Well-regarded book review publications (Kirkus Reviews, Library Journal, and Publishers Weekly) and popular social cataloguing websites (GoodReads, LibraryThing) categorize the books they review into genres. Fiction and Nonfiction are the broadest categories. Specialized categories include Mysteries, Children’s Books, and Poetry. Of course, even these sub-genres of Fiction and Nonfiction go by different labels. For example, “Mystery” books at Kirkus Reviews are labeled Mystery and Detective. Publishers Weekly and GoodReads uses the label Mystery and Thriller. This public domain anthology, while open to expansion to include additional genres, such as science fiction or biography and memoir, provides a rich and varied collection of works for novice book critics to develop their skills as reviewers.
