Week 6- SubGenres
There are several subgenres which are requested in the library setting, and I have investigated three of them.
1) Romantic [or Spicy] Westerns
Information on this subgenre can be found at westernauthors.com/spicy.htm
I found this site, like the others in this set, by using Google. Wendi Darlin, Sandy Sullivan, and Beth Williamson are three authors who write in this genre. The appeal of these books is that they combine the elements of the Western and the Romance novels.
2) Roman era Mysteries
This subgenre also requires poking around a bit to find good info. Google is essential, and like all of the subgenres here, Goodreads always yields results. The major authors in this subgenre are Ruth Browne, John Maddox Roberts, and Steven Saylor.
The appeal here is for folks who liked Spartacus, I Claudius, and other Roman Novels, but also enjoy the element of mystery and detection added.
3) Detective Science Fiction
This subgenre can only be located through Google and Science Fiction websites. There are several lists floating around with groupings of the top 10 or 25 of these ever written.
Philip K. Dick- Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep [basis for Bladerunner]; Douglas Adams- Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency, and Isaac Asimov's Caves of Steel. Of course, the appeal here is for detective or crime investigation stories which take place in the future, in outer space, or using technology which does not yet exist. [i.e. the need to track a criminal to another galaxy through hyperspace, members of criminal families with microchips implanted in their brains for perpetual tracking purposes, etc. etc.]
OHTER POSSIBLE GENRE MASH-UPS might include:
1) Detective Romance
2) Science Fiction Humor
3) Science Fiction Thriller
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
Week 6- Assignment Two
I have issues with Prezi Link's genre flowchart. I disagree with Alex Herzberg's grouping whereby Fantasy is depicted as a subgenre of Science Fiction. I am sure there are other folks who have no problem with his model--but I think this is fundamentally incorrect in the scheme of World literature.
Fantasy is a very very old genre which finds its roots in Mythological tales. IMHO it was a very early manifestation of Adventure and Romance (happy ending) which can technically be found in the works of Dante, Rabelais, Faust, etc. long before the 18th century. In contrast, Science Fiction is a very new genre, even if one considers Mary Shelley's Frankenstein to be the earliest work in that group. I feel strongly that if one looks carefully at the structure, elements and plotting of Fantasy novels--one will find more in common with ancient and medieval literatures than with "Scientific Fiction".
I blame American publishers for lumping Fantasy with Science Fiction. American business/ Yankee realistis of the 19th and 20th century have had little taste or respect for Fantasy novels. They never knew where to put them. This has also, sadly, been true of some librarians. When I first began working for the library in the mid-1970's, The Lord of the Rings was found in YA, SF, J and Adult fiction, at least FOUR different locations. People didn't know what to do with Tolkien. Many still don't know what to do with Bradbury, or Michael Ende, Leguin, Jordan, Eddings, et al. How can you place some of these novels in the Science Fiction genre, when there is little or no technology whatsoever?
-Monty Phair
Fantasy is a very very old genre which finds its roots in Mythological tales. IMHO it was a very early manifestation of Adventure and Romance (happy ending) which can technically be found in the works of Dante, Rabelais, Faust, etc. long before the 18th century. In contrast, Science Fiction is a very new genre, even if one considers Mary Shelley's Frankenstein to be the earliest work in that group. I feel strongly that if one looks carefully at the structure, elements and plotting of Fantasy novels--one will find more in common with ancient and medieval literatures than with "Scientific Fiction".
I blame American publishers for lumping Fantasy with Science Fiction. American business/ Yankee realistis of the 19th and 20th century have had little taste or respect for Fantasy novels. They never knew where to put them. This has also, sadly, been true of some librarians. When I first began working for the library in the mid-1970's, The Lord of the Rings was found in YA, SF, J and Adult fiction, at least FOUR different locations. People didn't know what to do with Tolkien. Many still don't know what to do with Bradbury, or Michael Ende, Leguin, Jordan, Eddings, et al. How can you place some of these novels in the Science Fiction genre, when there is little or no technology whatsoever?
-Monty Phair
Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Week 6- Assignment one
The SF genre website Locus has several wonderful features which demonstrate some of the the multiple appeal factors of Science Ficiton. I will highlight three of them:
1) There is immediate access to a superb review of the new SF movie Star Trek into Darkness, written by Gary Westfall. Film is a huge aspect of SF.
2) There are links to each and every major award category given for Science Fiction literature. Many people unfamiliar with the genre, have no idea of where to begin. The award winning titles are excellent starting points.
3) There are also links (following some of the newer reviews) to the major SF genre periodicals. Readers who enjoy short stories or novellas, or who would prefer to approach SF in smaller doses, might choose to begin by reading a short story from one of these periodicals, rather than tackling an entire novel.
These elements, joined with reviews of some of the newest SF titles, makes Locus an excellent genre site.
-Monty Phair
1) There is immediate access to a superb review of the new SF movie Star Trek into Darkness, written by Gary Westfall. Film is a huge aspect of SF.
2) There are links to each and every major award category given for Science Fiction literature. Many people unfamiliar with the genre, have no idea of where to begin. The award winning titles are excellent starting points.
3) There are also links (following some of the newer reviews) to the major SF genre periodicals. Readers who enjoy short stories or novellas, or who would prefer to approach SF in smaller doses, might choose to begin by reading a short story from one of these periodicals, rather than tackling an entire novel.
These elements, joined with reviews of some of the newest SF titles, makes Locus an excellent genre site.
-Monty Phair
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Week Five- Assignment 3
After perusing the top 25 anticipated titles of 2013 on the Earlybird site, I found two which look very promising. The first is Ocean at the End of the Lane, by Neil Gaiman. I have read a few of Gaiman's books, and I enjoy the atmosphere, the writing style, and the elements of myth, memory, and childhood which are evoked in many of his books.
Another title which looks very interesting is the Historical fiction title Transatlantic by Colum McCann. This book seems to have several interesting appeal factors: it is a triptych of major transatlantic historical events from the 19th and 20th centuries; the motivations of people who travelled across the Atlantic, and the different experiences of making the crossing between 1840 and 1998, and how the development of transportation and technology helped to "shrink the world" and compress time for the average person.
-Monty Phair
After perusing the top 25 anticipated titles of 2013 on the Earlybird site, I found two which look very promising. The first is Ocean at the End of the Lane, by Neil Gaiman. I have read a few of Gaiman's books, and I enjoy the atmosphere, the writing style, and the elements of myth, memory, and childhood which are evoked in many of his books.
Another title which looks very interesting is the Historical fiction title Transatlantic by Colum McCann. This book seems to have several interesting appeal factors: it is a triptych of major transatlantic historical events from the 19th and 20th centuries; the motivations of people who travelled across the Atlantic, and the different experiences of making the crossing between 1840 and 1998, and how the development of transportation and technology helped to "shrink the world" and compress time for the average person.
-Monty Phair
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Week Five-Assignment 2
Some of the results from the CATONSVILLE Top 25 are not surprising, others are a bit...
1 Private London/ Patterson
2 Gorie Girl: A Novel/ Flynn
3 The Forgotten/ Baldacci
4 Alex Cross: Run/ Patterson
5 Merry Christmas, Alex Cross/ Patterson
6 Casual Vacancy / Rowling
7 Fliigh Behavior/ Kingsolver
8 Notorious Nineteen/ Evanovich
9 NYPD Red/ Patterson
10 The Perfect Hope/ Roberts
11 Six Years/ Coben
12 Secrets from the Past/ Bradford
13 Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Third Wheel/ Kinney
14 Dream Eyes/ Krantz
15 Private Berlin/ Patterson
16 A Wanted Man: A Jack Reachers novel/ Child
17 Mad River/ Sandford, John
18 Guilt: An Alex Delaware novel/ Kellerman, Jonathan
19 The Storyteller/ Picoult
20 Black Box/ Connelly, Michael
21 Bone Bed/ Cornwell
22 Last Man/ Flynn, Vince
23 Week in Winter/ Binchy, Maeve
24 Low Pressure/ Brown. Sandra
25 Daddy's Gone a Hunting/ Clark, Mary Higgins
-Monty Phair
Some of the results from the CATONSVILLE Top 25 are not surprising, others are a bit...
1 Private London/ Patterson
2 Gorie Girl: A Novel/ Flynn
3 The Forgotten/ Baldacci
4 Alex Cross: Run/ Patterson
5 Merry Christmas, Alex Cross/ Patterson
6 Casual Vacancy / Rowling
7 Fliigh Behavior/ Kingsolver
8 Notorious Nineteen/ Evanovich
9 NYPD Red/ Patterson
10 The Perfect Hope/ Roberts
11 Six Years/ Coben
12 Secrets from the Past/ Bradford
13 Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Third Wheel/ Kinney
14 Dream Eyes/ Krantz
15 Private Berlin/ Patterson
16 A Wanted Man: A Jack Reachers novel/ Child
17 Mad River/ Sandford, John
18 Guilt: An Alex Delaware novel/ Kellerman, Jonathan
19 The Storyteller/ Picoult
20 Black Box/ Connelly, Michael
21 Bone Bed/ Cornwell
22 Last Man/ Flynn, Vince
23 Week in Winter/ Binchy, Maeve
24 Low Pressure/ Brown. Sandra
25 Daddy's Gone a Hunting/ Clark, Mary Higgins
-Monty Phair
Monday, May 20, 2013
Week 5 Assignment 1-
I am truly happy with my close following of C-SPAN Booknotes and Book TV--this source includes many of the same new NF books that one finds on Early Word, but goes even further. This weekend I happened to catch an interview with Temple Grandin--a fascinating woman and author of books on topics ranging from Autism to the Treatment of Animals. On Saturday morning there was a recorded talk from Washington, D.C. earlier this year on "Autism across the Spectrum", which was very interesting on brain development and perception, and the range of behaviors which are sometimes classified as autism or asperger's syndromes. Grandin related her own experiences with school and jobs over the years, and her personal discoveries about the elusive condition known as Autism. Her talk made me want to read her book, on a subject I probably would have otherwise avoided.
Book TV is a wonderful tool for discovering New Non-fiction titles with multiple Appeal Factors.
-Monty Phair
I am truly happy with my close following of C-SPAN Booknotes and Book TV--this source includes many of the same new NF books that one finds on Early Word, but goes even further. This weekend I happened to catch an interview with Temple Grandin--a fascinating woman and author of books on topics ranging from Autism to the Treatment of Animals. On Saturday morning there was a recorded talk from Washington, D.C. earlier this year on "Autism across the Spectrum", which was very interesting on brain development and perception, and the range of behaviors which are sometimes classified as autism or asperger's syndromes. Grandin related her own experiences with school and jobs over the years, and her personal discoveries about the elusive condition known as Autism. Her talk made me want to read her book, on a subject I probably would have otherwise avoided.
Book TV is a wonderful tool for discovering New Non-fiction titles with multiple Appeal Factors.
-Monty Phair
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Appeal Factors revisited
Group Exercise- Appeal Factors.
Today at the Catonsville Library, Zeke White and I introduced the topics of "The RA Conversation" and all of the aspects of Roving Readers Advisory work. We had most of the Fulltime and half of the P/T staff bring their recent annotations and personal "Patron Description" to the meeting with them.
we presented the concepts of tone [light, conversational, narrative, etc], major appeal [Is the story Plot driven?, character driven?, or is the setting and mood more important?], and key features or elements [such as humor, travel, appealing characters who show up in a series, style of writing, etc.]
Each participant worked with a team member to discuss their personal reading preferences, at least two annotations, and best practices when interviewing customers for Reader's Advisory work. At least a dozen librarians participated in this session today, and all found the experience quite rewarding. We also discussed the various tools which can be used to locate books and materials in genres "outside of our comfort zones and frame of reference."
-Monty Phair (CA)
Today at the Catonsville Library, Zeke White and I introduced the topics of "The RA Conversation" and all of the aspects of Roving Readers Advisory work. We had most of the Fulltime and half of the P/T staff bring their recent annotations and personal "Patron Description" to the meeting with them.
we presented the concepts of tone [light, conversational, narrative, etc], major appeal [Is the story Plot driven?, character driven?, or is the setting and mood more important?], and key features or elements [such as humor, travel, appealing characters who show up in a series, style of writing, etc.]
Each participant worked with a team member to discuss their personal reading preferences, at least two annotations, and best practices when interviewing customers for Reader's Advisory work. At least a dozen librarians participated in this session today, and all found the experience quite rewarding. We also discussed the various tools which can be used to locate books and materials in genres "outside of our comfort zones and frame of reference."
-Monty Phair (CA)
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