Quote:
Originally Posted by HarryT
Romance is supposedly the most popular genre of fiction. Hardly a surprise that libraries cater to what their patrons want.
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They cater overmuch to a subset of their patrons, to the detriment of other patrons who have no interest in romance.
I suspect libraries like romance because it boosts their circulation numbers. The books are quick reads and are consumed like potato chips; they're also cheaper to acquire. I admit I get discouraged when I check the new additions and it's virtually all romance.
I think libraries should shift their focus to treating all their patrons in a roughly equitable fashion; they should try to meet at least all mainstream interests to the same level of satisfaction. And if someone reads five romance novels a week, say, I bet that purchase price would add up to the price of a history book that one patron took two weeks to read.