I was working in a library and considered it totally annoying when we received Oprah's nominations for a good book.
A. Did she have any credentials for choosing books?
B. As if others hadn't already suggested some of these books were/weren't worth reading.
C. I didn't like being "told" to display a book just because the Queen of daytime television said I should!
The best thing was ... the big county library donated 1 of Oprah's books to us (the small county library) because they would buy multiple copies to keep up with the crowd.
Thus, NO
was spent on the books.
It does sadden me that there are talented authors who sell minimum books & A Million Little Pieces sold over 3.5 million copies and spent 15 weeks on the New York Times Non-Fiction Best Sellers list. I wonder how embarrassed and aggravated the Harpo employees were after they realized Oprah had been duped by Frey? I'm hoping she bought them some caviar, Godiva chocolates, and jelly-filled doughnuts to make up for the travesty!
Now that I'm an adult and overly "mature" it is interesting to see how my reading habits have altered. The romance (unless it is just part of something more fast-paced and suspenseful) has flown the coop and been replaced. My fanciful girly days are behind me as I have probably entered middle-age - YIKES! - did I just say I'm old? (something my teenagers have been telling me for years) Can't wait to see what I'll scrutinize in the next few decades. BRING IT ON!
I remember thinking the same thing when the controversy over "A Million Little Pieces" came out! I really felt disgusted that so many libraries and so many people had wasted all that money on those books! Thanks for the recommendation! Ha, not!
ReplyDeleteYou get a doughnut, you get a doughnut.
ReplyDeleteLooking over the list, I think I have some of the books but have only read East of Eden and a few other classics. Was never really an Oprah follower.
I too am not an Oprah follower and have not read a book because she "endorsed" it. I read a book because it appeals to me on some level or it came highly recommended by someone I trust (a friend or family member). Oprah is not someone I would put a lot of faith in for book recommendations but she does have a huge following of people that do.
ReplyDeleteI think that you've hit on a really great point - most people rely on friends/family for book recommendations. However, Oprah made a career of making herself seem as if she were a trusted friend, even if she only appeared through the television screen. If the average viewer considered Oprah to be more of a trusted friend than a talk show host, that explains why so many people would take her book recommendations seriously.
DeleteI don't think I have ever even looked at Oprah's book list. I agree with your list--why is Oprah an authority on books? What if everyone who liked to read just started making recommended book lists and expected everyone to read them as well? There are so many great books out there, and I choose to find them in other ways than asking celebrities.
ReplyDeleteI find it ironic that I wrote about this very topic, "I don't want Oprah to tell me what to read" before I came across your blog. Billionaires have too much influence on what happens- not that they are bad people or anything, but the power should not be concentrated in so few people's hands. I don't really even like the books she recommends! She can keep it to hersefl.
ReplyDelete