a New York Times best-selling author, and this was her fourth novel publication. Oprah has been encouraging and educating people on what books to read since 1996, and it has earned her a lot of influence in the world of literature. To have a book chosen by Oprah is a huge honor and brings her following’s attention to the book.
Oprah’s book journey has endured changes for both herself and the publishing industry. Through the rise of the internet and the end of her talk show, she has brought attention to the lack of diversity in book publishing through immersions in the classics and unexpected lessons in the reliability of memoirs.
The main themes that can be found in “Hello Beautiful” are sisterhood, grief, longing, and love. Oprah likes how readers can relate because it feels like they are reading the truth. As stated in her first-ever book club segment, “When I was growing up, books were my friends. When I didn’t have friends, I had books. And one of the greatest pleasures I have right now in life is to be reading a really good book and to know I have a really, really good book after that book to read”.
For many authors, receiving a call from Oprah Winfrey regarding their book would be something of a surreal experience. Indeed, many of the books that receive a personal pick for Winfrey’s book club go on to attract significant attention. “Hello Beautiful” is sure to sell well.
