{"id":713,"date":"2009-02-13T18:06:04","date_gmt":"2009-02-14T01:06:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/?p=713"},"modified":"2009-02-14T11:30:56","modified_gmt":"2009-02-14T18:30:56","slug":"graphic-novels-are-haunting-my-dreams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/2009\/02\/graphic-novels-are-haunting-my-dreams\/","title":{"rendered":"Graphic novels are haunting my dreams"},"content":{"rendered":"

You know how something happens that makes you more aware of something and then suddenly it seems like the whole world is full of this thing?\u00a0 Your best friend gets pregnant, say, and suddenly you see pregnant women everywhere, or you finally learn what jejune means and the word is suddenly popping up every day.\u00a0 You wonder, \u201cIs it just that I\u2019m now noticing pregnant women more \u2014 or are there really a whole bunch more pregnant women roaming the streets?!\u201d\u009d<\/font><\/p>\n

This is how it is with graphic novels and me.\u00a0 Oh, I\u2019ve been a fan of graphic novels for all ages for at least a year now (don\u2019t snort \u2014 I\u2019ve always been a late-bloomer).\u00a0 But suddenly it feels like graphic novels for kids are just exploding; you can\u2019t turn a corner without bumping into some mention of them.\u00a0 Whether it\u2019s various lucky ducks attending the New York Comic Con (such as Elizabeth Bird<\/a>, Sophie Brookover<\/a>, and Molly Phelan<\/a>) or a school librarian blogging<\/a> about the huge popularity of graphic novels, it\u2019s clear that this is a huge phenomenon.<\/font><\/p>\n

I would be happy to sit back and let all the excitement flow around me, but there are some big issues that keep insisting on my attention.\u00a0 Here are just a few:<\/font><\/p>\n

How to catalog?\u00a0 In my library system, we use a fiction, independent reader, or nonfiction Dewey number for children\u2019s graphic novels (depending on whether it\u2019s Coraline, Stinky, or a graphic novel on a nonfiction subject), followed by a \u201cGN\u201d\u009d designation, followed by a series cutter if necessary.\u00a0 But the YA graphic novels are all in 740.9999.\u00a0 Go figure!\u00a0 And how to deal with those unending volumes in a series, some with different authors?\u00a0 Our catalogers keep finding new situations for which they must cobble together solutions.<\/font><\/p>\n

Where to shelve them?\u00a0 I highly recommend pulling graphic novels together into a special collection, but not everyone agrees.\u00a0 And should nonfiction graphic novels be shelved with the fiction graphic novels, or should they be with other books on the subject?\u00a0 And what about those independent reader graphic novels?\u00a0 <\/font><\/p>\n

Juvenile or YA?\u00a0 This is not a new question, but graphic novels complicate the issue.\u00a0 Manga in particular has huge appeal for young readers, but the content is not always what some folks might call appropriate for kids 12 and under.\u00a0 And many graphic novels look like they are aimed at kids, but they are actually adaptations of \u201cclassics\u201d\u009d that teens read for school.\u00a0 Will kids read them?\u00a0 Will teens be offended by them?\u00a0 <\/font><\/p>\n

How to handle the flood of graphic novels?\u00a0 Oh, it\u2019s easy to deal with those wonderful one-offs or those short-series graphic novels, but what about those series that stretch off into the distance?\u00a0 By the time you\u2019ve learned about a popular series, it\u2019s on volume 22 and the first 10 are out of print.\u00a0 And now of course publishers have jumped on the bandwagon and are producing graphic novels by the hundreds.\u00a0 Let\u2019s just say that they are not all of the highest quality.\u00a0 Will they have child appeal regardless?\u00a0 Separating the wheat from the chaff is not always easy when there are so many new series.<\/font><\/p>\n

It\u2019s important to seek guidance and to work together.\u00a0 In my library system, children\u2019s librarians and catalogers are working closely to figure out the best way to guarantee good access to graphic novels.\u00a0 Children\u2019s librarians and YA librarians are coordinating efforts to make sure graphic novels are shelved in the appropriate sections of the library.\u00a0 And we\u2019re consulting sources like the Graphic Novels in Libraries<\/a> listserv and the book The Librarian\u2019s Guide to Graphic Novels for Children and Tweens<\/a><\/em> by David S. Serchay (Neal-Schuman, 2008).\u00a0 Searching Google for blogs on graphic novels yields many useful sources, as well.<\/font><\/p>\n

I am ecstatic that graphic novels have come into their own.\u00a0 They are a fresh and exciting new format that has an important place in every library.\u00a0 Someday I hope to see a big, prestigious award just for graphic novels for youth.\u00a0 And I\u2019m happy to be a tiny part of this new groundswell that is exploring how best to evaluate, select, catalog, shelve, display, and market graphic novels.<\/font><\/p>\n

And now I\u2019m going to snuggle up with that stack of new graphic novels shimmering on my desk!<\/font><\/p>\n

Graphic novels.\u00a0 I swear it\u2019s not just me.\u00a0 They are popping up everywhere these days.<\/font><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/font>\u00a0<\/font>\u00a0<\/font>\u00a0<\/font><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You know how something happens that makes you more aware of something and then suddenly it seems like the whole world is full of this thing?\u00a0 Your best friend gets pregnant, say, and suddenly you see pregnant women everywhere, or you finally learn what jejune means and the word is suddenly popping up every day.\u00a0 You wonder, \u201cIs it just that I\u2019m now noticing pregnant women more \u2014 or are there really a whole bunch more pregnant women roaming the streets?!\u201d\u009d This is how it is with graphic novels and me.\u00a0 Oh, I\u2019ve been a fan of graphic novels for all ages for at least a year now (don\u2019t snort \u2014 I\u2019ve always been a late-bloomer).\u00a0 But suddenly it feels like graphic novels for kids are just exploding; you can\u2019t turn a corner without bumping into some mention of them.\u00a0 Whether it\u2019s various lucky ducks attending the New York Comic…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":93,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[87,47,42],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-713","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blogger-eva-mitnick","category-collection-development","category-library-design-and-accessibility"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/713","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/93"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=713"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/713\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=713"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=713"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.alsc.ala.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=713"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}