I don’t mind the ads on the Kindle sleep screen.  In fact, I like them so much that I would have opted for them even if the setting was not cheaper than the ad-free.  It is the most unobtrusive advertising conceivable, and potentially very helpful.  However, Amazon has uncharacteristically squandered this opportunity and a little goodwill.

1. There is zero thought put into targeting this advertisement.  I will swear on a stack of Hustlers there is nothing in my purchasing history that would lead them to recommend this book to me.  This is a non-sequitur of Netflixian levels.
2. So unobtrusive is this ad, that I can’t even claim that it wastes my time.  At most, it simply prevents me from being exposed to a different book I might actually have a chance in hell of reading.
3. The worst part is that it appears on my screen where people might get the wrong impression that I am reading this, or the one about the cowboy and MBA, or the single mother and incognito prince.  To avoid this humiliation, I frequently keep the screen turned face down where it can get scratched or damaged.  Hey, wait a minute!  You don’t think . . . well played, Bezos!  Well played!