I have always considered myself slightly better than Oprah book club picks. Now don't get me wrong, I truly appreciate her efforts to get a population of this country reading that wouldn't otherwise. However, they tend to all have the same plots as a Lifetime movie: women in trouble, men fail women, women conquers all...and maybe falls in love. :)
However, the novel I'm reading with class just became an Oprah pick:
http://www.bordersstores.com/features/feature.jsp?file=night_rg
On one hand, it may lend credibility to the book for some kids. On the other...does this devalue the quality of the book? Now that it is mass-marketed to the daytime tv watching population?
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5 comments:
It absolutely does not devalue the book! That's a great book, and very important for kids today to read. There's a sense of “lostness” in our world when it comes to history today. People seem to be more focused on our futures and less respectful of the past. I think it is important, especially for kids from other cultures, to learn about what happened to the generations before us. Night is a great story, and if your kids like it, I encourage you to read Dawn, the sequel. You can borrow my copy if you would like.
And on Oprah...you are right...TOO many people listen to her, and I really don't think she knows what she's talking about. But maybe she's trying to get smarter by reading actual literature!
Considering that Faulkner's As I Lay Dying is also an Oprah pick, I wouldn't worry too much about it.
I hope everyone caught the sarcasm in my response. :)
I guess if she picked As I Lay Dying, I'm probably ok. Actually I went back and looked and lately she has chosen quite a few classics and actual literature. I love Isabel Allende and she has Daughter of Fortune on there.
I am glad that it was on there cause now it will be easy for the students to find their own copy if they decide they want it.
Apparently, she was originally doing more recent books, such as Bernard Schlink's The Reader, which is how I first learnt that she was picking books--excellent book, by the way, even if I did have to read it for a class--until some other author said, basically, that there were no circumstances under which he wanted to be associated with Oprah, and refused to allow his book to be a pick. Then she started picking dead authors.
interesting. i didn't know that, Carson. Thanks!
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