Oprah ramps up 2016 book club with second pick in two months: ‘Love Warrior’ by Glennon Doyle Melton

Oprah Winfrey on Tuesday unveiled the latest pick for her book club: “Love Warrior,� a memoir by Glennon Doyle Melton, the author, motivational speaker and founder of the online community Momastery.

Winfrey made the announcement in a video on her website. “It’s so funny!� Winfrey said. “You’re going to absolutely love this book and the spirit of it. It’s daring and it’s raw and it’s filled with a lot of naked, and I do mean naked, truths.�

This is the second pick this year for Oprah’s Book Club. In August, she selected Colson Whitehead’s novel “The Underground Railroad,� which quickly shot up bestseller lists. A work of serious fiction about slavery that is also a timely commentary on being black in America, the book also landed on President Obama’s reading list.

Oprah’s two selections are distinctly different. “Love Warrior� recounts Melton’s struggle to keep her family together after she learned that her husband had been unfaithful. It’s a sequel, of sorts, to her bestselling book “Carry On, Warrior,� published in 2013. She regularly gives motivational speeches to audiences on topics such as addiction recovery, spirituality and family relationships.

In “Love Warrior,� Melton decides to stay with her spouse and keep working on their relationship.

But last month, just weeks before the book’s publication date, Melton revealed on Momastery that she and her husband have decided to separate.

“My God, we suffered. I was broken, just completely shattered. And then we healed. It was beautiful,� Melton wrote. “But what can happen over time is this: You wake up one day and realize that you have put yourself back together completely differently. That you are whole, finally, and strong – but you are now a different shape, a different size.�

In a short interview with Winfrey posted on Amazon’s Oprah’s Book Club page, Melton seemed to address the dissolution of her marriage. “Some loves are just meant for a season, and they aren’t going to bloom again,�she said. “But what happens with that kind of love is that it goes back into the soil to create richer, newer soil for the next love to bloom. It’s not that it was wasted. No love is wasted, and love never fails.�

In her post on Momastery, Melton acknowledged that the timing of her separation announcement was potentially awkward. “And the advice from many is: Wait, G. Just wait till after the book has launched to reveal this,� she wrote. “This is a MARRIAGE book – you can’t break up before it even comes out! Glennon – it will affect sales. It will affect your career, your success. And you will listen to this advice. And you will decide: No.�

As she did with Whitehead’s novel, Winfrey timed the announcement of her latest pick to coincide with the book’s release date. “Love Warrior� is officially on sale now from publisher Flatiron Books.