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Entertainment December 28, 2016
Looking for a good book to read by the fire during the holidays? Let these celebrities give you the scoop on the best literature. If you didn’t get any of new books for Christmas, scour their recommendations so you can #TreatYoSelf to a great read.
Hollywood has a terrible tendency of focusing on a woman’s body rather than her brain. But in addition to their beautiful magazine covers and red-carpet looks, many female celebrities are educated, well-read and not ashamed to be show off their smarts. These ladies are not afraid to speak up about their favorite books and speak out about encouraging education.
Here is ENTITY’s list of top five female celebrity intellectuals.
With her famous book club, Oprah may be the most famous female celebrity intellect. Oprah’s Book Club offers book reviews and reading lists to encourage fans to read more. Though her established book club does not have an Instagram account, Vogue points out that Instagram has inspired other online book clubs and increased readership among the younger crowd.
Oprah is also set to team up with The Flatiron Books to launch an nonfiction imprint. She jokingly admits that while some women obsess over shoes, she has “a weakness for books” and binge-reads literature. She has also shared that reading gave her hope and showed her life’s opportunities.
“Books were my pass to personal freedom. I learned to read at age three, and there discovered was a whole world to conquer that went beyond our farm in Mississippi,” Oprah said.
READ MORE: Oprah’s Favorite Things for #WomenThatDo (VIDEO)
Emma Watson is one of the first celebrities to follow in Oprah’s footsteps and launch a book club of her own, “Our Shared Shelf.” The “Harry Potter” actress is leading the way in encouraging millennial readership, according to Wall Street Journal.
“As part of my work with UN Women, I have started reading as many books and essays about equality as I can get my hands on. There is so much amazing stuff out there! Funny, inspiring, sad, thought-provoking, empowering,” Watson wrote on the book club’s Goodreads webpage. “I’ve been discovering so much that, at times, I’ve felt like my head was about to explode … I decided to start a Feminist book club, as I want to share what I’m learning and hear your thoughts too.”
The Brown University graduate is also a passionate advocate of education. She is a proud supporter of female students in the STEM field and encourages young women to channel their intellectual sides.
READ MORE: Emma Watson Promotes Women in STEM With ‘The Circle’ (VIDEO)
USA Today refers to Reese Witherspoon as “the undisputed queen of the celebrity bookworm trend.” The actress isn’t afraid to plug books from comedian Mindy Kaling’s “Why Not Me?” to Liane Moriarty’s “Big Little Lies.” She will also be starring in a television adaption of the latter, similar to her acting gig on book-turned-movie “Wild.”
Witherspoon has taken her knack of recommending books to social media, sparking the hashtag #RWBookClub and an Instagram account for the project. Though there is speculation that social media is leading to the decline of readership among millennials, Witherspoon proves that it’s cool to pose with your nose in a book.
Though she never graduated, the actress studied English literature at Stanford University back in the ’90s. Her new venture may be a way of reconnecting with those roots. Her efforts in promoting literature have even led to a feature in Wall Street Journal, seen below in an Instagram Witherspoon posted.
Winslet has acted in a lot of films, but she done her fair share of reading, too. After completing extra research for her film based on the book “Revolutionary Road,” she describes her experience with the emotional read to O Magazine.
“You see how happiness can be reignited in a relationship that’s starting to go sour, but Frank and April insist on seeing themselves as a kind of golden couple, destined for a more glamorous life,” she told O Magazine about her favorite book. “It’s really a story about disappointment—and how that can destroy one’s soul.”
The celebrity also reads for fun. For those looking for a psychological thriller, she recommends “Therese Raquin” by one of her favorite authors Emile Zola, which she describes as “a life-changing book that everyone should read.”
As the writer of the hit HBO show “Girls,” Lena Dunham certainly knows the power of words. But did you know this actress is also an avid reader? She will be working with Jenni Konner, an executive producer on her show, to create a Random House publishing imprint titled “Lenny.”
“While we love our home on the Internet, Jenni and I are both voracious readers (of books and book reviews) who are constantly trading titles and allowing them to stir us creatively,” Dunham told BuzzFeed. “Our friendship often doubles as a book club.”
The name of the publishing imprint was inspired by Dunham’s feminist website and newsletter, Lenny Letter. In addition to educational articles, the platform offers book recommendations and contributions from authors such as Jessica Knoll on “Lit Thursday.” Though some of her book suggestions spark controversy on social media, Dunham opens up the conversation about education through literature.
READ MORE: ‘Girls’ Final Season Trailer Is ‘Last Chance to Get It Almost Right’ (VIDEO)
