A few weeks ago, we shared a commonly-asked question in one of our weekly e-newsletters: Do you include romance novels in your Library?
Is this what you think of when you hear the words romance novel? You might want to think again. (Yes, this gem really was left in a Little Library.)
We shared a range of solutions from experienced stewards, some of whom love romance novels and others who look at their Little Libraries through “mom eyes.”
We received several emails from fans of the romance genre who felt that romances definitely have their place.
One of those emails was from Sarah Wendell, author of the well-known blog and podcast Smart B**ches, Trashy Books. Below are her thoughts on including romance novels in Little Free Libraries.
Greetings, most excellent Little Free Library stewards! Thank you for what you do! I just moved to a new neighborhood which boasts three LFLs within walking distance, so I’m very likely greeting my neighbors (and to whomever made the Tardis LFL, you’re terrific).
I was invited to talk a bit about romance novels after the recent newsletter asking if romances should be included in your Libraries. I’m the co-founder and current mastermind of a website devoted to romance fiction, which features reviews, discussion, and a podcast about the books we love. I’ve also written two books about the romance genre as well. So I know, well, two or three things about the genre. Maybe four.
I want to address the question of whether to welcome romance into your Libraries. Short answer: yes, you should! Thanks for having me!
Longer answer: I understand that the issue foremost in many stewards’ minds is the explicit content of some romances. Some of you may be concerned that the varying levels of sensuality may present a problem for some of their local readers. And yup, romances do indeed feature a wide range of sensuality, just as mysteries and thrillers feature varying level of violence and gore. (And if you’re not limiting the presence of mysteries, why limit the presence of romance?)
I have two young humans in my house, and as a reviewer, I get romances delivered to our door almost daily. There are many, MANY romances in my house at all times, and my kids are extremely uninterested in them.
A family of readers finding books at a Little Library. Photo courtesy of Erin Locum.
Based on that anecdata, and my observation of other children browsing open spaces for books to read, young readers who are searching a Little Library for a book to read likely wouldn’t consider a romance. Kids are pretty savvy about what is marketed to appeal to them, and romances are not within that realm.
And if a young person is interested in reading a romance, that is not at all a bad thing. They’re going to read about courtship, emotional connection, commitment, and the positive acceptance of flawed people. If you’re thinking that romances are all sex with no plot, I can assure you that is very far from the truth. I wouldn’t be writing about them for ten-plus years if that were the case!
Saying no to all romances diminishes a Library, and alienates any romance readers in your locality – and I promise, there are some. Romance readers are everywhere, and we’re voracious readers whose appetite for books always outpaces our budgets. Any library, be it a little free one or a giant county edifice, is a romance reader’s best friend. You’re serving your audience, all of it, by including romance.
Moreover, romance isn’t a monolith built of books afflicted with unending similarity. There are variations and combinations of sub-genres in romance, many of which include types you may already love, such as science fiction, contemporary, historical fiction, and mysteries both cozy and creeped-out-lights-on-where-is-the-dog-seriously-what-was-that-noise.
Each day I spend a lot of time helping readers connect with one another, and with books they love. It’s the best feeling to know a reader adored a book they just finished, and I know seeing the evolving collection in your Little Free Library must be equally terrific. I hope you’ll welcome romance into your collections so all readers can find books they’ll love.
If you’re looking for a recommendation, or need some help identifying a book that has appeared in your library and might be a romance, please feel free to email me. And, more importantly, if your Library has a lot of romance, please let me know so I can spread the word among readers! You can reach Sarah at sarah@smartbitchestrashybooks.
What do you think? Do you include romance novels? Do you have a strategy for maintaining the collection of books in your Little Free Library? Comment below!
Great post, I couldn’t agree more.
Thanks for your insights Sarah. We’ll be sure this genre is included in our LFL’s.
When this topic first came up on Little Free Library my thought was exactly what you stated above. If thrillers are okay so is romance. My LFL contains both genres, as well as standard fiction, a little non-fiction, and LOTS of kids’ books. Sarah, thanks for your comments.
I read just about anything, that’s why I have a LFL. However, some days I really need to escape and read something with a happy ending. That is when romances are perfect.
Shell Silverstein… Nancy Drew … Or a romantic novel? That is not an issue at the Little Free Library in Old Lyme Ct…I include whatever is donated and marvel at the vast array of books that pass through my library .. I have included many Harlequin romance books because a neighbor’s sister is a huge fan… In honesty I had to remove all but a few … They were taking up valuable space but very rarely being borrowed…but that doesn’t change my opinion that they should be offered … The more varieties of books I offer … The more books I exchange back and forth… Because my library is in a summer season location for us there are about 6 months I have to take the library out of the elements because I am not there to stock it… But the joy on the little boys face when I said he could keep a few books for the winter and just return them in the spring was priceless…I have always loved to read… I’m sad for those that don’t know that joy… Are we really here to dictate what books give people joy? Just keep reading …that’s what matters and stop in at the Little Free Library in the front yard of the cottages “Itsy Bitsy ” and “Teeny Weeny” …in Old Lyme CT ..see you in April 2016
I agree fully, and within our LFL walls we have a lower shelf for children and teens, our upper level is more geared to adults. And I must say the adult section has been cycled through more times than the kids.
Thank you for sharing this thoughtful post.
I wouldn’t dream of censoring the type of book in our LFL and can’t understand anyone who would. What do people think is wrong with romance novels or erotica, not intellectual enough?
Doesn’t the public library have all genre of titles too?
I am very happy to have any and all books in our library and can’t imagine controlling the content to the extent of genre. We also have a section on the side with a magazine holder that enjoy’s a constant turnover.
Folks, let’s not judge our neighbors taste in books or magazines, it’s all about reading!
Thanks Sarah! I invariably find that people who are dismissive of romances have never read any. I’m also appalled that violence in books is deemed “ok”, but warmth and love are not.
Aside from LFLs, I’ve heard that hospitals run through romances quickly in their lending libraries. Romance readers are always grateful for more books.
I always have romance novels in my Little Library. I like to keep a variety, so there’s everything from Old Yeller to Mary Balogh to Stephen King and a copy of the Bible. You just never know who’s going to stop by or what they’ll be looking for. 🙂
I don’t like seeing romance novels in my Little Free Library, but they move very fast. What this author said rings true. Rather than remove them, I just give it a day and they are usually gone on their own. It would be very difficult for me to keep up with the task of censoring them if I chose that route.
We are a church that operates a LFL on our property, and I serve as both the church’s secretary and the library’s steward. Though we are an open and accepting church in the United Church of Christ, we felt caught between a rock and a hard place, so to speak, when it came to our church insurance policy mandating a “Safe Church,” and what books we can make available. The policy typically deals with interactions between adults and children, but we didn’t realize until well after our LFL was installed that the books we make available may also fall under the “Safe Church” umbrella. It seems ridiculous, I know, but we’ve chosen to not to put out books with a sexually explicit nature to keep in line with that insurance policy. We’ve also tried to steer clear of books we know has excessive violence. As an aside, we also don’t put out more than one Bible at once (though there’s none in there now), and we encourage a variety of literature on different religions. If I were operating this LFL on my own property, or one unaffiliated with a church/business, I wouldn’t have an issue with the kinds of books I put in there, but being that this has our church’s name on it we felt it was necessary to operate it in this way. I’m trying hard to balance that while also encouraging a turnover in books. If anyone has any advice on how to achieve this delicate balance, I would welcome it! Thanks!
Thanks for the thoughts Sarah. I previously kept romance out of our LFL, but your comments give me food for thought. What I thought was trashy may not be entirely, and I shouldn’t deny enjoyment to others. I’m going to put them in!
(If I get any outright erotica – I’m still not putting those in.)
This is a very interesting conversation. I will be a dissenting voice, as I’m a firm believer that “any reading material is good reading material” is not a true statement. I was exposed to “romance” novels at an early age because there was a book in my teacher’s 6th grade classroom. It was my first exposure to stories of rape and incest and reading about sexual experiences, much of it framed as being “in love.” And it was not a good thing in my life. I think it’s wrong to regard “romance” novels as appropriate for children just as we generally don’t regard pornographic videos as appropriate for children (although there are plenty of adults who don’t think that’s problematic, either). For those who are completely against any inkling of censorship, I think it’s important that parents simply guard over what their kids pick up from any library, and if their values are such that the material is inappropriate, don’t let the kid take and read it. My location’s free little library will not welcome books of this genre (if, as commenter mentions above, I catch them before a user picks it up).
I think what you include in your library needs to be tailored toward its audience. If you have mostly children stopping by it’s probably not best to have a ton of erotica in there. There are scientific studies coming out now that show porn has damaging effects on children. I myself have read plenty of romance novels, but I have had experiences where I had to stop reading certain books, because they were just porn without the pictures. Here is a link to another article on the subject.
http://www.fightthenewdrug.org/five-things-fifty-shades-of-grey-teaches/
There are also studies that show how damaging violence and other things can be on children. So I believe if you’re going to exclude one type of book for the sake of children, then you have to take it upon yourself to NOT be biased and exclude the others that can be damaging. If someone does put a book in your LFL that you are questioning, you can always do a quick search on your phone and see what kind of audience the book was written for. Make your own decision from there.
With that being said I think it’s up to you to be educated about who reads from your library and what kind of material you think is appropriate for that age group. If you live close to a park and many families stop by on the way, it might be best to have a mix of child and adult reads. If you’ve had one adult stop by your LFL in 9 months, maybe not.
I like what Amanda Chapnick said above by having a lower shelf for kids and higher shelf for adults. That way you don’t have to worry so much about keeping or throwing things out. You just have to sort it every once in a while to make sure the right books are on the right shelf. I think having something like this makes it more geared toward the community as whole, while keeping it child friendly.