Genrefication, or, Making our Library More Reader Friendly

Reader friendly and accessible, that's the whole goal of libraries, right? With this in mind, we began to reorganize our fiction collection over the summer, sorting everything bookstore-style into genres such as Fantasy, Science Fiction, Humor, Sports, and so forth. We certainly are not early adopters when it comes to genrefication, but I wanted to share our journey with you.

What does it mean at Kilmer?

Our fiction section was in alphabetical order, sorted by author's last name. This made finding specific books fairly easy if and only if students knew an author's last name. They could search our library catalog or just remember an author they read and loved, but this organizational schema is not ideal for basic browsing or for finding new and different reading selections.

Our fiction section ran in a line, basically wrapping around the perimeter wall of the library -- a great layout for a linear structure like alpha order, but less than ideal for a categorical system like genreficiation. So, we switched our fiction and non-fiction collections to provide better homes for both. In spring of last year, my (now retired) co-librarian completed EXTENSIVE (and badly needed) weeding of non-fiction so that we could move those books into a smaller shelf space. Our fiction collection needed more room to spread out, more space to breathe -- we wanted to face some books with covers out, put more titles on display and really show off what we have to students

Why?

As I have already mentioned, reader accessibility is our primary "why." Our spring library practicum student (who then easily stepped into my retiring colleague's shoes to become my co-librarian) crafted a student survey before we started to shift our collection: over 70% of students indicated they would prefer a genreficed bookstore-style fiction section.

I also like to move things around in our space every couple of years; I think that change is crucial to keeping our library program moving foward. In the 10 years I have been at Kilmer, we have moved biography twice, interfiled reference with non-fiction, and shifted fiction several times and expanded it greatly, made room for Manga, grown our magazine collection, and added a Makerspace. I think it is important to continually evaluate library spaces and evolve our layout to ensure it continues to meet community needs. It keeps our collection fresh and it keeps me personally more focused on what our students and staff need and want from our library

How?

We did most of our genrefication work in the few weeks before school started. Our process was fairly simple. First we visited and spoke with other district librarians who had made a similar change to their collections. It was important for me to see how it worked in action. I also read postings and articles by library colleagues who were further away.

Next we decided our genre categories and purchased genre stickers. We opted for genre stickers in lieu of the other frequently chosen alternative of colored transparent tape over call numbers. We felt that stickers would be easier to change or cover if and when we decide a title needs a genre shift. 

We selected eleven categories that matched the current reading habits of our students; we were a bit bound by the existing location codes in our school system's union catalog. Our genres are: science fiction, fantasy, supernatural, horror, mystery, historical fiction, adventure, humor, sports, romance, and realistic fiction.

We then (with our collection still in alpha order) began the process of choosing a genre and stickering each and every book. We used the books' own subject headings, other librarians genre choices from our district (easy to find in our union catalog) and GoodReads to help us make decisions. When a title fell into more than one genre, we opted for putting the book in the place it would get read the most.

Then, as we were trading the shelf locations of fiction and non, we began moving every single book in our collection. We kept non-fiction organized in Dewey order and put it on carts as we sorted fiction into genres first and then alpha within genre on our tables. Once our books were on their new shelves, we had some amazing volunteers scan every fiction title and change each catalog location to match the newly classified genres

Next steps?

Our next steps are to collect data. Our circ numbers for September 2016 were up 20% over our September 2015 numbers; it will be interesting to see how the year progresses and whether or not this upward trend continues. Informal feedback from students has been overwhelmingly positive--students find it easier to connect with books they would like to read. We will do a more formal survey in the spring.

I have also noticed more students using our library catalog to find books; I actually think this reorganization has turned our students into more independent users of our library. Along the way, we have encouraged student ownership of this process by asking them to bring genre changes to us--if they have a convincing argument as to why a book should live in a different genre than we initially chose, we are happy to make the change.

On of my favorite parts of this whole transformation is that I hear many more conversations about books among students in our stacks--along with genrefication, our new physical space for fiction is a much better fit for discussing, recommending and finding great books to read.

Another huge benefit to this whole process is that we were able to find a better section for Manga (some of our most heavily circulated titles) to highlight it in the way it deserves and give it more space to grow. We separated Manga from our other graphic novels which ends up allowing better access to both collections.

* * *

I know passions run hot in this issue in the land of libraries; I would love to know where you stand on genrefication. We have left non-fiction in Dewey order for now but I am curious to hear from those of you who have reorganized that section as well; I would love for ALL of our books to be more accessible for our students. Please share your thoughts and your own genrefication adventures with me!

Gretchen

---

You might also like:

• BubbleUp Take5: Books to Give this Season (December 13, 2016)
  
• You think you know what librarians do? Sorry, but chances are...you're wrong. (October 22, 2016)
• New Librarian? Start Here! (August 9, 2016)