What does Cormac McCarthy’s lack of success have to do with anything. The fact that he, called by some one of America’s most pretentious authors, isn’t writing for the every man has absolutely NOTHING to do with your original false statement that books are a luxury, nor does it have any to do with your statement that modern general fiction is geared towards an urban audience. McCarthy’s stuff might be geared towards that audience, but his lack of success shows he’s not part of the norm. You want books geared towards the everyman read Elmore Leonard, nice popcorn books about stupid people, and they sell well too.
Again, have it your own way. The argument could go on forever. However, if you believe there is a huge number of folks buying books outside of the major markets, then you’re badly mistaken.