On the Books: Oprah unveils latest book club pick

We’ve got plenty of book news for today: Oprah chose a new title for her book club, award-winning authors around the world are protesting state surveillance, and more book deals have been announced. (A sports item even made its way into this morning’s headlines.) Read on for more:

Oprah Winfrey has announced a new Oprah’s Book Club 2.0 pick: The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd, about two women on a quest for freedom. “The moment I finished The Invention of Wings, I knew this had to be the next Book Club selection,” Winfrey said in the press release. “These strong female character represent the women that have shaped our history and, through Sue’s imaginative storytelling, give us a new perspective on slavery, injustice and the search for freedom.”

More than 500 authors — including Martin Amis, Ian McEwan, Tom Stoppard, and Margaret Atwood — are lobbying the United Nations over an international bill of digital rights, releasing a joint statement protesting state surveillance. “A person under surveillance is on longer free; a society under surveillance is no longer a democracy,” they wrote. “WE DEMAND THE RIGHT for all people to determine, as democratic citizens, to what extent their personal data may be legally collected, stored and processed, and by whom.” [The Guardian]

Parks/MacDonald Productions has won the movie and TV rights to the book League of Denial: The NFL, Concussions and the Battle for Truth, written by ESPN reporters Mark Fainaru-Wada and Steve Fainuru. PBS Frontline produced a documentary earlier this year on the investigation over football-related injuries based on the book. [Variety]

Actor Terry Crews has inked a deal for his first book Manhood with Ballantine Bantam Dell to be published May 2014. According to the press release, the book will cover Crews’ life and 25-year marriage, “including straight-talking advice for men and the women who love them.”

The winners of 2013’s Roald Dahl Funny Prize, honoring children’s books, have been announced, with Jim Smith’s I Am Still Not a Loser taking the prize in the 7-14 category, and Simon Rickerty’s Monkey Nut winning for ages six and under. [The Telegraph]

The world’s oldest romance novelist, Ida Pollock, has died at the age of 105. Pollock’s daughter said the writer, who authored more than 120 books, died Dec. 3 at a nursing home near her house in Lanreath, England. [USA Today]

Stephen King joined Twitter Friday. “My first tweet,” he posted. “No longer a virgin. Be gentle!” [Twitter]

Charles McGrath discussed what it’s like to judge the National Book Awards. [The New York Times]

Instead of delivering the traditional Nobel Lecture in Literature speech, 2013 winner Alice Munro released a video interview. [Nobelprize.org]

You’ve seen our lists for best fiction and non-fiction; now check out other critics’ picks. Did USA Today‘s Jocelyn McClurg and Bob Minzesheimer select your favorites from 2013? [USA Today]