Penny bloods, which came to be called penny dreadfuls after 1860, were cheap, sensational, and inordinately popular novels (frequently adapted, translated, or plagiarized from authors such as Charles Dickens and Alexandre Dumas) that were published as low-priced weekly serials for working-class British audiences. This early Victorian literary phenomenon is the subject of Price One Penny: A Database of Cheap Literature, 1837-1860. Launched in 2010 and peer-reviewed by NINES, Price One Penny is the creation of Marie Leger-St-Jean, a doctoral student at the University of Cambridge. Here, readers will find a database containing (as of this writing) over 500 different works from 65 publishers written by more than 70 "identified penny authors." The database can be searched by title and also browsed by works, authors (both penny authors and those whose work served as inspiration for the penny bloods), publishers, periodical, and libraries, with the latter referring to the libraries holding physical copies of penny bloods in their collections. New visitors may wish to start by checking out "How to Use" in the Database section, and there is also some helpful background information on penny bloods under the About POP section.
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