Wally Lamb: "The River Is Waiting" | Oprah's Book Club

The Oprah Podcast

Harpo

Society & Culture

4.6 • 711 Ratings

🗓️ 10 June 2025

⏱️ 48 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

BUY THE BOOK! https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-River-Is-Waiting/Wally-Lamb/9781668006399 Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@Oprah?sub_confirmation=1 In this episode of Oprah’s Book Club: Presented by Starbucks, Oprah and bestselling author Wally Lamb discuss his newest book "The River is Waiting"– Publisher’s Weekly says Wally’s “love of storytelling illuminates his prose.” This is the third time Oprah has chosen a Wally Lamb novel for her book club. Oprah’s 115th book club pick is a page turner and emotional journey exploring addiction, forgiveness, grief and ultimately redemption. A tragic accident spurs powerful questions about fatherhood, marriage and friendship. For this conversation, Wally and Oprah are joined by a live audience enjoying an Iced Horchata Oatmilk Shaken Espresso in a Starbucks cafe in Seattle, the city where it all began. Wally talks about character development and his writing process while taking questions from an audience of avid readers. A memorable former Oprah Winfrey Show guest returns after 25 years to recount her harrowing story of grief, healing and love after she accidentally killed three of her children. SUPPORT THE SHOW https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/780304/oprahs-the-life-you-want-book-lovers-journal-by-the-editors-of-oprah-daily/ www.silentbook.club www.nomoreunder.org Follow Oprah Winfrey on Social: Instagram Facebook TikTok Listen to the full podcast: Spotify Apple Podcasts #oprahsbookclub Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, I'm here with Darling Lamb.
0:07.4	Hey, hey, hey. Nice to see y'all. I'm here with Wally Lamb.
0:13.9	Are you guys ready?
0:14.9	Yeah.
0:15.7	Okay, I'm ready to. Oh, y'all looks so cute.
0:21.1	Hi there, everybody.
0:22.4	I'm so glad to meet up with you here for Oprah's Book Club,
0:25.4	presented by Starbucks.
0:27.3	We're in Seattle.
0:31.4	Where we've had such a warm welcome at the iconic Starbucks headquarters,
0:36.1	and where it's also warm in Seattle and gorgeous,
0:40.6	where Starbucks first opened over 50 years ago. And before we get started, I want to say for each
0:46.3	of our book club selection, Starbucks pairs one of their crafted drinks. And this month, it's an iced
0:52.5	horschata oat milk shaken espresso. And this month, it's an iced orchata oat milk shaken espresso and it's summer's newest
0:59.5	sip, a refreshing non-dairy pick-me-up made with Starbucks blonde espresso roast blended with
1:07.0	orchata syrup, which is a fusion of cinnamon and vanilla and sweet rice flavors,
1:13.5	and then shaken with ice and top with creamy oat milk that sounds so delicious.
1:18.4	So now I want to tell you, my 115th book club selection is a novel that stays with you in so many ways.
1:25.6	It is a timely story of unimaginable grief and loss,
1:32.1	mixed with hope, some healing, and ultimately, I think redemption. It is called The River
1:39.4	is Waiting by Wally Lamb. And I have to tell you, this is the third time I've chosen a Wally Lamb novel
1:47.3	for my book club because I just so appreciate his writing mind. And the first was she's come
	...

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