Genreflecting: A Guide to Reading Interests in Genre Fiction

I received this book in the mail yesterday and read it, off and on, all day. I can't believe all the reference material that is found here. As a true bibliophile, I have many books about books in my collection, but this one has moved right to the top as my favorite. It lists many of the best modern works in print and will help me, in the future, to have more discerning tastes in the books I read. I am completely satisfied and highly recommend it to others.

I am so glad that this volume exists because I care much about advising readers, and the intent of this tool is right on. I appreciate the suggestions in each genre, and subgenre. However, the presentation of the titles is so inconsistent that it puzzles me that this could be a sixth edition--it seems more like a draft. Several of the titles are elaborately annotated, while others are simply listed without supporting information. I wish that the titles were treated more consistently. I do appreciate that this advisory series from Libraries Unlimited exists. However since this is their flagship volume that has gone through multiple editions, I expect a higher standard.

This book is a very valuable resource for public librarians acting as a reader's adviser ("I like this author, who/what else would I like?"), but I can't imagine anyone having the time to be poring over the pages as a collection development tool. Genreflecting is also a great reference for writing or literature studies students who are studying genre - along with lists of authors that they can pursue, there are very lucid discussions of the genres, and it's a good starting point for assignments in this area. (I used it for this purpose at Uni, and liked it so much that I tried to buy a copy - unfortunately it was between editions at the time.)