What to Do About William Faulkner
William Faulkner and his wife, Estelle, stand outside their home, in Oxford, Mississippi, in the spring of 1955. (Bettmann / Getty)In June 2005, Oprah Winfrey announced a surprising choice as the 55th selection for her influential book club. The coming months would be, she proclaimed, a “Summer of Faulkner,” focused on three of his novels—As I Lay Dying, The Sound and the Fury, and Light in August, available in a special 1,100-page box set weighing in at two pounds.