The 7 Books That Have Helped Oprah Through 2020
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With the looming Election Day around the corner, it’s completely understandable to feel anxious during this uncertain time. Especially during quarantine, sometimes the greatest form of self-care can just be snuggling up with a good book. But if you’re like us, it can be hard to decide what book you should read next. Oprah understands the power reading can hold, which is why she shared a list of seven books that have helped her get through the whirlwind of 2020. Look through her book recommendations and find your next read — Oprah approved.
Releasing, “The Books That Help Me Through” Oprah shared her book stack that she’ll be spotlighting over the next six weeks on her book club Instagram page, @oprahsbookclub. The book stack is a mix of Fiction, Poetry, Non-fiction, and Spirituality. “I’ve chosen seven that I cherish for their ability to inspire, comfort, and enlighten.”
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Did you dip into "The Power of Now” this week? What was your biggest aha moment? #ReadWithUs
A post shared by Oprah’s Book Club (@oprahsbookclub) on Oct 30, 2020 at 5:01pm PDT
Oprah chose The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle as the first book to launch her weekly discussions. She explained that this novel has changed the way she sees life and continues to guide her. “How do we find peace when everything is in turmoil, how do you listen to the stillness?,” said Winfrey, “How do you continue to be present even when things are so chaotic and disruptive?” This book will share some of the answers.
Winfrey recommends this U.S history book, written by Pultizer Prize-winner Jon Meacham. Especially relevant due to the upcoming election, she notes that the book helps “talk us through our election jitters”. She has also turned to The Soul of America, “to guide me and help me understand our current era and reassure that our country can bounce back from dark times.” This novel seeks to remind us of previous “dark chapters” in history and how we as a nation have emerged from them.
If you’re a fan of poetry, this one is for you. Included are over 200 poems from the late, Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Mary Oliver. Feel comfort while reading her observations of joy, nature, and humanity.
Oprah considers Coates to be a “bearer of the torch that carries on the legacy of our ancestors and is also entirely so original.” This book powerfully grapples with inequality and race in America that we are still facing today. It’s formatted as a letter to Coates’ son and is such an education read.
This 1963 book is non-fiction composed of two essays entitled, “My Dungeon Shook: Letter to my Nephew on the One-Hundredth Anniversary of the Emancipation” and “Down at the Cross: Letter from a Region of My Mind”. Baldwin wrote the novel during the time of de facto segregation. He discusses the horrific racial hierarchy in American society as well as the relations between race and religion.
Oprah chose this novel written by her late friend, Toni Morrison, who died in August 2019. The 1977 New York Times bestselling novel tells the story of a fictional man from Michigan named Milkman Dead. The coming-of-age-story explores the integral ties and ancestral past to one’s community.
This anthology of poems, which was is the most recently dated novel on this list, published in August 2020, includes work from more than 160 Native American authors. These incredible poems are organized based on regions: Northeast and Midwest; plains and mountains; Pacific Northwest, Alaska, and Pacific Islands; Southwest and West; and Southeast. It’s filled with stories of pain, hope, and resilience.
Before you go, click here to see all the best celebrity memoirs you can read right now.
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