How Oprah Can Help You Write a Book Report

Oprah Winfrey can help you write your book report, teach a class, or give a with just a few clicks of your mouse -- but don't forget to cite her for her help. Since 1996, Oprah has read titles from Jacquelyn Mitchard's Deep End of the Ocean to Elie Wiesel's Night with her fans. Working with the American Library Association, she chooses books that tend to have a self-help theme to supplements the work she does on her show. "Oprah's Books," a link on www.oprah.com, is a virtual library of all of the books she has featured in her book club, explored so thoroughly by scholars that any reader, student or educator could benefit from the research.

Here are some examples of why this site is so helpful:

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter. The link for Carson McCuller's book has chapter-by-chapter synopses; study questions for every chapter; information about McCullers's hometown of Columbus, Georgia; a worldwide on-line discussion forum; and a video of a McCullers biographer offering criticism of her work. Information for this books also includes the character sketches McCullers compiled before even beginning the novel. For further reasearch, there are links to original manuscripts, the artists' community McCullers inspired, the Georgia Women of Achievement homepage, and a letter to McCullers from Tennessee Williams.

The link for Anna Karenina is equally helpful, especially for such a lengthy book. The site features a complete character guide, essential to help first-time Tolstoy readers because the authors uses as many as three names for the same character. These names are also featured in their original Russian, via an audio translator site visitors can link with. In addition to a worldwide discussion forum, detailed information about each chapter, quizzes, and study material, the Anna Karenina link also has some encouragement for readers trying to tackle the more than 1,000 page text. Winfrey hosted a mock-race during the show, in which participants ran and read at the same time, dousing themselves with water and doing push-ups as they attempted to finish the novel. All in fun, this exercise illustrated what a feat actually finishing the novel can be.

Night. This may arguably be the best reason to join Oprah's Book Club. The link to Elie Wiesel's Night has information about Winfrey's trip to Auschwitz with this Holocaust survivor, as well as reviews of each chapter of Wiesel's memoir. For educators, the reviews of this book are priceless.

Winfrey's club may also help readers interested in books not on her list. Her site includes book clubs on a variety of novels, with members from all over the world. Students, parents, teachers, and general users can find many titles and college-level discussions about them without having to set foot in a classroom. For fully researching these titles, Oprah's Books is a must.