A Ramble through Smilie Land

So I was thinking and reflecting and it occurs to me that we the book suppliers/distributers has a massive impact on what people read.
EVen with open access libraries ikt what we suggest and recommend what we choose to stock, how we arrange the books that influence what people read.
I know that the staff at my library has be responsible for a number of 'rages' of books in not our library area but gone out across to other areas, first the Evanovichs ( but the bestsellers anyway), then there was the Agatha Rasisn and the elizabeth peters, oh the JOanna Flukes, Mary Jancie Davidsonn we somehow manged to get half the town and then half the county library staff hooked on those... and just think what else we could do?


And book shops... well I have a friend who was recently sent on a selling coursde and she was taught how to hold and stroke the bok to get people to buy it, subliminal messages. Now me I dont strioke books but I have notied if I have a book I happen to think is a good choice for the borrower Ill tend to tap it.

If you are now thinking well this is why I go to Amazon I can get any book I want, they dont infleunce me, then you'd be wrong. Amazon is probably the worst of the lot for freedom and informewd cxhoice, its closed access, so you either have know what you want or you follow what they think yyou might want , you dont really get to look and think OOOh that looks good , randomly.

And then the other path what makes someone reccomend a book to you? I know How I work , I think most library staff have a similar techniqyue we look at yoiu and then we think are you Mr three thrillers one western twice a week, Miss groseme murders, Mrs Scifi, Mr 11 romances a fortnight? And then we go oh yes we have a new one in or you might this is similar.
Or are yopu and old lady then probilitry is that youd like a Family saga ala Cookson. But then recently Ive noticed these bizzare little happenings, 80 year old reading Twilight a **warning spoiler-ish** a teen vamopire romance thing that is way too blah lookintg from the blurb for even me. And then these people who usally wont touch anything but 'nice' family sagas and gentrle thrillers stumbling across this series of horro/romance/erotica things weve had in recently and it makes you wonder. Howe many people miss books theyd potentially love because precoinceptions?

So are we ever free to choose books without the influence of others?