In a time when the world is grappling with the repercussions of a war Ukraine, a global pandemic and record inflation, I am faced with a big decision: should I file Daphne du Maurier's books under D or M?
I'm not the first to ask the question, but there are surprisingly few definitive answers. Some people seem to have strong feelings about it, but there is still a lot of inconsistency and randomness. Directions such as "go with the owner's own preferences" or "use whichever system makes the most sense to you" are less than helpful.
The few online encyclopedia entries which actually use a "LastName, FirstName" system (e.g. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Encyclopedia.com) seem to prefer "du Maurier" (file under D), even though that may not be my own preference. The kicker for me, I guess, is that Toronto Public Library files her under D ("du Maurier, Daphne"), with DUM in the Dewey Decimal System reference, and I have nothing but faith in Toronto Public Library.
By the same token, John le Carré goes under L, Louis de Bernières under D. But, for some reason, Simone de Beauvoir goes under B, Miguel de Cervantes goes under C, and Carl von Clauswitz also under C, so even the Toronto Public Library is not totally consistent!
And, for what it's worth, in case you were not sure, Gabriel García Márquez definitely goes under G (García and Márquez are both appellidos in the Spanish fashion), and Mario Vargas Llosa under V.
P.S. The "de", "du" and "le" are technically know as "nobiliary particles" in grammar.
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