The Villanova Digital Library provides access to numerous serialized and standalone short stories through its Dime Novels And Popular Literature collection. Most authors whose works appear in these publications are now considered obscure, while many of them remain unidentified. However, the digitized collections also include stories by nineteenth- and twentieth-century writers whose works are still widely read today. Here are some lesser known stories by well-known authors that are preserved in the Villanova Digital Library:

“What It Cost” by Louisa May Alcott

Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888) is primarily remembered as a novelist. Her most widely read novel, Little Women (1868-1869), was adapted into an award-winning film as recently as 2019. A lesser known work by Alcott is “What It Cost,” which appeared as a cover story in the sixth issue of the children’s periodical, The Young Crusader. Like many stories published in The Young Crusader, “What It Cost” promotes the anti-alcohol stance of the temperance movement.

The young crusader, v. I, no. 6, February 11, 1887, p. 21.

“Heart” by James Fenimore Cooper

Like Alcott, James Fenimore Cooper (1789-1851) is mainly remembered for his novels, in particular The Last of the Mohicans (1826). His story, “Heart,” appears as a cover story in two segments in the March 13 and March 20, 1841, issues of The Boston Notion. A full transcript of the story is also available through Project Gutenberg.

Boston notion, v. II, no. 24, Saturday morning, March 13, 1841, p. [1].

“The Jolly Roger” and other stories by Robert W. Chambers

Robert W. Chamber (1965-1895) wrote the short-story collection The King in Yellow (1895), which is one of the most influential works in the history of weird fiction. The first four stories in the collection directly impacted the “Cthulhu mythos,” a literary universe shared by H. P. Lovecraft (1890-1937) (whose astronomical journal is housed at Falvey Library) and other writers of the early twentieth century. The King in Yellow continues to excite the popular imagination, having been the basis for much of the acclaimed first season of the television series True Detective. However, most of Chambers’ writing was not in the horror genre. The Villanova Digital Library offers access to parts of three stories by Chambers: “One in a Million,” “The Shining Band,” and “The Jolly Roger” (the last of which is available, in its entirety, as digitized microfilm through the Internet Archive).

“Houdini, the Enigma” and other stories by Arthur Conan Doyle

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1870) is the creator of the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes, who appears in several stories, starting with “A Study in Scarlett” (1887). The Villanova Digital Library offers access to three works by Doyle that do not feature his famous detective: “Houdini, the Enigma,” which focuses on Harry Houdini (1874-1926), a famous magician and friend of Doyle’s; “An Alpine Pass on Ski”; and “De Profundis.”

Bonus: The Digital Library also includes one story, “The Affair of the Glenranald Bank,” by Doyle’s brother-in-law, E. W. Hornung (1866-1921). Hornung was influenced by Doyle’s work on Sherlock Holmes and created the character A. J. Raffles, a gentleman thief who is, in essence, the reverse Sherlock Holmes. The character first appeared in the short story “The Ides of March” in 1898 and the first collection of A. J. Raffles stories was subsequently published in 1899.

“Hunter Quatermain’s Story” and other stories by H. Rider Haggard

H. Rider Haggard (1856-1925) was a writer of adventure fiction, mainly remembered for creating the character Allan Quatermain. The most widely known tale featuring the character is the novel King Solomon’s Mines (1885), a reprint of which is available in the Villanova Digital Library. However, the site also includes other stories by Haggard (some of which feature Allan Quatermain), such as “Hunter Quatermain’s Story.” Allan Quatermain has continued to appear in literature since Haggard’s death, having played a central role in the comic-book series The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (1999-2019) by Alan Moore (b. 1953) and Kevin O’Neill (1953-2022).

“The Blockhouse Mystery” and other stories by Upton Sinclair

Upton Sinclair (1878-1968) was a writer, political activist, and winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. He wrote The Jungle (1906), a novel about working conditions in the meat industry, which raised awareness of unsanitary practices and influenced the passing of the Federal Meat Inspection Act. The Villanova Digital Library preserves four stories written by Sinclair under the pseudonym Douglas Wells for The Starry Flag: “The Blockhouse Mystery, or, Hal Maynard’s Cuban Romance”; “Hal on the Outpost, or, With the Army Above Doomed Santiago”; “The Hero of Manila; or, Hal Maynard Under a New Commander”; “Hal Maynard at West Point, or, The New Member of the Seven Devils”.

All the abovementioned stories are available in the Villanova Digital Library’s Dime Novels And Popular Literature collection, while more are being added on a regular basis. The digitization project not only preserves the works of obscure writers, but also brings to light the lesser known works of well-known writers.

Note: The stories by Doyle, Haggard, and Sinclair were identified by Director of Library Technology Demian Katz.

By Ethan Shea

Last week, Shehan Karunatilaka received the prestigious Booker Prize for his novel The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida. The Booker Prize is a literary award granted annually to an exceptional work of fiction written in the English language. Past winners include remarkable writers such as Salman Rushdie, Margaret Atwood, and Yann Martel.

Karunatilaka grew up in Colombo, the capital city of Sri Lanka. He went on to study in New Zealand and has lived in several large cities, such as London and Singapore. Today, Karunatilaka lives in his hometown of Colombo, where he works writing ad copy to supplement his literary endeavors.

The winning novel concerns the Sri Lankan Civil War, which lasted from 1983 to 2009, and the following fallout of the conflict. Being only the second novel from Karunatilaka, writing The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida about such a lengthy war was a bold endeavor. However, the potential his debut novel, Chinaman, promised was clearly realized in Karunatilaka’s most recent work.

To learn more about Shehan Karunatilaka and his award-winning novel, check out this New York Times article.

You will also find information on last year’s Booker Prize finalists in this blog.

Both of Karunatilaka’s novels are available through interlibrary loan services here at Falvey. You can find his debut novel here, and his Booker Prize-winning work here.

Ethan Shea is a graduate student in the English Department at Villanova University and Graduate Assistant at Falvey Library.

Photo by Darwis Alwan from Pexels.

Nature’s first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf’s a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.

-Robert Frost, “Nothing Gold Can Stay”

By Allie Reczek

The Outsiders novel, written by S.E. Hinton in 1967, follows the life of Ponyboy Curtis (yes, his real name) and the “greasers” as they battle the “Socs” (short for socials), in this coming-of-age tale. The greasers, known for their greasy, long hair and low-class, scum reputation and the Socs, the upper-class kids from the good side of town, are always at war with each other. The social and economic differences that exist between these two groups cause constant tension and rivalry in town, ultimately leading to the accidental death of a Soc at the hands of a 16-year-old greaser named Johnny. This accident sends Ponyboy and Johnny on a journey that takes a toll on the rest of the greasers and results in more death and destruction than any young person should experience.

From the first few pages of this novel, readers root for Ponyboy and the rest of the greasers, understanding that just because you are from a lower social class does not mean that you have less to offer society. Readers learn the importance of family and that the people who have your back no matter what are the ones worth staying beside.

The Outsiders movie adaptation was released in 1983, directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starred C. Thomas Howell, Matt Dillion, and Ralph Macchio. Coppola does a remarkable job at keeping to the storyline and plot of the novel, where almost nothing was left out or changed. This film brings this seemingly simple story of a young boy and his life to reality, where viewers can truly empathize with the greasers, and understand the relationship and love between these boys.

So… Flip or Flick?

While both versions of this story are captivating and gut-wrenching, I would have to choose Flick. The movie adds another layer of connection to the characters and their journey through life, where viewers get a visual glimpse into the lives of Ponyboy, Sodapop, Darry, Dally, Johnny, Two-Bit, and Steve. Because Coppola maintains the integrity and structure of the storyline, I did not feel that anything important was missing in the film and it only further enhanced the plot. While Ponyboy and the greasers may be the Outsiders in their world, this story is one that I feel everyone can relate to in some way. There comes a point in all our lives where we feel as if we don’t fit in or belong. The Outsiders proves that sometimes it is OK to be on the outside; it proves that as long as you have people who love you and are there for you through thick and thin, nothing else matters. Finally, we are reminded to stay optimistic and appreciate life, even when it may seem like nothing good will last. Even when dawn goes down to day, we ought to remember that the gold does in fact stay.

“Stay Gold, Ponyboy.”

Allie Reczek ’22 CLAS is a current senior at Villanova, majoring in Psychology with minors in Communications and Sociology. She works in Falvey Library as a Marketing and Communications Assistant.