Celebrity
Inspired Book Clubs
The value of celebrity book clubs is debatable. Are they simply to promote the celebrity, or
do they serve a greater public service?
The study conducted by Butler, Cowan and Nilsson found that Oprah’s
highlighted titles propelled public purchase of the book, “…an Oprah
endorsement was enough to bring a book up into the top 150 bestsellers in
America…” (Butler 32). Did the public
swarm to purchase the book simply because a respected celebrity promoted it,
or, is Oprah offering readers advisory services on a grand scale?
The husband and wife book club team, Richard Madeley and Judy
Finnigan, “huge names in the literary world,” dismiss the idea of
self-promotion and emphasize their respectable goal of providing quality books
to the public, “If he [Madeley] and Finnigan keep an eye on the new celebrity
clubs, it's from an interested, not competitive, stance. ‘We're all out there
to get people reading,’ says Madeley,” (Thomas). Thomas
notes also, that although not their main focus, celebrities want the public to
know that they are more than just a pretty face, they’re intelligent people,
too, “These celebrities want to show they are intelligent people and not just
celebrities, that's perhaps their motive for it,” (Thomas).
In February of this year, People
magazine published online a glimpse of celebrity top titles, including one
line quotes from celebrity Instagrams (People).
USA Today published an article celebrating the most highly acclaimed
books of 2017 by Reese Witherspoon, Emma Watson, Sarah Jessica Parker, Emma
Roberts, Lena Dunham and Oprah Winfrey, (Cadden). Clearly, the public is curious about
celebrity reads and motivated by the stars’ positive reviews, propelling book
sales and….well…public reading.
Celebrities are empowered to both inspire and disappoint their
audience. Taking the time to promote
literature and encourage reading is a respectable component of their public
lives. The fact that such an endorsement
drastically affects sales and public popularity is a side effect of our free
will and free market economy. The public chooses how much trust they place in
the celebrity recommendations. The
Butler study evaluated public trust in Oprah by comparing the Oprah books
rankings, “…’announcement week’ rank may be better than ‘best rank’ at
indicating how much consumers trusted Oprah…” (Butler 29). Celebrities that promote literature serve a
public good on a grand scale, but do not control the effects of such recommendations. The public has the ability to either embrace
or discard celebrity book suggestions.
Works
Cited
Butler, Richard, J. et. al. “From Obscurity to Bestseller:
Examining the Impact of Oprah’s Book Club Selections.” Publishing
Research Quarterly, Winter 2005, p. 23-34.
Cadden, Mary, “Reese, Lena, Sarah Jessica and Oprah Told Us
the Hottest Books to Read in 2017,” USA Today, 22 Dec. 2017, www.usatoday.com/story/life/entertainthis/2017/12/22/reese-lena-sarah- jessica-and-oprah-told-us-hottest-books-read-2017/758893001/. Accessed 20 Feb. 2018.
People Staff. “The Celebrity Book Club: See What Your Favorite Stars Are Reading.” People,
18 Feb. 2018, http://people.com/books/celebrity-book-club/jane-fonda-super-woman-rx. Accessed 19 Feb.
2018.
Thomas, Rebecca. “Celebrity
Book Clubs: Page Turner or Dust
Collector?” BBC, 30 June 2017, www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-40157799. Accessed 19 Feb. 2018.
April,
ReplyDeleteThis is true...the otherwise highly acclaimed book that misses the celebrity's eye, falls to the side. I wonder if the increase in celebrity book clubs will lead/ or even force authors to market to the celebrity's themselves...maybe even alter their style in hopes of catching celebrity praise? Thank you!
Lisa,
ReplyDeleteI also wrote about celebrity book clubs and I agree that it does help promote the sales of books and celebrity status. However, I like how you included that recommendations are not always good. Just because it is on Oprah's booklist doesn't mean it's a great book on everybody's scale. Like April said, it could be a popularity contest as well. I guess it depends if the celebrity is a true reading advocate.
I see celebrity book clubs/celebrity reads the same I look at reviews in general. I don't take any of them too seriously. People think if a celebrity is reading a book then it must be really good. They are normal people just like you and me, same as those who review books. We all have our interests and reading tastes, and just because we are reading book does not mean we end up liking that book. I heard a few patrons say to me they saw a celebrity reading a specific book on social media, therefore they need to read it, too. If that's what it takes to get people to read, then so be it.
ReplyDeleteI am in complete agreement. Generally, I'm of the opinion that anything that gets people reading more books they might not have if left to their own devices is a good thing. You laid out the benefits and drawbacks of celebrity book clubs very succinctly.
ReplyDeleteExcellent points, I think pretty much anything that gets people to read is good and hopefully once they get back in the habit of picking up books maybe they won't just rely on celebrity endorsements and may make their own decisions.
ReplyDelete