The books I read are probably a lot lighter than the ones you're talking about, but I definitely am choosey with the ones I do pick up.
I'm pickier about petty things in fiction but it's because cliches and shorthands rip me out of the flow of reading. I refuse to read a fiction book with too many apostrophes on the first page because that usually indicates the author spent more time on world building and making the elves/aliens different than writing a decent story and I'll spend more time being distracted than invested. Another one that annoys me that I forget the name of is using strange words when a normal one would do, like younglings instead of children.
Non fiction-wise, I'll do a little more research on if the author is a horrible person, like I wouldn't read a book by Jordan Peterson (not trying to drum up politics, just getting that recommendation from a former friend was a sign of them disappearing into the far right) if it were recommended to me, as a low hanging example. Getting a gist of the overall ideas of the book to make sure I'm not walking into known BS territory is usually on the list as well.
When I do find a good book, it's great, but separating wheat from chaff has definitely slowed and reduced my reading.