[Publib] Re: Christian Fiction

[Andy Barnett]

Don't overthink this. It's not that hard. Most Christian Fiction says 
"Christian Fiction" on the back of the cover. It has Christian Fiction as a 
genre tracing. The authors compete for Christian Fiction awards. They are 
published by companies that advertise the books as Christian Fiction. It a 
book said mystery on it, the author had won an Edgar and it was published 
by Mysterious Press - why ponder deeply about where to put it?

I fully understand that Andrew Greeley, whose fiction is often deeply 
religious and sometimes has angels as characters, is not a Christian 
Fiction author. He knows it too. Catholics need not apply. Don't like that, 
but it's the way the genre works.

So is putting a book in a Christian Fiction collection privileging it or 
dismissing it? Does it provide added prominence or send it to a print 
ghetto? Or is it merely recognizing a genre and putting like with like?

The only point that matters to me here - is it better service? Does it help 
the reader? Hard to argue that it doesn't. We have a Christian Fiction 
section AND a New Christian Fiction display.

Andy Barnett, Asst. Director		McMillan Memorial Library
490 East Grand Ave. Wisconsin Rapids, WI  54494			
		www.mcmillanlibrary.org	
Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that 
matter.  -  Martin Luther King, Jr.