Oprah Reconciles With Jonathan Franzen

The Queen of Daytime and the Great American Novelist are set to make nice. Booksellers who have seen the book say that Oprah Winfrey, 56, will select Jonathan Franzen‘s latest novel, Freedom, for her book club, 9 years after she disinvited him from her show following his expressed distaste for the club. 

Franzen, 51, who has dominated literary news over the last month, recently appeared on the cover of Time with the headline "Great American Novelist." Reviews have been positive in the extreme, with terms like masterpiece and genius thrown around liberally to describe the work. 

Franzen has not always proved himself to be the most likeable figure. In the infamous 2001 Oprah scuffle, Franzen spoke publicly about his discomfort with being named to the club, calling some of her selections "schmaltzy" and "one-dimensional" while emphasizing his own placement in the "high-art literary tradition" on NPR. Winfrey responded by revoking her selection.

Tensions seemed to have settled over the past 9 years. Freedom is already a bestseller, a hot enough sell that President Obama was seen toting an advance copy in DC, but being named to Oprah’s club will undoubtedly give sales an even bigger boost. The selection will be officially announced Friday. –AMY LEE