Oprah Winfrey took to Instagram to address the controversy over Jeanine Cummins’ American Dirt, the controversial novel that the media mogul selected as the new pick for her influential book club.
Initially published to a boatload of hype, Cummins’ novel—about a mother and son who are forced to immigrate from Mexico to the U.S.—ignited a firestorm of criticism from readers who accusing the author of cultural appropriation and promoting stereotypes about Mexicans.
In a video on Instagram, Winfrey, standing in a kitchen and clutching a copy of the novel, said, “There’s been a lot of talk about this book lately. And I just wanted you all to hear directly from me that I read an advance copy of American Dirt last summer before it even was an official book, and it was a visceral experience for me. A migrant story being told from a mother’s perspective about the lengths that she would go to protect her child, to get to freedom in America.
“Now it has become clear to me from the outpouring, may I say, of very passionate opinions, that this selection has struck a very emotional chord and created a need for a deeper, more substantive discussion,” she continued. “I’ve spent the past few days listening to members of the Latinx community to get a greater understanding of their concerns, and I hear them. I do. So I want to do is bring people together, from all sides, to talk about this book, and who gets to publish what stories.”
She said that the discussion would take place in March on Apple TV, the new home for her book club.
Michael Schaub is an Austin, Texas–based journalist and regular contributor to NPR.
