Facklitterära tecknade serier på folkbibliotek
The purpose of this Bachelor's thesis is to study the reasoning behind classification, cataloging and shelf arrangement of nonfiction graphic novels in public libraries. The aim was to examine which aspects of accessibility influence in which collection nonfiction graphic novels are placed.With qualitative semi-structured interviews we learned how six librarians motivated their choices concerning nonfiction graphic novels. We also interviewed a cataloger from Bibliotekstjänst to examine how nonfiction graphic novels are classified. In our analysis we compared our results to theories and practices concerning alternative shelf arrangements in libraries and legitimization of graphic novels. We found three types of shelf arrangements for nonfiction graphic novels: graphic novel shelf, nonfiction classification code and a mix of the two. The reasoning behind these placements can be described in three themes: user perspective, library perspective or document perspective. The arrangements and themes are influenced by which users the librarians believe to be reading nonfiction graphic novels and which type of subject the document concerns.Our results showed that according to the cataloger the subject of a nonfiction graphic novel is classified by the text and not by drawings, which are seen as difficult to discern as nonfiction. An important aspect of cataloging is that the document is searchable, and in order to search nonfiction graphic novels by both subject matter and format a notation for graphic novels has been added. However it is possible that an advanced search is necessary, which can be difficult for inexperienced users.