Fiction:
* Action & Adventure: Focuses on fast-paced plots, thrilling situations, and often features heroes on daring quests.
* Classics: Literary works considered significant and enduring, often spanning centuries.
* Crime Fiction: Includes mysteries, thrillers, detective stories, and crime novels, often featuring suspense, intrigue, and investigations.
* Fantasy: Involves magical elements, mythical creatures, and often set in imaginary worlds.
* Historical Fiction: Set in the past, weaving fictional stories within real historical events and settings.
* Horror: Aims to scare the reader with suspense, fear, and supernatural elements.
* Literary Fiction: Emphasizes character development, complex narratives, and literary style.
* Romance: Centers around love stories, emotional relationships, and often includes themes of passion, longing, and intimacy.
* Science Fiction: Explores futuristic technologies, space travel, and often examines societal and ethical implications.
* Thriller: Creates suspense, tension, and fear, often featuring a dangerous protagonist facing a significant threat.
* Young Adult (YA): Targets a teenage audience, often featuring relatable characters, coming-of-age themes, and fast-paced plots.
Nonfiction:
* Autobiography & Memoir: Personal accounts of the author's life, often revealing insights and reflections.
* Biography: Tells the story of someone else's life, researched and written by another author.
* Business & Economics: Covers topics related to finance, management, and the economy.
* Cookbooks: Provides recipes, cooking techniques, and culinary information.
* History: Covers past events, figures, and periods, often with historical analysis and interpretation.
* How-to & Self-Help: Offers practical advice and instructions on various subjects.
* Nature & Environment: Explores the natural world, wildlife, and environmental issues.
* Philosophy & Religion: Examines ideas, beliefs, and philosophical perspectives.
* Politics & Current Affairs: Addresses political events, social issues, and contemporary affairs.
* Science & Technology: Covers scientific discoveries, technological advancements, and scientific concepts.
* Sports & Recreation: Focuses on sports, games, and recreational activities.
* Travel: Relates travel experiences, destinations, and cultural insights.
Other Genres:
* Children's Literature: Written for young readers, often featuring imaginative stories, bright illustrations, and simple language.
* Graphic Novels: Uses a combination of illustrations and text to tell a story.
* Poetry: Uses language in a creative and often rhythmic way to express emotions, ideas, and observations.
* Drama: Written for theatrical performance, featuring dialogue, characters, and plot.
Subgenres:
Within these major genres, there are countless subgenres. For example, within Fantasy, there are subgenres like High Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, and Dark Fantasy.
Note:
This is not an exhaustive list, and new genres are constantly being created. It's also important to note that books often blend genres, making it difficult to categorize them definitively.