The Kobo Mini looks kind of cute, but I still see they have the "recommended Reads" right up front.
I bought my Kindle last month, and aside from one list in the menu (which I have to press to see) "buy from Kindle Store", my Kindle is all about me and my (pre-existing) books.
All that aside, it looks cute, and the price is nice, and may be on my list for next spring's buys. (I am attempting over the next couple of years, to provide my other children with e-readers) It likely still would need the Kobo desktop to set it up, or have they made it easier to register the device? Logging in to ones account via wifi should do it sans desktop.