Ted Rall bitch-slaps Oprah

Rall’s latest column is even better than a lot of his political stuff.

The bitch-slapping of Oprah is for the crapola she touts on her Book Club.

And, the bitch-slapping is not only for her, but for the crapola.

Besides shooting fish in a barrel (that’s you, James Frey), Rall takes on a more highly touted name or two (that’s you, Cormac McCarthy), and a review source or two (that’s you, The New York Times Book Review):

Like many of Oprah's picks, and like many of the titles promoted such influential mainstream venues as The New York Times Book Review, (McCarthy’s “The Road”) is a book written in the form of a good book – spare prose, brooding tone, and who doesn't love a good post-whatever societal meltdown tale? – that is not actually good.

If you go to the column and read an excerpt, you can’t but agree with Rall. And, if you’re a discerning reader, you might agree with this, too:

Readers who rely on popular hype to choose books often come away disappointed. A few may decide to deep deeper, but most won't. Burned readers become non-readers.

Indeed.