Living Oprah

October 19, 2009
In this addition to the stunt-blog memoir genre, 35-year-old yoga instructor and performer Okrant spent 2008 living by Oprah's advice as dispensed via her show, magazine and Web site. The author was fascinated with the way Oprah evokes equal parts admiration and disdain, and curious about whether it's “even possible to follow someone else's advice to discover one's authentic self.” Despite skepticism about the validity—or possibility—of finding happiness through Oprah, she embarked on 12 months of Oprah-prescribed activities and expenditures, plus blog updates. Monthly tallies detail activities, expenditures and the author's thoughtful observations. For example, she writes: “I believe Oprah's ultimate goal is to empower women and girls,” but “I think Oprah devalues women by focusing so much on our bodies.” The author is honest about her own experiment-inspired conflicts: as a result of her endeavors, she has a book and has lost weight, but is “almost always a stressed-out, insecure, exhausted mess.” Okrant posits that, in many ways, pursuing a “best life” detracts from “real life.” In the end, while there are few real revelations, Okrant has written a thoughtful, honest examination of her journey.

December 25, 2009
Could you live each day for an entire year following every piece of advice Oprah Winfrey shared with you on her television show, magazine, and web site? That is exactly what Okrant, a yoga instructor and performer with an MFA from the Art Institute of Chicago, did throughout 2008. Her project and subsequent blog and now book were designed to take a firsthand look at the impact of celebrity advice-in this case, Oprah's Live Your Best Lifer advice-on the average woman. Her informal social experiment, dubbed "Living Oprah," was a yearlong journey of dieting, exercising, remodeling her apartment, analyzing her marriage, finding her passion, and experiencing Oprah's "favorite things." Did Oprah's advice work? To a certain extent, yes-Okrant lost weight and garnered a book deal. Yet she struggled throughout between "individuality and what Oprah wants." Verdict Okrant's writing, reminiscent of Laurie Notaro's humorous essays, is sprinkled with wit, honesty, and insight. For fans of memoirs, talk shows, reality TV, and, of course, Oprah.-Donna Smith, Palm Beach Cty. Lib. Syst., FL

Copyright 2009 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2009
One woman's yearlong mission to adhere to the advice Oprah Winfrey offered in her show, magazine and website.

At age 35, Chicago-based yoga teacher and graduate student Okrant kicked off 2008 by swearing to follow all of Oprah's directives and record her experience in a blog,"Living Oprah." She conceived of this quest because, in her view, no one other than Oprah"reaches as deeply and thoroughly into every corner of a woman's existence." The book is organized by month, and each chapter is prefaced with an overview of how much money and time she spent on the projects. The exact measurements of her endeavor are broken down at the end of each chapter in charts recording cent and five-minute increment devoted to watching every Oprah episode, including reruns, taking online quizzes about her happiness and health and adopting a shelter cat. Her journey required an inordinate amount of shopping for"must-have clothing," Oprah-endorsed food items, gardening equipment, a weighted Walkvest ("Oprah said,'Get that thing'"), XM Radio, recommended movie tickets, Dr. Oz–approved supplements, a weekend getaway, home hair dye, etc. Though she grew increasingly exhausted, Okrant maintains a jovial, self-effacing tone. But the results are mixed. The author finds the talk-show host overly focused on physical appearance, and, by June, her"capacity to enjoy repetitive infotainment ha[d] dwindled." Benefits include de-cluttering her apartment, committing to both the Best Life Challenge and a 21-day vegan diet, trying new recipes and invigorating her sex life with her seemingly good-natured, patient husband. The greatest upside, of course, was the attention the author's blog garnered, evidenced by her thousands of readers and unsolicited attention and publicity, including an appearance on NPR, tickets to the Oprah show and a book deal. Unsurprisingly, Okrant's memoir reads like a printed-out blog, tracking quotidian tasks and revelations, the most significant of which is the value of finally turning off her television.

A pleasant but predictable read.

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