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So you’re a wizard, Harry, and it’s the first day of a new school year at Hogwarts. It’s time to pick your extracurricular activities, and you’re not quite athletic enough to have made the Quidditch team. Why not go out for debate?

Oprah launched her famous book club in September 1996 with The Deep End of the Ocean by debut novelist Jacquelyn Mitchard. Since then, a sticker bearing this tastemaker’s name can ensure major book sales and placement on bestseller lists. All it took was Oprah Winfrey gushing about it.

When you look at the complete list, you can see how wide the range of her choices can be. But somehow, The Oprah Book Club has gotten a reputation for being “chick lit.” We think this rep does the list a major disservice, because her picks were actually a lot more bad-ass than that. Allow us to explain:

How do you become one of the most celebrated actors of your generation? Turn down the dud offers. But just for a blog post, imagine how the world might be different if Bill Murray had decided to take these roles.