Why is reading a “romance” considered a negative by some?

I took a break from reviewing and writing the other day to read a WWII thriller that a friend recommended. “It’s not a romance like ‘that stuff’ you’ve been reading lately,” she said, handing the book to me. (Yes, there was more than a hint of snootiness in her tone on the words “that stuff.”) Truth be known, I will read just about anything and were one to try to categorize my personality by the books that grace my shelves, one would conclude I am either extremely well rounded or suffering from some degree of multiple personality disorder. (Oh, and toss in some OCD since I tend to like them organized alphabetically by author’s last name.) But I digress.

Becoming engrossed in the novel, I discovered that the underlying story was, in fact, a very sweet but tragic love story; a love story about a romance that could never end in a happily ever after with a fairly graphic – as in bordering on erotic – scene between the lovers before they went their separate ways. It was a very good story and I enjoyed reading it. When I returned the book my friend made a remark to the effect that if I was ready for some more serious reading, she had other books by this author.

I would not have classified this book as “serious reading” though. In terms of the caliber of the dialogue, depth of character development, craft of scene setting as well as action – it wasn’t any better than 85% of the romance novels I have read. Frankly, I have seen historical romances that were better researched and much more skillful in incorporating the language and flavor of the time period. So, why is it that this sort of story is deemed more “acceptable” reading or perceived as more “serious” for some than a romance?

My friend is by no means the only person in my circle of friends and family who is surprised, or even amused, by my love of a good romance novel and my having written one. I find this rather perplexing. Never mind that a significant percentage of book sales are of romance titles and the genre has exploded into a number of sub-genres since the 1980s. The romance genre includes authors considered part of the “classics” such as Jane Austen as well as virtual unknowns like – er, me. There literally is a sub-genre for everyone within this broad category. There are quite a few romance novelists who could be considered “cross-over” writers into a variety of other genres like J.R. Ward, whose Black Dagger Brotherhoodcan be found in some bookstores in the both the romance and sci-fi/fantasy aisle, or Christine Feehan’s Ghostwalkers series, which I have seen in the fiction/literature section as well as romance.

Reading, for me, is less about the story’s classification into a genre or style – it is about the sensorial experience. Granted, one has to rely on one’s imagination to conjure the sight, feel, scent, sound and taste of the settings, people, and action but isn’t that the beauty of imagination?
I wonder if people like my friend would be so quick to dismiss a romance, if they put aside their preconceived notions to actually read one. Maybe next time she asks me for a recommendation I will hand her J. R. Ward’s first novel and tell her it is something I picked up in the sci-fi/fantasy section.