Mellanlitteratur på bibliotek och i recensioner

Sammanfattning: This thesis investigates the reception of middle literature novels among critics in Swedish newspapers and at Swedish libraries. Works by three authors were chosen as representatives for middle literature: Helen Fielding, Nick Hornby and Tony Parsons. The investigation is based on interviews with librarians at the Gothenburg City Library, the total purchased number of books at public libraries in Sweden and analysis of Swedish newspaper reviews. The result is compared with theories by literary sociologists as Jofrid Karner Smidt, Janice Radway, Erland Munch-Petersen and Staffan Bergsten among others. It was found out that literary scientists and critics had a different way of looking at middle literature. Scientists regarded it as something positive and strengthening for female readers. Literary critics, on the other hand, looked upon middle literature as depraved and retrogressive. The very word middle literature first appears in Swedish newspapers in 1997 and it has been given several names. Middle literature novels were found to have some characteristic features: humour, identification, journalistic language and an urban environment. These novels were entertaining, well written, realistic and gave a picture of the present generation. The librarians had difficulties characterizing middle literature novels and to determine whether it was light literature or not. The reviews of the novels differed. Some were positive, some were negative but no one was unconcerned. Critics were more positive to middle literature than the librarians at the City Library in Gothenburg were. What made the literature so popular turned out to be facts that were its characteristics. Even if the librarians had a tendency to recommend other better novels, they thought it was better reading light novels than not reading at all. For them, middle literature fulfilled its purpose better in English, their original language, as an educational tool. They decided to buy this literature mainly for that purpose from that on. The chosen novels were all purchased in high numbers by Swedish libraries, in English as well as translated into Swedish. They regarded requests of books by the patrons but checked out reviews very carefully. The request for quality was high and was even more important.