Oprah Winfrey: The Real Story

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Summary: Oprah Winfrey, the real story
Review: An informative, tell-all book about superstar Oprah Winfrey. It was hard to put it down because it was so interesting. It gives a good deal of trivia about her life, especially her humble beginnings. Did you know that she was raised in Mississippi on a pig farm by her grandmother? And her name was meant to be Orpah, a biblical name, but was misspelled on her birth records?
This book gives these types of facts and more!

Rating:
Summary: Oprah is GREAT!....but I'm not so sure this book is
Review: I just finished reading this Oprah book, and I have to be honest. I love Oprah to death and I admire her greatly, but I think this book was poorly written and organized. There were many events in Oprah's life, but in reading this biography, I was confused often as to the exact particulars of many incidents. An incredible book could be written about Oprah's life, but I don't think this book does a very good job at it. I guess I will just have to wait for the day Oprah comes out with her own autobiography!

Rating:
Summary: Oprah is GREAT!....but I'm not so sure this book is
Review: I just finished reading this Oprah book, and I have to be honest. I love Oprah to death and I admire her greatly, but I think this book was poorly written and organized. There were many events in Oprah's life, but in reading this biography, I was confused often as to the exact particulars of many incidents. An incredible book could be written about Oprah's life, but I don't think this book does a very good job at it. I guess I will just have to wait for the day Oprah comes out with her own autobiography!

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Summary: An American Success Story...and a cure for depression!!
Review: I listened to the audiotape with great interest, right about the time I was writing the chapter on Depression in my own book. This clearly shows how even under the most adverse and seemingly hopeless circumstances, personal belief and confidence count for everything and can accomplish anything!! Should be a stirring wake up for those who suffer depression and feel they can't pull themselves out. In "The Care and Feeding of Your Brain" I talk about the various treatments for depression. Once the cycle is started, medical treatment is required. However among my own patients, it is usually something like an example showing "how it is possible" to get them to believe that the feelings of worthlessness are destructive lies from the inside. Once a person has this "proof of example" they acquire the inner strength to the corner with new found belief in themselves and their capabilities. Oprah has battled many adverse circumstances, and even after acheiving what society would term "phenomenal success". She comes through each disaster like a phoenix-bird up from the ashes. Say what you want about her various reputations for being tough and mean...people its a tough world, and it takes a confident and driving woman to concretize her personal dreams! This book has a simple plot: this one amazing woman faces enough bad luck from her truly humble beginnings for any "self-pitier" to write volumes on "my excuse for failure: how the world screwed me". She then consistently and gracefully flies through each challenge carrying seemingly inexhaustible inner strength and the focus of a laser-beam. She ignores all obvious outward indicators of hopelessness,impending doom, and instead of quitting each time when most of us would, she follows her own instincts. Like her or not, her life is an amazing story of what any American is capable of by shedding the shroud of excuses and tales of woe.....All the best to Ms. Winfrey and to Mr. Mair...though she may not be totally pleased with his candid depiction, and even if the stories are not completely accurate, this tome paints a very admirable picture of our greatest contemporary American success story...Kenneth Giuffre MD, author "The Care and Feeding of Your Brain"

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Summary: I'm not a fan of unauthorized biographies.
Review: This is a good book from two points:
One, it explains indepth teh business strategy behind Harpo Studios and those who helped Oprah not only attain her vision but expand it.
Two, the earliest chapters have good information that she has publicly revealed herself about her beginnings in both life and business.
Other than that, I think it's sleazy to write these kinds of books without someone's at the least tacit cooperation. Though this doesn't approach some of the sniping of say a Tamborelli book, there are still visble comments that one could attribute to a jealous/envious/salacious writer....

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Summary: Inspiration for the Downtrodden
Review: What I love about this book is how it shares the painful years of Oprah's life, and how she used her spirit of courage, optimism, faith, and passion to create the life she now has. This book is a tremendous inspiration for anyone who feels that life's so-called obstacles CAN be overcome, once you realize that you are bigger than any obstacle you may face. Oprah is an example of this life lesson. It is about turning your tragedy into triumphs, speaking out, having the guts to face and deal with the circumstances facing you, rather than crumble in the face of adversity. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a real-life example of a human being that CAN triumph, no matter wht they have been through.
Barbara Rose, author of, 'Individual Power' and 'If God Was Like Man'