Amazon occasionally sends me information about books based on what they think they know about my tastes. Their guesses are founded upon my previous purchases, and they fervently hope that I will buy again. And again. Prompted by a friendly bit of attention.
Their recommendations are tailored to the individual consumer.
It is both a clever marketing ploy and good customer service, and as regards suggested volumes, sometimes they’re spot on.
So I opened today’s e-mail from Amazon happily.
"Dear Amazon.com Customer,
As someone who has purchased Christian books...."
Say what? The heck you say!?! I did what now? Huh? When?
My last order consisted of two authors who could not possibly have caused any confusion on that score: Rabbi Jeremy Rosen and Abdelkader Benali.
The order before that, back in 2005, was the Kitzur Shulchan Aruch - a two volume translation.
Before that, Sabbatai Sevi by Gershom Gerhard Scholem in mid 2005, Xena Warrior Princess and Forever Knight (two tv series cd sets for Savage Kitten's birthday), a translation of Ramban's commentary on the Torah, plus a copy of The Religious Thought of Hasidism: Text and Commentary (Sources and Studies in Kabbalah, Hasidism, and Jewish Thought) by Norman Lamm, and Halakhic Mind, by Joseph B. Soloveitchik.
I also bought some light reading about the Sfas Emes at that time.
Oh, and about four years ago I bought On Thrones of Gold: Three Javanese Shadow Plays.
Maybe it was that last item. Yeah for sure, Hindu-Javanese puppet epics look a lot Christian to the casual observer, I bet.
So anyhow, Amazon cheerily continues their e-mail with:
"you might be interested to know that the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) has announced the 2007 winners of the Christian Book Award, with Karen Kingsbury's "Ever After" taking home the Christian Book of the Year."
Christian book awards? There is such a thing?
Oddly, I find myself indeed interested.
Curiosity at peak, I click on the icon and am taken directly to the Amazon page.
"In this moving sequel to Even Now, Emily Anderson falls deeply in love with a young Army reservist who is about to serve in Iraq. At the same time, Emily’s parents seem on the verge of losing all they had gained. Will heartbreaking tragedy be the turning point for all of them? ---[CUT]--- In Ever After, bestselling author Karen Kingsbury has created a moving sequel to Even Now. The book opens as Emily Anderson, now twenty years old, attends college on a soccer scholarship. Through an off-campus job at Fort Lewis, Emily meets a young Army reservist, Justin Baker. Their love—deep, emotional, and built on the foundation of a shared faith.........."
Amazon really thinks that I'm likely to buy this book?
A patriotic fundamentalist Christian tearjerker is the best guess they can come up with for my tastes and preferences?
Gentlepersons, the definite suspicion that there is probably NO SEX in this book is the least of my objections.
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2 comments:
you should buy this to throw them off the trail...
I had no idea that wholesome Xtian girls played soccer, which is well known to be a furrin, indeed Sapphic pastime (and yes, I am well aware that the word "Sapphic" would stretch the comprehension of the vast majority of Ms. Kingsbury's readership [who would also find the term "Ms." to be objectionable {if not downright Hilaryesque}]).
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