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From: James Elliott <j_c_elliott>
Date: Thu, 14 Jul 2005 09:24:31 -0400
I know our library (on DDC) has general fiction, mystery, western and science fiction/fantasy in separate sections. However, this brings up another interesting classification point: at what point does
'intrigue/suspense' fiction become mystery, and why or why not? And what about romance? why not a separate section for those? and is Danielle Steel on the same level of romance as Amanda Quick or Debbie MacComber? The DDC for fiction/literature is 813, so it's conceivable that fiction could be cataloged as 813, but that would still separate it from the non-fiction, in it's own (and very large) section.
LCC is another story, however, as much of the fiction is shelved differently, often in with the nonfiction, so that you will have books of literary criticism on Hemmingway interspersed with his fictional works.
I once wrote Louis L'Amour, and asked him about using fiction in teaching history (my masters dissertation for education). He responded that his books, while largely fiction, are firmly based on the journals and diaries of Westward pioneers and the new accounts of the day, and said that if he could choose one book of his to be used in a classroom, it would be "Bendigo Shafter", as he crammed it full of details on the birth of a western community.
With many authors, however, the line of fiction and historical fact are often so blurred that it doesn't matter to the author if they take liberties with history (Daniel Brown is one of those authors, who gleefully twisted fact to fabricate his 'DaVinci Code', which while it reads and is endnoted as historically accurate, bears little resemblence to historical accuracy, as tour guides all over Europe are telling Da Vinci Code tourists!) I mean, would you use a Barbara Cartland romance to teach details on the court of King Edward VI? On the other hand, John Jakes' "Kent Family Chronicles" has been hailed as one of those rare mixes of fact and fiction that succeeds in making history come alive. Morgan Llewellen is another who skillfully weaves Irish history and fiction to create a wonderful whole.
What it comes down to is: 1) do your research on the novels -- which ones ARE historically accurate as opposed to those that CLAIM historical accuracy but fail to deliver
2) catalog the subject fields so that someone looking for Japanese internment camps can see fictional titles in the electronic catalog as well.
3) ask your director about separating fiction into categories....studies show that circulation of genre fiction soars when the categories are separated
4) create displays of fiction and non-fiction books during 'theme' months such as "Black History Month" "Irish History Month" "Asian-American History Month" etc. (a list of monthy themes can be found on www.brownielocks.com )
Well, that's a bit more than two cents worth.
Happy reading.
Jim Elliott Reference/Cataloging Librarian Gadsden County (FL) Public Library
Received on Thu 14 Jul 2005 08:24:31 AM CDT
Date: Thu, 14 Jul 2005 09:24:31 -0400
I know our library (on DDC) has general fiction, mystery, western and science fiction/fantasy in separate sections. However, this brings up another interesting classification point: at what point does
'intrigue/suspense' fiction become mystery, and why or why not? And what about romance? why not a separate section for those? and is Danielle Steel on the same level of romance as Amanda Quick or Debbie MacComber? The DDC for fiction/literature is 813, so it's conceivable that fiction could be cataloged as 813, but that would still separate it from the non-fiction, in it's own (and very large) section.
LCC is another story, however, as much of the fiction is shelved differently, often in with the nonfiction, so that you will have books of literary criticism on Hemmingway interspersed with his fictional works.
I once wrote Louis L'Amour, and asked him about using fiction in teaching history (my masters dissertation for education). He responded that his books, while largely fiction, are firmly based on the journals and diaries of Westward pioneers and the new accounts of the day, and said that if he could choose one book of his to be used in a classroom, it would be "Bendigo Shafter", as he crammed it full of details on the birth of a western community.
With many authors, however, the line of fiction and historical fact are often so blurred that it doesn't matter to the author if they take liberties with history (Daniel Brown is one of those authors, who gleefully twisted fact to fabricate his 'DaVinci Code', which while it reads and is endnoted as historically accurate, bears little resemblence to historical accuracy, as tour guides all over Europe are telling Da Vinci Code tourists!) I mean, would you use a Barbara Cartland romance to teach details on the court of King Edward VI? On the other hand, John Jakes' "Kent Family Chronicles" has been hailed as one of those rare mixes of fact and fiction that succeeds in making history come alive. Morgan Llewellen is another who skillfully weaves Irish history and fiction to create a wonderful whole.
What it comes down to is: 1) do your research on the novels -- which ones ARE historically accurate as opposed to those that CLAIM historical accuracy but fail to deliver
2) catalog the subject fields so that someone looking for Japanese internment camps can see fictional titles in the electronic catalog as well.
3) ask your director about separating fiction into categories....studies show that circulation of genre fiction soars when the categories are separated
4) create displays of fiction and non-fiction books during 'theme' months such as "Black History Month" "Irish History Month" "Asian-American History Month" etc. (a list of monthy themes can be found on www.brownielocks.com )
Well, that's a bit more than two cents worth.
Happy reading.
Jim Elliott Reference/Cataloging Librarian Gadsden County (FL) Public Library
Received on Thu 14 Jul 2005 08:24:31 AM CDT
