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RobertB, I had several classes in library school on how to tell what genre a book was in, and it boils down to "put stuff where your patron will find it." Sounds simple, but it isn't. But, if you can be consistent, no matter what you do, it'll help. If you always put David Weber in Fantasy, I'll find him, even though some of his series are (arguably) SciFi.
Metadata is a mess because anyone can play, and everyone will categorize things slightly (at least) differently, if they bother (and most won't). In library terms, without a controlled vocabulary, you end up with a dog's breakfast. Unfortunately, with controlled vocabulary, people complain it is hard (I don't think it is, but I had Dewey Decimal System figured out by the time I was 4).
I get amused by Internet folks trying to reinvent library cataloging practises. Haven't seen anything yet that makes me want to give up Library of Congress subject headings (as flawed as they are) and a good old fashioned classification system, like Dewey or even LC.
And did you remember that 15 March is the Ides of March?
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