Oprah Brings Back Book Club

Oprah Winfrey's book club has gained notoriety and popularity through the years. The books she has selected have been known to sell in excess of one million copies! When you go into your local bookstore you will find Oprah's gold seal of approval on her book choices.

But, little has been heard of the book club in the past year. In early 2006, Oprah suspended her book club after it was revealed that much of the book Million Little Pieces by James Frey was fraudulent. Million Little Pieces was supposed to be a prolific telling of Frey's own personal life. However, it was revealed that much of the book was fabricated.

In an effort to clear her good name, Oprah even confronted Frey on her show. During this confrontation, Frey admitted that he had embellished some of the happenings in the book. In addition to talking to Frey, Oprah also confronted Frey's publisher. The publisher admitted that she had done nothing to validate the claims made in the book.

After the televised confrontation, Oprah was applauded for confronting Frey and the publishers. It was clear that she would not have someone smearing her good name.

So, here we are approximately one year later and Oprah is bringing back her popular book club. She revealed her book choice on her show on January 26, 2007.

The choice: The Measure Of A Man by Sidney Poitier. The Measure of A Man is a look back on Poitier's life and career. On her show, Oprah said of the book "He writes really candidly and passionately about his childhood, his family, relationships and his extraordinary career. It (the book) really is about what makes character, what makes you be who you are. He is the measure of one of the greatest men I think who has ever been on our planet." The book tells of his simple up bringing in the Bahamas. He also tells of his acting career and of choosing only roles that would be positive or useful.

Oprah also announced on the show that she would be hosting a dinner party with Sidney Poitier. She will be inviting members of her book club to join them for this dinner party. People wishing to be part of the dinner party must submit an essay telling why you would make a good dinner guest and how the book has inspired you in your personal life.

To submit an entry for the dinner party, you will need to join Oprah's book club. You can join for free on her website. Once joining, you will find a host of other great additions to the book including a downloadable bookmarker. You can also listen to Sidney Poitier read an excerpt from the book.

The Measure Of A Man is published by HarperCollins and can be purchased on their website for $14.95.