Romance Collections in North Carolina Public Libraries: Are All Genres Treated Equally?

Abstract

The historically low status of romances in public libraries has improved to some extent with the recent advent of reviews and hardcover publishing of the genre. However, reviews remain in short supply and public library literature demonstrates a continuing preference for other genres over romance. Is this lack of regard reflected in the collections of public libraries? In this study, the collections of all public libraries in North Carolina are evaluated for the presence or absence of award winning romance, western, horror, science fiction/fantasy, and mystery titles. The relationship of review availability to title availability in these libraries is examined. Within the parameters of this study, correlations between reviews and title availability are significant. Study results show that while romance novel collections in North Carolina public libraries continue to improve, they still lag behind other genres. Additional selection tools may be necessary to create a successful, well-rounded romance collection