Dale, you still have not answered my question
Some of these authors were already quite famous/popular before Oprah found them. Wasn't Steinbeck one of her picks? So, you avoid Steinbeck because Oprah likes him too? Or you avoid Anne-Marie McDonald (who was well-known in Canada years before Oprah) just because Oprah likes her? Do you avoid food too, because Oprah likes food? Do you avoid red, because Oprah wears that colour? And you say her audience is a bunch of sheep? Sounds like you are. Why not judge a book on its own merits and decide for yourself whether it's worth your time?