I’m really confused about the whole Oprah’s Book Club thing. I started reading the book Middlesex recently and it had an Oprah’s Book Club sticker on it. I was reading it up north and all of my family friends commented on it, saying it was a really good book. I looked up reviews online and got looking into Oprah’s Book club but I just can’t seem to find an explanation for how she chooses the books on her list.
I guess one time Oprah chose a book by an author, Jonathon Franzen, who chose to decline the request because he thought it was going against his beliefs and he didn’t want to get involved in that kind of cheap success. I used to think the same way, that Oprah influenced a ton of people to go out and buy these books but who says they are good books? Even though I still don’t know how Oprah chooses her books and whether they are actually worthy of being bestsellers, I did read a few articles in her favor. I read that some people compared Oprah to a teacher and said that it was positive that at least she is getting lots of people to read. This is kind of like how we were talking in class about joke books that get boys reading but don’t really advance their reading much. Is it worth it to get people reading? From an education standpoint I would think it might be something you have to assess from looking at your classroom. Like by asking yourself how far are your kids from motivation to read and am I desperate enough to introduce fluffy books. So what do you think about Oprah’s Book Club?
I think that Oprah's book club is an ok thing. It is good because it does motivate people to read and then their kids see their parents reading so they may follow in suit. The bad part is that the books may not have the best content, but some of them really do. Essentially Oprah encourages reading and as a future teacher I can support that. As long as her books aren't inappropriate I won't have a problem with it.
ReplyDeleteOprah's book club is fine for some but not for me. People who need motivation to read and have no idea what book to read may love Oprah's book club. This gives them something to be apart of. They can hear discussions and even get friends and family involved. If Oprah approves of it then it must be good, right? Not necessarily, for me i rather find a book on my own (which i never do). I always hoped to pick a book and be engrossed in it. Oprah's book choice may not match up with me (or others). People tend to follow a lot of the trend rather than find it out on their own.Truth be told the books we read in class would not of been my first choice, some i enjoyed and others i didn't. So i suppose Oprah is a teacher to her viewers, hopefully they just don't rely on her book choices alone. The book club can be good finding what literature style you prefer and what author you should look more into. Maybe one day i'll give one of her books a try, after all i gave this class a try.
ReplyDeleteI myself could care less for Oprah’s book club. I’m sure I am being a pessimist, but it seems that it is just another way for her to make money and put her name out there for advertisement. Some would say, why would she do that because she has more than enough money? I don’t know why then, but I think people rely on her for too much guidance sometimes. I think it is part of our quick satisfaction and results society. We don’t want to waste the time to go to the library and look through the books and maybe read a book that they don’t enjoy. They take Oprah’s word for granted and order her book from amazon because it is easy and she said it was good. I’m sure I sound negative and pessimistic, but I guess that’s the beauty of having an opinion.
ReplyDeleteOprah's book club is definitely a pathway for a bestseller because so many people rely on her opinions about life. I think that she considers herself to be a good judge of what quality books are and that is how she chooses her books. Likely, they are given to her staff by people publicizing the book so it may not even really be Oprah who has the initial selection. Who is even to say that she actually has read all of these books in their entirety? I mean that may be a cynical way to look at it but it's in the realm of possibility.
ReplyDeleteI think it's interesting that she chose the book "A Million Little Pieces" because it was being sold as a memoir and when it turned out not to be one she flipped out. Honestly, I bought the book because it sounded interesting, the fact that it isn't true didn't have a huge impact on the story itself. There are some horrific things in that book and I'm actually kind of glad that they aren't true. I understand that Oprah felt used and betrayed, as she should, but I think she could have still given him credit for writing a pretty interesting story. That dude had a lot of gumption to lie to the big O, he's a go getter, that one.