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322 of 372 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Move over Leona -- there's a new Queen of Mean., April 13, 2010
She seems so nice. But mercy --- she's nasty. That's the message in Kitty Kelley's new book. You may think Oprah is warm. She seems that way. But she's aloof. She gives everything to the camera.
Oprah has lots of secrets, according to Kelley. The book shows how Oprah is demanding and somewhat lazy. The woman who shows such compassion and love, so much humility and friendship, is really a diva with a big ego, big appetite and a case of just plain nasty. That is if you believe Kelley's book. And since Kelley has never been successfully sued over any of her books, I'm inclined to believe her. True, she's lawyered up. But, so are her subjects.
Kelley doesn't really have what I'd call a bombshell in her new book about the queen of talk. Much of it is innuendo and things we've heard, even things Oprah herself has said. For example, Oprah may be gay. Or, she may not be. I guess Kelley couldn't pin that one down. And really - who cares?
But Kelley quotes Rosie O'Donnell (from a 2009 Howard Stern interview) saying Winfrey and King are the "emotional equivalent of a gay couple," and author Erica Jong saying, "I would not be surprised if Oprah is gay." Oprah comes off as more asexual than gay or straight.
There is a lot here about the "real" Oprah as seen by her father and others. We get a glimpse of Oprah that makes her less than appealing. Would we expect this of a Kitty Kelley book? Yes, probably. On the other hand, Kelley has done her homework and held 850 interviews. The book is full of footnotes. It's well documented. Oprah comes off as self-centered and arrogant -- not at all likable. She doesn't come off as the person so loved by so many. But, should this surprise us? Have we not all read Machiavelli? People are seldom what they seem.
The queen often talks about herself in the third person. For example, "Oprah does not walk." "Oprah does not do stairs." I gotta wonder, maybe O needs to walk and take the stairs. Might help with the well-known weight problem. Know what I mean?
The queen even had a bathtub made to fit her body. And a gardener tells Kelley that Ms. O got too fat to use the pool at her Indiana farm. She was afraid of being photographed by paparazzi in all her girth.
The bottom line is, you'll have to draw your own conclusions about Oprah. If you love her, you won't like what you read. If you hate her, you'll enjoy it. If you're like me and don't care one way or the other, it's a fun book to read.
To me, not reading the latest Kitty Kelley book would be like saying no to dark chocolate. I just can't do it.
We get a sense of the real Oprah in the following quote from the book:
"She may be admired by the world, but I know the truth," Vernon Winfrey, Oprah's father, told Ms. Kelley. "So does God and so does Oprah. Two of us remain ashamed."
No one in Oprah's family believes her stories of child abuse, according to the interviews. But because she's rich and powerful, they won't contradict her colorful stories.
Kelley's book, according to The Washington Times, ". . . has an initial printing of 500,000 copies. Kelley said some major news organizations have refused to schedule interviews for fear of "Oprah's power and displeasure."
Like the Wise Guys, Ms. O has Omertà going for her. No one wants to touch this book in the media. Well, I suspect there are many outside the media who will do just that. The publisher should crank up the presses for a second run.
Highly recommended.
- Susanna K. Hutcheson
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68 of 77 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Well-written, worth the read, April 28, 2010
I have been a so-so Oprah fan over the years ... I always felt she
was a pretty fascinating woman, deserving of much praise for her
help of others. I also felt that "0" was disingenuous a great deal
of the time...and I was turned off by her preaching platitudes to the
masses time and time again. I was also bothered by her oft times
cold/critical tone when interviewing guests who somehow triggered her
distain. I always felt that this was one person you would NOT want
to tangle with. Well, Ms. Kelley pretty much proves that point to
the max. I came away from this book marveling at the tales of utter
pettiness and revenge visited on those folks who DARED to offend
(purposely or not) the Queen. I have read elsewhere, and this book
confirms, that Oprah was a very open, friendly, down-to-earth person
in the beginning of her career. The old adage that "power corrupts"
seems apt here. With her history of hard times and her obvious dis-
content with herself both physically and emotionally and spiritually,
the stage is set for much pompous prosthelytizing. I find the bile
rising in my throat when Oprah is on and she lectures to the masses
to "be the best that you can be" -- with all her cheesy ways to do
just that. I am a person very interested in psycho-spiritual growth
and all, but Oprah is acting like she is a Goddess, when in actuality,
she comes across as very "Psych 101" in consciousness. All that being
said, "0" remains a pretty amazing person...many good deeds under her belt,
even if they fed her narcissistic side, they still help others. Bravo
to Ms. Kelley for taking on the juggernaut that is Oprah.
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25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not Like Kelley's Other Unauthorized Biographies, May 28, 2010
I've read Kitty Kelley's other unauthorized biographies and sadly this one does not measure up to her others. The book is odd in that there are no great revelations and yet it is still an entertaining read. I was at no time bored, but also not completely absorbed in the words.
Apparently, Kelley has encountered a subject who carefully and completely sealed off a great deal of information through iron-clad confidentiality agreements with anyone and everyone crossing her path, including relatives. Information is available from a variety of sources yet the book feels, although interesting, not quite complete. Learning of her early prostitution, drug use, etc. helped flesh out a portrait of her, but most of the other shocking revelations are already known through Oprah's well timed public confessions.
People who reach this level of success are usually shrewd, single minded and manipulative, so it isn't surprising that these are characteristics Oprah apparently possesses. Vernon Winfrey's statements about Oprah, both as a child and as a woman, were fascinating information and added substance to the biography, but the book needed more. The fault doesn't rest with Kelley. From the research she did it is obvious it wasn't laziness or a lack of trying on her part that more wasn't revealed. Oprah's great wealth and power have effectively muzzled people she wants muzzled whether legally obligated by a confidentiality agreement, or not.
A breakdown of the reviews posted here finds almost an equal split between five star and one star reviews. Perhaps the real story is in the rest of the numbers -- those of us between either extreme. I have no strong feelings about Oprah, either good or bad and the book left that ambivalence unchanged. This is not a typical Kitty Kelley tell-all, can't-put-it-down book. So, there is some disappointment in that. But, the book is also interesting -- at least mildly interesting. So perhaps the best way to decide whether the book is worthy of your time is to factor in the level of interest in Oprah herself. The book will be more compelling if the reader loves or hates her.
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