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Thursday's Thread of Thought
Nov. 1st, 2007 06:52 amSo I go from reading a book where the main character loses her virginity quite casually to one of her random guys to reading a book where the main character doesn't let her fiancee do as much as touch her before their wedding and finally loses her virginity in a long, drawn-out scene.
( About the books )
I just don't get how a book becomes a bestseller simply because of the endorsement of someone like Oprah (just goes to show how much power she has over the public). Why would someone go out of their way to read a book just because a celebrity tells them to?
Now, to be fair (the altruistic librarian side of me coming out now), Oprah's Book Club is a good thing because it actually gets people to read and *gasp* actually go to the library. Yes, one of the big requests I got at the WPL was the complete list of books on Oprah's Book Club list. So yeah, I guess my previous statement made me sound like a complete snob and contradictory to my profession...and even I sometimes look to other people and other sources for recommendations in music, food, etc. It's just that the impression I get with Oprah's Book Club is that people don't even try to figure out what the book is about or think about whether they will like the book or not. They will read the book simply because it's on the list and therefore some sort of status symbol. This is why people looking for a book they will like should take advantage of a public library's reader's advisory services (woohoo!).
Anywayz, this entry got a LOT longer than I had intended it to, which goes to show one of the things that I get excited/worked up about.
One more day till Glorious Friday!
PS-It was raining just a little while ago, which was making me dread going out to wait for the bus, but it seems to have slowed down or stopped altogether. YAY!
( About the books )
I just don't get how a book becomes a bestseller simply because of the endorsement of someone like Oprah (just goes to show how much power she has over the public). Why would someone go out of their way to read a book just because a celebrity tells them to?
Now, to be fair (the altruistic librarian side of me coming out now), Oprah's Book Club is a good thing because it actually gets people to read and *gasp* actually go to the library. Yes, one of the big requests I got at the WPL was the complete list of books on Oprah's Book Club list. So yeah, I guess my previous statement made me sound like a complete snob and contradictory to my profession...and even I sometimes look to other people and other sources for recommendations in music, food, etc. It's just that the impression I get with Oprah's Book Club is that people don't even try to figure out what the book is about or think about whether they will like the book or not. They will read the book simply because it's on the list and therefore some sort of status symbol. This is why people looking for a book they will like should take advantage of a public library's reader's advisory services (woohoo!).
Anywayz, this entry got a LOT longer than I had intended it to, which goes to show one of the things that I get excited/worked up about.
One more day till Glorious Friday!
PS-It was raining just a little while ago, which was making me dread going out to wait for the bus, but it seems to have slowed down or stopped altogether. YAY!
