Proposal Title
Where are all the Fun Books: Popular Romance and Science Fiction Novels in Academic Libraries
Start Date
13-4-2018 9:00 AM
End Date
13-4-2018 10:00 AM
Proposal Type
Individual Presentation
Abstract
Academic libraries have an uneven record of collecting popular contemporary literature (genre fiction). Due to this unevenness, colleges and universities that offer courses about particular genres or collect works devoted to the study of genre fiction may not actually own the primary texts. This study examines the extent to which award-winning novels in two popular genres—romance and science fiction—are included in the libraries of 114 major research universities (the Association of Research Libraries) and 80 prominent liberal arts colleges (the Oberlin Group). Specifically, it investigates the library holdings of novels that won a Rita Award of the Romance Writers of America, the Hugo Award of the World Science Fiction Convention, or the Nebula Award of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America from 1997 to 2017. The growing scholarly interest in genre fiction increases the importance of preserving and providing access to these primary sources, and of identifying genre-related gaps in the collections of libraries devoted to literary and cultural scholarship.
Where are all the Fun Books: Popular Romance and Science Fiction Novels in Academic Libraries
Academic libraries have an uneven record of collecting popular contemporary literature (genre fiction). Due to this unevenness, colleges and universities that offer courses about particular genres or collect works devoted to the study of genre fiction may not actually own the primary texts. This study examines the extent to which award-winning novels in two popular genres—romance and science fiction—are included in the libraries of 114 major research universities (the Association of Research Libraries) and 80 prominent liberal arts colleges (the Oberlin Group). Specifically, it investigates the library holdings of novels that won a Rita Award of the Romance Writers of America, the Hugo Award of the World Science Fiction Convention, or the Nebula Award of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America from 1997 to 2017. The growing scholarly interest in genre fiction increases the importance of preserving and providing access to these primary sources, and of identifying genre-related gaps in the collections of libraries devoted to literary and cultural scholarship.