Journey to Beloved
by
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Editorial Reviews
For almost 10 years Oprah Winfrey has pursued her dream of bringing Toni Morrison's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Beloved, to the big screen. Now that dream has been realized, and the process is described in Journey to Beloved. The most extraordinary thing about this production diary, and the essay that prefaces it, is the extent to which it reveals Oprah's private struggles. As director Jonathan Demme writes in the foreword, we all have an image of Oprah as a "Major Public Figure," and one might approach this book, and even the movie, with preconceptions about her. These preconceptions evaporate immediately. She is filled with doubts about her ability to play the central role of Sethe. Surrounded by more experienced moviemakers, from Demme to costar Danny Glover, she worries that she lacks the skill and the strength to carry a project that is so important to her. Oprah obviously feels a deep spiritual connection with the story she is committing to film. This connection, which is shared with the cast and crew of Beloved, comes through clearly in every diary entry:
Tomorrow is the first day of dialogue. Am I ready? I think so. I bring the force and grace of history and pain with me, carrying the Ancestors in my heart, hoping, but also knowing, they, too, carry me.... I ask God for grace, and the power of the spirits whose lives went unnoticed, demeaned and diminished by slavery. Calling on you. Calling on you. I try to prepare in terms of logic, reasoning, what would [Sethe] be thinking--chronologically--but I really believe I can call her up. Her and so many others. I'm counting on them.
Journey to Beloved is filled with wonderful, powerful, black-and-white production images by award-winning photographer Ken Regan. These, and the text that they accompany, lift this book far above anything that could be called a movie tie-in. It is the moving record of a journey from the birth of a dream to its fulfillment. --Simon Leake
Customer Reviews
RAVE REVIEW, 2000-07-25
by SusanSpenser (Enid, OK USA)
I expected this "coffee table" book to be little more than Eye Candy. I was mistaken! Once again Oprah Winfrey leads the reader on a journey of positive growth. This book was written by Ms Winfrey as a diary during her participation in BELOVED. She takes the reader into her thoughts, her doubts and ultimately, her triumph of producing her "baby". Ken Regan's photographs of the making of the movie BELOVED are clear & allow a glimpse of behind the scenes activities. Are you an Oprah fan? Do you want to delve into her thought processes? Then JOURNEY TO BELOVED is a must read; even if you have not seen the movie or read Toni Morrison's book, you will find your time well spent in reading & viewing JOURNEY TO BELOVED.
We love Oprah, 1999-04-14
What needs to be said? The book is great, the movie is great and this book is fabulous because now we can read what Oprah was going through, during the shoot of the movie. Oprah we love you!!
THE ULTITMATE BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF HUMAN SLAVERY, 1999-02-16
by auntgin@caspers.com (CASPER,WYOMING)
THE STORY OF OPRAH'S DREAM TO WRITE THIS BOOK,BECAME EQUALLY AS IMPORTANT FOR ME TO READ AS IT DID FOR HER TO WRITE.I AM IN AW OF BLACK PEOPLE EVERY WHERE,WHO ARE ABLE TO FEEL THESE FEELING CONCERNING THERE HERATAGE,AND BE ABLE TO TELL THE WORLD IN A BOOK WITH THE LOVE IN WHICH SHE WROTE.I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR EVER SO LONG TO SEE THIS MOVIE,AND HAVE JUST ORDERED THE BOOK.I CANT BELIEVE,MY BOOK WILL MOVE ME AS OPRAHS JOURNAL DID,BUT I CAN HOPE. THANK YOU OPRAH.AUNT GIN
A tiresome, sophomoric journey, 1998-12-03
Oprah's "journal"? She knew we'd be reading it and that's exactly how it reads. Her "innermost" thoughts were, as always, for an outermost audience. I knew what she'd say before she said it. What a ripoff!
The best of its ilk, 1998-10-09
I always forget the conventional wisdom about books and the movies they inspire. Are the books always better than the movies (e.g., "Dune", "Lolita") or are the movies always better than the books (i.e., "The Ice Storm", "Ten Commandments"). The people at Hyperion have started a whole new category: Books about the making of a movie from a novel that are better than the movie and the novel themselves. "Journey to Beloved" is a fantastic insightful look (wonderful photos) at (I paraphase Zefferelli here) the transformation of one work of art into another work of art. I admit I wasn't a huge fan of "Beloved" in either form, but this book was a lot of fun nonetheless. I never had to ask myself what was going on--a marked change from my bout with the novel years ago.
Book Details
| Pages | 165 |
| Edition | 1st |
| ISBN | 0786864583 |
| Publisher | Hyperion Books |
| Publication Date | 1998-11 |
| Sales Rank | #1370433 |
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