Oprah Surprises Lucky Beachgoers With Free Copies of Her Latest Book Club Pick
Oprah Winfrey continues her mission of getting us to read more.
The media mogul recently shared an Instagram video with her fans of her surprising unsuspecting beachgoers.
Winfrey’s adventure kicked off in what appears to be a parking lot as she headed into a Barnes & Noble to get “you know what”. As she nears the entrance, she enthusiastically claps her hands while walking through the sliding doors.
Once inside, the award-winning talk show host immediately spots what she is looking for –The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese– stacked on a display shelf. The book is a multigenerational South Indian novel that follows an Indian family throughout three generations from 1900-1970 who suffer from a puzzling illness.
She jokingly probes, “Question is, do you take all of them?”
With a hand filled with two novels, she doesn’t hold back and grabs two more.
As she makes her way further into the store, Winfrey meets a customer and raises one of the books to him, asking if he’s read the book. While the man stands at the register, the media mogul asks kindly asks if she could buy the book for him. In a moment of awe, the surprised customer takes her word for it. “I’ll accept”, he says. She pays for the book, then gives it to him.
As she heads towards the exit, another customer takes a shot and asks for her recommendation of a good book. Stopping in her tracks, Winfrey responds, “Did she just ask what book I’d recommend?”
Then Winfrey headed directly to the exact location in the store where she grabbed her first handful of novels.
She snags another copy and declares, “This is the book!”
But it got even better for the customer. The talk show host not only bought the book for her, but she personalized it with her signature, then paid for it at the counter.
Oprah’s book giveaway spilled from the inside of a bookstore to the beachside, where the freebies continued.
Strolling on the sand, she met a newly engaged couple lounging under an umbrella, with one of them head-deep in No Country For Old Men by Corman McCarthy. While she endorsed that one, she also suggested her choice pick; however, the man initially—though kindly— refused. But who says no to Oprah Winfrey? Seconds later, he changed his mind.
While toting the remaining copies, she gave every single one away as she traded books for selfies with people hanging out in the sand and enjoying the sun.
Winfrey recently joined forces with best-selling author Dr. Verghese for a new six-part series for her Super Soul podcast that premiered June 21 on YouTube, Apple, and Spotify. Winfrey told PEOPLE that she hopes readers and listeners will obtain "a greater perception of life."
"This concept appeals to doctors and non-doctors. But also, so many people are yearning for having that kind of medical care, having that kind of doctor in your life that comes from first being seen and touched," she says. "That's its own validation."