Finding what you’re looking for: A reader-centred approach to the classification of adult fiction in public libraries

Abstract

This article argues that the classification of adult fiction according to ‘genre’ in public libraries causes more confusion than clarification. Whilst the system purports to model itself on bookstore design the reality is that the actual arrangement is quite different. In the bookstore model, genre is a marketing category and not a literary category as it is currently used in many Western Australian public libraries. The use of a genre system also alienates many readers, with good reason, as the nature of the system is ambiguous. The adoption of a ‘reader-centred’ method for adult fiction classification would mean that the library collection was more accessible because the underlying principles are easier to understand. © 2008 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.