Like, don't like, won't try.....why not?

Nancy Pearl librarian action figure-
no batteries required.

Contrary to popular belief, librarians do not sit behind a desk stamping due dates into books and waiting to pounce on patrons who speak too loudly.  (We will pounce, but the offense must be more egregious than talking too loudly.)  When we are not helping you find the perfect book for your book club, attempting to download an ebook onto a myriad of patron owned devices, or helping patrons with our public computers we are not sitting in a comfy chair with a cup of tea and the latest John Grisham novel either.  We are hard at work educating ourselves.
After all, how can we recommend a mystery to a patron if we rarely read one?  The avid mystery reader has most likely already seen everything written by the big names in mystery.  Sending a patron over the the new book section or into our fiction collection with advice like, "Just look for the books with the mystery label on the spine", would be doing a disservice to the patron.  The axiom may be not to judge a book by its cover but readers still do. Publishers spend large amounts of cash on cover art so that their books will attract more readers.  Just because something has an attractive picture on the cover doesn't mean the story inside will appeal to you.  It's our job to help you with that.
Mysteries, like many other genres, can be divided into a variety of sub-genres.  Recently my assigned reading was Mr. Churchill's Secretary by Susan Elia MacNeal.  Out of an extensive list, why did I choose this one?  This is a historical mystery set in London during World War II.  The setting, the time period, and the strong female lead character appealed to me.  Since it was required reading, I made a conscious effort to find a book on the list that met several of my reading preferences.  This allowed me to find something in the genre that I instinctively knew I would enjoy.  The end result is that the next time someone asks me for a historical mystery, I can speak knowledgeably and enthusiastically about this author and series.  Since I enjoyed the experience, there is the possibility that this will be the mystery author I go to the next time I am in the mood for that type of book.
The best part about reading different books from a genre and then sharing them with your coworkers is that you get a sampling of several different books.  If you take notes or have a great memory, you can store this information away for later use.  The Boy in the Suitcase was given rave reviews at one of our meetings and has now seen increased circulation due to the positive feedback.  (It's not as gruesome as the title sounds.  The suspense will keep you reading long after you should have turned out the light.)
Currently we are endeavoring to read literary fiction.  This is not a study of "the classics" such as you might experience during your school years.  These are character studies and the plot does not always move swiftly.  (The person who chose Indignation by Philip Roth will attest to that.)  The title Gentlemen and Players by Joanne Harris was the one that appealed to me.  Anyone who has attended private school or taught boys will be able to make a connection with the characters in this book.  Although it has been categorized as a mystery, its main focus is a duel of wits between two characters.  A real life chess match.  One character is depicted as a pawn, the other the king.  The reader is allowed inside the mind of each character as the "match" progresses.  The first person narration allows the author to withhold pertinent information from the reader because it would already be a known fact to the narrator.  This forces the reader to focus in on the clues that each narrator slowly reveals.  It is fascinating following the different perspectives of the two characters, one of whom is not aware of the "game" until about half way through the book.

The experience of having to choose a book from a specific genre can be daunting.  However, this exercise will open up new doors for you as you challenge yourself to go outside your comfort zone.  Avid readers sometimes believe they will never run out of things to read and that their favorite authors will continue to write forever.  This simply is not true (ask the fans of LaVyrle Spencer).  Do yourself a favor.  Walk into the library and tell the librarians you are looking for something new to read.  Be patient while they ask you questions about your reading tastes.  Be open-minded when they hand you a list of books or authors you might like.  They're just suggestions and some may not be to your liking.  If at first you don't like your read, try, try again.  That's why the library staff are there and they can't wait to share their love of books and reading with you.