By Their Amazon Recommended Categories Shall You Know Them

Here are the categories in which Amazon wishes, based on my purchases over several years, to sell me books and CDs:

Bach, Johann Sebastian; Beethoven, Ludwig van; Chamber Music; Christianity; Classical; Debussy, Claude - Works by Debussy; Dickens, Charles; Experimental; Historical; History; Humanities; Islam; Nocturnes; Nonfiction; Philosophy & Social Aspects; Political; Research; Social Sciences; Sociology; Sonatas; Sonatinas; Suites; Theosophy; Young Adult.

I’ve ordered music CDs, and my taste in music is clear. Subtract these to learn my reading preferences.

I’ve ordered books for my teenage daughter, who has no credit card; subtract these.

I ordered the Dickens for another teacher at school. Subtract this.

I'm left with this:

Christianity; Experimental; Historical; History; Humanities; Islam; Nonfiction; Philosophy & Social Aspects; Political; Research; Social Sciences; Sociology; Theosophy.

I’m surprised not to see “Education” as a category, but it turns out that “Experimental” refers to the kind of books on education that I read, as does “Philosophy and Social Aspects.” True enough.

I’m sort of surprised to see “Christianity” and “Islam” there, but then I recall that I spent several months contemplating a book on the separation of church and state as the concept applies in education, and I also spent some time contemplating writing about fundamentalism as a modern condition. Books in these categories are on my shelves but don’t represent ongoing interests.

The rest makes sense but, seen as a list, paints me as a dryer, more academic reader than I think I am—and I realize that I get all the fiction I read by reaching across to the night table on my wife’s side of the bed. And the books I buy in Amazon’s categories, I buy for specific, usually research-related, reasons.

Which is to say, Amazon's list paints a one-sided view of me, and I’m unlikely to buy from Amazon’s recommendations because I’ve gone there to purchase one specific book. Amazon’s view of me—the thoughtless, algorithm-generated “view” represented by no actual human being—is true as far as it goes. But I’m happy to recognize that I’m more than Amazon “thinks” I am. For now.