TY - BOOK ID - 77874204 TI - The Oprah affect AU - Farr, Cecilia Konchar AU - Harker, Jaime PY - 2008 SN - 1435686926 9781435686922 0791477444 PB - Albany, NY State University of New York Press DB - UniCat KW - Book clubs (Discussion groups) KW - Books and reading KW - Literature and society KW - Education KW - Social Sciences KW - Education, Special Topics KW - Book clubs KW - Book discussion groups KW - Book study groups KW - Clubs KW - Group reading KW - Oprah Winfrey show (Television program) KW - Winfrey, Oprah KW - Influence. KW - Oprah KW - Winfrey, Oprah, UR - https://www.unicat.be/uniCat?func=search&query=sysid:77874204 AB - The Oprah Affect explores the cultural impact of Oprah's Book Club, particularly in light of debates about the definition and purpose of literature in American culture. For the critics collected here, Oprah's Book Club stands, in the context of American literary history, not as an egregious undermining of who we are and what we represent, as some have maintained, but as the latest manifestation of a tradition that encourages symbiotic relationships between readers and texts. Powered by women writers and readers, novels in this tradition attract crowds, sell well, and make unabashed appeals to emotion. The essays consider the interlocking issues of affect, affinity, accessibility, and activism in the context of this tradition. Juxtaposing book history; reading practices; literary analysis; feminist criticism; and communication, religious, political, and cultural studies; the contributors map a range of possibilities for further research on Oprah's Book Club. A complete chronological list of Book Club picks is included. ER -