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COURTESY PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE
“The Water Dancer” by Ta-Nehisi Coates
You get a book, and you get a book! And you get a book!
“Oprah’s Book Club” is coming to Apple TV+, the tech company and Oprah Winfrey announced Monday. The series will premiere at the platform’s launch with a new episode available every two months. Winfrey also revealed her first pick, “The Water Dancer” by Ta-Nehisi Coates.
“Our journey begins with ‘The Water Dancer,’ an incredible new novel,” the OWN CEO said in a video posted to her Twitter account. “It is as beautiful as it is tragic, and I am beyond excited to read it with you. Get your hands on this book because I’m going to sit down with Ta-Nehisi Coates and an audience filled with people who love books on Apple TV+.”
Each of Winfrey’s selections will be available for purchase on Apple Books, with a portion of the proceeds donated to the American Library Association to help local libraries empower young readers. “The Water Dancer,” which hit shelves Tuesday, is available in both audio- and e-book formats.
“I am who I am today because of the experience of learning to read at an early age,” Winfrey said in a statement. “Reading opened up a whole world for me beyond the red dirt road and my grandmother’s porch in Mississippi.”
During each segment, Winfrey will sit down with the author of her latest choice to chat about their work. Coates’ episode will take place at Apple Carnegie Library in Washington, D.C., in front of a live audience. His book follows a young man on a dangerous mission to rescue himself and his family from slavery in America.
Unsurprisingly, the “A Wrinkle in Time” actress’ new literary society has already accumulated some followers, including “Madea” franchise super-producer Tyler Perry, who shared his excitement at the news on Twitter.
“I’m reading this powerful book,” Perry captioned a photo of himself with an advance copy of “The Water Dancer.” “How many of you will join me? I love a good read.”
“Oprah’s Book Club” is the newest program joining Apple TV+. More content set for the service includes the Reese Witherspoon-Jennifer Aniston broadcast news drama “The Morning Show” and Steven Spielberg’s anthology series “Amazing Stories.”
Apple TV+ and “Oprah’s Book Club” will launch Nov. 1.
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