ALA organizational members to receive free copies of

Contact: Julie Greenfield


312-280-2527

For Immediate Release


October 3, 2003

ALA organizational members to receive free copies of

“Cry, The Beloved Country,” newest Oprah’s Book Club selection

Thanks to a continuing partnership with Oprah’s Book Club, American Library Association (ALA) organizational members will receive free copies of “Cry, The Beloved Country” by Alan Paton. Oprah Winfrey relaunched her Book Club earlier this year with a focus on classic works of literature, starting with “East of Eden” by John Steinbeck.
She announced Paton’s 1948 classic,
set in the troubled and changing South Africa of the 1940s, on September 29.

At the request of Winfrey, the publisher of each Book Club selection will donate to school, public and community college libraries that are organizational members of ALA. Each library will receive two to five copies, depending on the facility’s size. This is the first year community college libraries have been able to participate in this organizational member benefit.

Book discussions and author readings are the top two literary programs in libraries in terms of frequency and audience size, according to a 1999 survey conducted by the ALA and the Lila Wallace-Reader’s Digest Fund.

To learn more about ALA Organizational Member benefits or to join, click "Join" at the top right of the ALA home page,
www.ala.org, or call 800-545-2433, press 5.

To learn more about the book club and post information about your favorite classics, please visit
http://www.oprah.com/.