GEN: Cataloging Genre Fiction

[Bonnie Fulmer <GBF1@MARISTB.MARIST.EDU>]

Dear Netters,
     For eight years now, I have been cursing my cataloging
"professor," who was simply a post-grad student from another
university hired by mine to teach summer session.  What I most
vividly remember about the course was his declaration that he
refused to teach rules of cataloging and classification
because that was "squirrel work," (!) and that ALL libraries
simply purchase card kits from vendors or the Library of
Congress.  Personally, I think he didn't KNOW the rules
himself.  The whole course was abstract comparisons of
various common and esoteric classification schemes.  I
could STRANGLE him every time I get a request back from
LC: CARDS UNAVAILABLE; DO NOT REORDER.  Needless to say,
we are not automated.
     Now that I have the griping out of the way, this nut
has a humble request of you expert "squirrels" out there,
who wishes she could be one.  Cards have come from LC with
"Genre: Love stories," or "Genre: Mystery and detective
stories" in the tracings.  Does this mean I create
genre (?) cards that I file in my subject catalog?   If
so, what is the proper procedure?  I assume I leave off
the word "Genre," but do I capitalize the LOVE STORIES,
like I do the subject headings at the top of the card?
I have checked cataloging and classification textbooks
(yes, he made us buy them, although we didn't USE them!),
but they say nothing about genre fiction cataloging.
     Thanks for any cataloging practices/rules you can
pass along!

                           Bonnie Fulmer
                           Spackenkill High School Library
                           112 Spackenkill Road
                           Poughkeepsie, NY   12603
                           gbf1@maristb.marist.edu