Skip to Main Content

genres of literature header

Definitions

genre (noun)

: a category of artistic, musical, or literary composition characterized by a particular style, form, or content

 

subgenre (noun)

: a genre that is part of a larger genre


Genre should not be confused with format. Genre is about content, whereas format is how the story or information is presented. Traditional print books, novels in verse, and comic books are formats that include many different genres.

Genres in the Library

The Mahoney Library holds about 7,000 books. About half of those are nonfiction books and about half are fiction.


NONFICTION

Nonfiction books are organized by Dewey Decimal Classification, which is very common in school and public libraries and organizes books according to discipline:

  • 000 : Computer science, information & general works 
  • 100 : Philosophy & psychology
  • 200 : Religion
  • 300 : Social Sciences
  • 400 : Languages
  • 500 : Mathematics & science
  • 600 : Technology & applied sciences
  • 700 : Arts & recreation
  • 800 : Literature
  • 900 : Geography & history

FICTION

Fiction books in the Mahoney Library are organized by genre, according to popularity with Mahoney students.

  • Realistic Fiction
  • Historical Fiction
  • Mystery
  • Horror
  • Science Fiction (Sci-Fi)
  • Fantasy
  • Sports Fiction
  • Animal Fiction

Maine Digital Library

Reader Poll

What is your favorite genre?
Realistic Fiction: 10 votes (7.58%)
Historical Fiction: 1 votes (0.76%)
Mystery: 3 votes (2.27%)
Science Fiction: 3 votes (2.27%)
Fantasy: 10 votes (7.58%)
Horror: 21 votes (15.91%)
Sports Fiction: 76 votes (57.58%)
Animal Fiction: 3 votes (2.27%)
Nonfiction: 3 votes (2.27%)
Poetry: 2 votes (1.52%)
Total Votes: 132

Map of Literature