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Case study: The library that classified itself to death A library in a suburban neighborhood had a very eclectic and advanced readership. These library users came in on Monday clutching the latest New York Times Book Reviews with their suggestions circled. The latest bestsellers were always in demand and everyone came in looking for another "great book like the one I just read". This library was very busy and it was hard for the staff to keep up with all of the reader's suggestions in person so they decided to make it easier for their patrons to find their favorite kind of books. The staff made sections for the different popular fiction, from "Inspirational" to "Chick Lit", "Paranormal Romance" to "Conspiracy Thriller". The patrons loved it. Well, at least the ones who liked to run in, find the same type of book and run out. However, library users who liked to browse found it frustrating because there were "too many places to look". On top of that, the staff differed in opinion on what fit where and books could wind up in different sections depending on who shelved them. After a while, it was so frustrating no one wanted to even mess with it. So the staff put all the books back in their original sections, talked to the catalogers, decided on the most popular new kinds of fiction and made stickers for the labels. The patrons are very happy.
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