If you’ve ever wondered: ‘What exactly is a Dime Novel?’ You are not alone.

The latest, two-part Spare Change Library podcast episode unpacks some of the issues surrounding Dime Novel bibliography discussed in the 1982 Edward T. LeBlanc interviews between the former Dime Novel Round-Up editor and Dime Novel scholar Lydia Schurman, exclusively digitized by Falvey Library.

Over 40 years later, questions such as ‘How do we define the genre Dime Novel?’ are still pertinent today. Demian Katz, Falvey’s Director of Library Technology, joins me for this two-part podcast episode.

Photos of the LeBlanc collection at Northern Illinois University, provided by Matthew Short.

An Oral History of Dime Novels with Edward T. LeBlanc, Cassette 1

In addition to his role at Falvey Library, Demian is also an active collector and scholar of Dime Novel and Pulp Literature, specializing in choose-your-own-adventure type stories.

‘What’s in a Dime Novel?’: Revisiting the Edward T. LeBlanc interviews episode features audio clips from the first of the 24 60-minute cassette tapes from the LeBlanc interviews, to explore topics ranging from defining the genre of Dime Novel, the influence of women authors, English Penny Dreadfuls, and the future of pulp literature.

Photos of the LeBlanc collection at NIU, provided by Matthew Short.

Searchable transcriptions of the LeBlanc Cassettes featured in this podcast can be accessed through Villanova’s Digital Library.

Spare Change Library Podcast, a dime novel and popular literature podcast, features audio editions of stories and scholarly discussion–available through a shared RSS feed on dimenovels.org

The Spare Change Library – The Dime Novel Bibliography (dimenovels.org)