Celebs’ books…
While I read a lot of non-fiction (see some of my recommendations on my “Steve’s Bookshelf” web page), I avoid celebs’ books as if they were a more virulent variant of Covid-19. Of course, they might not even qualify as non-fiction because the excellent ghost writers hired are given the toxic task of putting lipstick on a pig, i.e. serve the PR function of improving the celebs’ images, which often means at least lying by omission.
Of course, these excellent ghost writers give the supposed “authors” of these books free rein to enjoy their narcissism in a more respectable setting than on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites. But the question must be asked: Can readers find anything worth reading in celebs’ books beyond a plethora of first-person pronouns? Maybe a better question: Can readers learn anything worthwhile beyond being blatantly narcissistic? Many readers know how to do that already, after all; Facebook is well-populated by them.
I should temper my critique slightly by saying that biographies and autobiographies by celebs could in principle be worthwhile. We can learn from someone who has lived their life well and made a difference because that can motivate a reader to do the same. In this sense, if the celeb is a politico or philanthropist, this can produce a multiplier effect.
Frankly though, celebs’ books wouldn’t even exist if the Big Five couldn’t make money off them. They feed off the celebrity of the “authors,” and use that to appeal to the prurient readers who are fans of such narcissists. The Big Five make a ton of money off those books, and I’m sure that most readers who read them rarely read anything else worthwhile. There are plenty of good books out there, even some published by the Big Five, and they represent a higher quality of reading entertainment.
My reading advice about celebs’ books is the same for all books; it’s a variation on that X-Files theme: Trust no celeb’s book! More than likely it’s trash. It’s also likely to have all the negatives I’ve mentioned above. Your reading time is valuable. Spend it wisely.
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