Another top 5

Books and Authors:

The Top 5 of Another 5

With Barry Trott on Historical Fiction

David Wright on Literary Fiction

Rebecca Vnuk on Romance

Roberta Johnson on Science Fiction

and

Kaite Mediatore Stover on

Suspense/Thrillers

Handouts for this presentation can be

found on the new blog home for

Shelfrenewal:

http://shelfrenewal.booklistonline.com

Notes on the original 5 covered at PLA

2010 can be found online at:

http://shelfrenewal.com/programs/

pla2010presentation/

http://shelfrenewal.com/programs/�pla2010presentation/



What’s this all about?

• Sometimes, we just need quick answers for patrons who want “a good book”.

• Having a brain full of books in different genres makes the RA experience a lot less intimidating!

• One of the best ways to arm yourself at the desk is to become so well-versed in your collection so that it seems as though every book you’re giving out is one you’ve personally read and enjoyed.

What’s this all about?

5 popular categories of books and what

to know about them:

The books and authors we feel you

need to know about in each genre so

you can branch off from there and gain

a brain full of books, even if you don’t

normally read in these areas.

OK. We’ve lied a little…We really can’t shove 125

books at you in 75 minutes…but you can get all

the info from us online, we swear.

What we can feature today in each genre:

5 up-and-comers

5 trends

Our favorites

The online handout has the additional info:

Classics, Must-Know Books

Historical Fiction – Barry Trott

Historical Fiction has as its setting a period of history

and attempts to convey the spirit, manners, and

social conditions of a past age with realistic detail

and fidelity to historical fact. The work may deal

with actual historical personages or it may contain

a mixture of fictional and historical characters. It

attempts to portray a broader view of a past society

in which great events are reflected by their impact

on the private lives of fictional individuals.

- Encyclopaedia Brittanica

5 Up-and-Comers in historical fiction

5 Up-and-Comers in historical fiction

trend: Women’s roles

Trend: Naval Fiction

Trend: Fictional Bios

Trend: Immigrant Stories

Trend: Historical Mysteries

Barry’s favorites

Barry’s favorites

Literary Fiction – David Wright

Literary fiction is defined as critically

acclaimed, often award-winning, fiction.

These books are more often character-

centered rather than plot-oriented. They

are provocative and often address more

serious issues.

- Joyce Sariks, The Readers’ Advisory Guide to Genre Fiction

Literary: Up-and-Coming Authors

The New Yorker 20 under 40

Lydia Millet Jonathan Evison

Top 5 Literary: Up-and-Coming Authors


Yannick Murphy David Mitchell


Joe Schmoe

Literary Trend 1:The Rise of Middlebrow

Literary Trend 2:Realism Takes Flight

Literary Trend 3:It’s a Big World

Literary Trend 4:The 9/11 Novel Comes of Age.

Literary Trend 5Short Forms Stand Tall.

Literary Fiction: Personal Favorites

Stewart O’Nan


Nick Harkaway


Percival Everett


Joyce Carol Oates


Joseph Conrad

Romance – Rebecca Vnuk

The main plot of a romance novel must revolve

around the two people as they develop romantic

love for each other and work to build a

relationship together. Both the conflict and the

climax of the novel should be directly related to

that core theme of developing a romantic

relationship, although the novel can also

contain subplots that do not specifically relate

to the main characters' romantic love.

Furthermore, a romance novel must have an

emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending.- Romance Writers of America

Romance Up-and-Comers

Romance Up-and Comers

Romance Trends

Romance Trends

Rebecca’s Personal Favorites

Rebecca’s Personal Favorites

Science Fiction –

Roberta Johnson

Science fiction is speculative fiction,

frequently set in the future. Setting is

crucial and invokes otherness of time,

place, and reality. - Sariks

“If there are rivets on the cover, it’s

Science Fiction.” – Orson Scott Card

Science Fiction

Up-and-Comers

Science Fiction

Up-and-Comers

Science Fiction

Trends

Diversity – strong female characters have

been the norm for a while, but authors and

characters of color are more commonplace.

Humor: Kage Baker, Sean McMullen, Neal

Stephenson

Blurring of Science Fiction and Thrillers – As

our technology advances faster than we can

write about it, an exciting SF novel is a hair’s

breadth away from a techno-thriller.

Science Fiction

Trends

Young Adult Science Fiction –

especially dystopian futures

Science Fiction

Trends

Steampunk

Roberta’s Personal Favorites

Roberta’s Personal Favorites

Suspense/Thriller –

Kaite Mediatore Stover

Even authoritative sources can’t seem to

settle on a definition. The terms seem to be

fairly interchangeable – and patrons don’t

care – so we're using the term Suspense

here to also cover Thrillers.

Don’t quibble on semantics.

The genre for readers too lazy to get on the

treadmill for a cardio workout.


Up-and-Comers


Up-and-Comers

Trends: Arcane Thrillers

Trends: Comic Thrillers

Trends: Lady Thrillers

Trends: Domestic Thrillers

Trends: Scandinavian Style

Personal Favorites

Personal Favorites

Handouts for this presentation can be

found on the new blog home for

Shelfrenewal:

http://shelfrenewal.booklistonline.com

Education

Another top 5