This Queer Book Saved My Life: Recent Episodes
J.P. Der Boghossian
Fans of On Being and Los Culturistas love this 2024 GLAAD Media Award nominee for Outstanding Podcast. Featuring Carmen Maria Machado, Alison Bechdel, Jennifer Finney Boylan, Greg Louganis, Becky Albertalli, and so many more, guests from across the rainbow tell these authors how their books helped them overcome alienation, gender dysphoria, familial homophobia, and being outed. Essayist and Lambda Literary Fellow J.P. Der Boghossian hosts the conversations with a gentle and energetic style, standing in as conversational partner for posthumous authors. Stay tuned to off-weeks which features new episodes of 7 Minutes in Book Heaven and The Gaily Show.
We have such an issue with: what should we educate children with?
Today we meet Dr. Helen Webberley and we’re talking about the queer book that saved her life: My Daddies! by Gareth Peter. And Gareth joins us for the conversation!
Dr. Webberley is a doctor, gender specialist, and medical educator with years of experience across medicine, science, sexual health, and gender identity. In 2015, Dr. Webberley supported a young trans boy who had been left without care by UK's National Health System. That’s when she founded GenderGP. The small medical service quickly became a lifeline for trans people across the UK and beyond. Now, her goals include developing training for healthcare professionals, improving legal protections for the trans community, and championing a global shift towards patient-led, rights-based models of care.
Gareth Peter has had a career as a composer and lyricist for theater, with his songs performed on stage by West End and Broadway voices across the United Kingdom and internationally. He founded the Broadway School of Performing Arts, a part-time theater school, in 2004. In 2018, he was a top-ten Penguin Random House Write Now finalist. Recent books include a series with Scholastic titled This Book is Full Of, including This Book Is Full of Unicorns and this Book Is Full Of Bunnies. Gareth lives in Nottingham with his partner and his two wonderful adopted children.
My Daddies! is a funny, heartfelt picture-book celebrating same-sex parents and shared story time, perfect for introducing children to the different kinds of family in the world today.
Connect with Dr. Webberley and Gareth
Dr. Webberley's website: helenwebberley.com
GenderGP: gendergp.com
Gareth's website: storywise.uk/gareth-peter
Instagram: @gareth.peter
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of My Daddies! here: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/314591/my-daddies-by-peter-gareth/9780241405772
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
As a kid I always wondered where do I belong?
Today we meet Mario Elías and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: The Color of Summer by Reinaldo Arenas.
Mario Elías is a multidisciplinary artist of Cuban and Syrian descent based in Chicago. His work spans fiction, nonfiction, photography, painting, and printmaking. His book Queering the Male Gaze reimagined masterpieces of the classical and modern canon through essays and self-portraiture, exploring often-overlooked queer and female figures who shaped them. He is the founder of The KindaSuper Project, a philanthropic initiative offering free photography and video services to underserved communities. His debut novel Beloved Disciples just came out earlier this spring.
The Color of Summer is a Rabelaisian tale of survival by wits and wit and ultimately a powerful and passionate story about the triumph of the human spirit over the forces of political and sexual repression. This novel is the fulfillment of author Reinaldo Arenas' life's work, the Pentagonía, a five-volume cycle of novels that is his "secret history of Cuba."
Reinaldo Arenas was born in Cuba in 1943. In 1980, he was one of 120,000 Cubans who arrived in the United States on the Mariel boatlift. Arenas settled in New York where he lived until his death from AIDS ten years later. His extraordinary memoir, Before Night Falls, was named one of the fourteen "Best Books of 1993" by the editors of The New York Times Book Review and has now been made into a major motion picture.
Connect with Mario Elías
website: kindasuper.com
instagram: @kindasupermario
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of The Color of Summer: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780140157192
Buy your copy of Beloved Disciples: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781612943374
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
I had never discovered a queer character who didn't die at the end. This book changed that.
Today we meet Gregory A. Kompes and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Maurice by E.M. Forster
Gregory is founder of The Writer Workshop and an award winning, bestselling author of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction. He’s the author of Shards, as well as the Broadway series that includes Flash Mob, The Middle Man, Tamburlaine, Obsequies, and Busker. Become a VIP Reader at https://kompes.com.
Maurice is set in the elegant Edwardian world of Cambridge undergraduate life and introduces us to Maurice Hall when he is fourteen. We follow him through public school, then Cambridge University, and finally into his father's firm. In a highly structured society, Maurice is a conventional young man in almost every way--except that he is homosexual. Maurice was ahead of its time in its theme and in its affirmation that love between men can be happy
E. M. Forster was one of the major novelists of the first half of the twentieth century. He was born in 1879 and educated at Cambridge. His other novels include A Room with a View, Howards End, and A Passage to India.
Connect with Gregory A. Kompes
website: kompes.com
bluesky: @gregoryakompes.bsky.social
instagram: @GregoryAKompes
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of Maurice: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780393310320
Buy your copy of Shards: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9798995967408
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
This book raised something that was running subterranean in my system back up to the surface again.
Today we meet J. Brooke and we’re talking about the queer book that saved their life: Transition: Becoming Who I Was Always Meant to Be by Chaz Bono.
J’s full-length poetry book, I Can Tell You The Version That Will Make You Take My Side won the Editor’s Choice Prize at Driftwood Press. It is now available everywhere you get your books. J has received two Pushcart nominations, a 2025 Best of The Net nomination, and there were a Finalist for the 2025 Iowa Review Nonfiction Prize. Their autobiographical essay “HYBRID” won Columbia Journal’s 2020 Special Issue Nonfiction Award. Their work appears in Electric Lit, The Rumpus, Harvard Review and elsewhere. J is the Prose Book Reviews Editor at The Rumpus, Poetry Editor at Trans Poetics Archive, former Nonfiction Editor at Stonecoast Review.
In Transition: Becoming Who I Was Always Meant to Be Chaz Bono shares his deeply moving and ultimately triumphant account of the physical and emotional process that brought him to a place of peace, and finally happiness. With a message to anyone who has ever felt that they couldn’t be who they really are, Transition is as inspirational as it is intimate.
Chaz Bono is an LGBTQ rights advocate, acclaimed author, and the only child of famed entertainers Sonny and Cher. He has written three books, including Transition, his groundbreaking account of a forty-year struggle to match his gender identity with his physical body and his transformation from female to male.
Connect with J. Brooke
website: jbrookewrites.com
bluesky: jbrookewrites.bsky.social
instagram: @jbrooke_writes
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of Transition: Becoming Who I Was Always Meant to Be https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780452298002
Buy your copy of I Can Tell You the Version That Will Make You Take My Side: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781949065435
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
Why would I ever want to have a body and why should I allow it to want what it wants?
Today we meet Jill Rosenberg and we’re talking about the queer book that saved her life: Sea of Tranquility by Paul Elliott Russell. And Paul joins us for the conversation!
Jill is a graduate of Vassar College and the MFA Program at the University of Montana. Her fiction has been published by the Kenyon Review, Swamp Pink, Black Warrior Review, and other journals. Her collection of stories, Now I’m Photogenic and Other Stories I Tell Myself won the St. Lawrence Book Prize and is out now!
Paul Elliott Russell is a four-time finalist for the Lambda Literary Award and two time winner of the Ferro-Grumley Award for Fiction. He is the author of seven novels and his upcoming novel The Angels Came to Sodom in the Evening will be out this fall. His 1995 nonfiction book, The Gay 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Gay Men and Lesbians, Past and Present has been translated into ten languages. He taught at Vassar College for 38 years till retirement in 2021. The Library of Homosexual Congress will publish his short story collection titled Desire in the Fall of 2027.
Sea of Tranquility is the story of a splinted nuclear family - spanning from the optimistic time of the first moon shot to the bleak time of the early AIDS years.
Connect with Jill and Paul
Jill's website: jillrosenberg.me
Paul's website: paulrussellwriter.com
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of Sea of Tranquility here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780312303723
But your copy of Now I'm Photogenic and Other Stories I Tell Myself: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781625572172
Pre-order The Angels Came To Sodom in the Evening: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781917352161
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
I came out and needed to understand: what kind of gay am I?
Today we meet Dr. Perry Zurn and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Stone Butch Blues by Leslie Feinberg.
Dr. Zurn is Provost Associate Professor of Philosophy at American University. He researches primarily in political philosophy, critical theory, and LGBTQ+ studies and has collaborated in psychology and network neuroscience. Dr. Zurn is the author or coauthor of 100+ additional publications in philosophy, political theory, LGBTQ+ studies, and network science and has given 250+ talks at local, national, and international venues. His work has been featured in over 50 media outlets, ranging from podcasts, to radio, television, and mainstream news outlets. His newest book Cisgender: Disorienting a Category comes out this July.
Stone Butch Blues was Leslie Feinberg’s first novel published in 1993. The novel won the 1994 American Library Association Stonewall Book Award and 1994 Lambda Literary Award. Groundbreaking in its time for its exploration of gender, the novel established Feinberg as the first author to put forward a Marxist version of “transgender liberation.” The novel has sold hundreds of thousands of copies and has even been passed hand-to-hand inside prisons. The earnings from a translated version went to ASWAT Palestinian Gay Women.
Leslie Feinberg identified as an anti-racist white, working-class, secular Jewish, transgender, lesbian, female, revolutionary communist. Feinberg was a journalist for Workers World and edited the "Political Prisoners" page for 15 years, ultimately serving as managing editor. Feinberg also wrote "Lavender & Red" for Workers World which was a 120-part series exploring the links between socialism and LGBT history. They also authored: Rainbow Solidarity in Defense of Cuba, Transgender Warriors: Making History and Trans Liberation: Beyond Pink or Blue, and the novel Drag King Dreams. Feinberg died on November 15, 2014 and hir last words were: “Remember me as a revolutionary communist.”
Connect with Perry
website: perryzurn.com
bluesky: @perryzurn.bsky.social
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
How to get your copy of Stone Butch Blues:
- Print on Demand Paperback through Lulu
- Get a free PDF copy of Stone Butch Blues here: https://www.lesliefeinberg.net
- Ask your local library or independent bookstore!
Buy your copy of Cisgender: Disorienting a Category here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781478038771
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
This book was a vivid portrayal of queer desire. It didn't have a happy ending, but it had a positive ending.
Today we meet Lynette D'Amico and we’re talking about the queer book that saved her life: Carol by Patricia Highsmith.
Lynette D'Amico is an essayist and fiction writer whose work has appeared in The Gettysburg Review, The Ocean State Review and at Brevity, Slag Glass City, Short Reads, and Guernica. Her memoir in essays Men I Hate, won the Gournay Nonfiction Prize and was published by Mad Creek Books in 2026. She holds an MFA from the Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College. She makes her home in Rhode Island, but she has a prairie eye.
Originally published as The Price of Salt, Carol is based on a true story plucked from Highsmith's own life. It tells the riveting drama of Therese Belivet, a stage designer trapped in a department-store day job, whose routine is forever shattered by a gorgeous epiphany--the appearance of Carol Aird, a customer who comes in to buy her daughter a Christmas toy. They fall in love and set out across the United States, ensnared by society's confines and the imminent disapproval of others, yet propelled by their infatuation.
Patricia Highsmith was the author of more than twenty novels, including Strangers on a Train, The Price of Salt and The Talented Mr. Ripley, as well as numerous short stories.
Connect with Lynette
website: lynettedamico.com
instagram: @sicilianblade2
substack: substack.com/@lynettedamico
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of Carol here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780393325997
Buy your copy of Men I Hate: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780814259696
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
Between 50-75% of my friends died of AIDS. I was trying to figure out what had happened to our community.
Today we meet Gabriel Rotello and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Gay New York by George Chauncey.
Gabriel Rotello is an Emmy-nominated and GLAAD Award-winning writer, director, producer, journalist and musician. He published his nonfiction book in 1997: Sexual Ecology: AIDS and the Destiny of Gay Men. In 1989 he launched OutWeek Magazine as its editor-in-chief. In 1993, he became the first openly gay op-ed columnist for a major American newspaper, New York Newsday. He was also a columnist for The Advocate. For almost three decades, Gabriel has written, directed and produced dozens of television documentaries for HBO, Netflix, National Geographic, and Comedy Central.
Gay New York brilliantly shatters the myth that before the 1960s gay life existed in the closet, where all gay men were isolated, invisible, and ashamed. Based on years of research in diaries, letters, newspaper stories, and police reports, George Chauncey describes the saloons, speakeasies, and streets where queer men gathered; the intimate parties and immense drag balls where they celebrated; the highly visible residential enclaves they built in Greenwich Village, Harlem, and Times Square; and the complex prewar sexual culture they inhabited, which did not divide men into heterosexuals and homosexuals.
George Chauncey is the DeWitt Clinton Professor of History at Columbia University and previously taught at Yale and the University of Chicago.
Connect with Gabrielwebsite: gabrielrotello.com
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of Gay New York here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781541699212
Buy your copy of The CBGB Conspiracy: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9798888249093
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
This book helped me understand my brain and in particular the queer brain.
Today we meet Max Hovey and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: The Velvet Rage by Alan Downs.
Max Hovey is a London-based writer, creator, and queer advocate. He dedicates his platform to sparking discussions about and promoting body acceptance, sex positivity, mental health awareness, and other topics relating to LGBTQIA+ issues. His writing and work have been featured in the Independent, Attitude Magazine, GQ, Bustle, and other outlets. No Fats, No Fems: A Guide to Queer Empathy and Unpacking Prejudice is his first book (comes out May 19, 2026).
Through brave individual stories and compassionate analysis, The Velvet Rage explores how shame is insidious, and can be traced back to childhood feelings of "otherness". Drawing on contemporary psychological research, The Velvet Rage offers a path to emotional well-being and an end to self-defeating behavior.
Alan Downs, PhD is a clinical psychologist and the bestselling author of seven books.
Connect with Max
youtube: youtube.com/@climaxlgbtq
instagram: @max_hovey
tiktok: @maxhovey
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of The Velvet Rage here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780802135223
Buy your copy of No Fats No Femmes: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780063423466
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
This book has a very fabulous determined, genderfluid, and Bi character. Reading her released something in me.
Today we meet Sarah Stone and we’re talking about the queer book that saved their life: The Passion by Jeanette Winterson.
Sarah Stone (she/they) is the author of Marriage to the Sea; Hungry Ghost Theater, a finalist for the 38th annual Northern California Book Awards; and The True Sources of the Nile, as well as co-author, with Ron Nyren, of Deepening Fiction: A Practical Guide for Intermediate and Advanced Writers.
Sarah’s work has appeared in many publications, including Ploughshares, StoryQuarterly, Scoundrel Time, Alta Journal online for the California Book Club, and A Kite in the Wind: Fiction Writers on Their Craft. She has taught for UC Berkeley, the Warren Wilson MFA Program for Writers, and Stanford Continuing Studies, AND has written for Korean public television, reported on human rights in Burundi, AND looked after orphan chimpanzees at the Jane Goodall Institute.
The Passion was a 1987 novel described as "arresting, elegant." Set in Napoleon's Europe, The Passion tells the intertwined stories of Henri, a young Frenchmen who serves as a cook in Napoleon's army, and Villanelle who is a red-haired (and web-footed!) Venetian.
Jeanette Winterson's (CBE) first novel was Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit. She has written thirteen novels, one memoir, and two collections of short stories. She has also written children's books, non-fiction and screenplays. She is Professor of New Writing at the University of Manchester.
Connect with Sarah
website: sarahstoneauthor.com
instagram: @sarahstoneauthor
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of The Passion here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780802135223
Buy your copy of Marriage to the Sea: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781961897847
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
Will I as a queer person be able to live openly, boldly, and out of the shadows?
Today we meet Jake Stepansky and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Will Grayson, Will Grayson by David Levithan and John Green. And David joins us for the conversation!
Jake Stepansky is a culture and care worker based in Brooklyn, NY. He is the co-founder and board president of the QT Library – a 501(c)(3) nonprofit working to bring a brick-and-mortar LGBTQIA+ library and substance-free community space to Boston. Jake is the Producer of Festival Presentations for the Under the Radar Festival, and works with private clients as a professional organizer and decluttering coach. Jake honed his skills as an arts worker and educator at Forklift Danceworks, Marty Pottenger’s Art At Work, Pomegranate Arts, the Office for the Arts at Harvard, and more.
David Levithan is an award-winning and New York Times-bestselling author of many books for teens, including Boy Meets Boy, Wide Awake, Love Is the Higher Law, and (with Rachel Cohn) Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. He also works as an editor and, in his free time, takes way too many pictures.
Will Grayson, Will Grayson is about two teens with the same name, running in two very different circles, suddenly find their lives going in new and unexpected directions, and culminating in epic turns-of-heart and the most fabulous musical ever to grace the high school stage.
Connect with Jake and David
Instagram: @jakebookplantsky
QT Library: qtlibrary.org
David's Facebook: facebook.com/davidlevithan
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of Will Grayson, Will Grayson here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780142418475
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
What happens when the world tells you you're too much and you start shrinking yourself to survive?
Today we meet William Ollayos and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Reverie by Ryan La Sala. And Ryan joins us for the conversation!
William Ollayos is an educator, advocate, and aspiring writer based in Connecticut. He serves as an Area Coordinator in Wesleyan University’s Office of Residential Life, and as a Law & Policy Fellow with Connecticut’s Commission on Women, Children, Seniors, Equity & Opportunity, where he administers the statewide LGBTQ+ Justice & Opportunity Network. Bill is also a J.D. candidate at Quinnipiac University School of Law and holds an M.A. in Comparative Literature from UMass Amherst.
Ryan La Sala is a bestselling and award-winning author known for his genre-defying, queer-centered horror and fantasy, including The Honeys, which is in development to become a major motion picture, and The Dead of Summer duology. He is also the author of Beholder, Reverie, and Be Dazzled. He has been featured in The New York Times Book Review, Entertainment Weekly, NPR, and more. He writes to you from New York, overseen by his cat, Haunted Little Girl.
Connect with William and Ryan
William's Instagram: @willbruwrites
The Hartford Times: hartfordtimes.com/author/william-ollayos/
Ryan's website: ryanlasala.com
Tiktok: @theryanlasala
Threads: @theryanlasala
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of Reverie here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781728255835
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
This question has followed me around my whole life: where do I come from?
Today we meet Karsten Vagner and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: The Prince of Los Cocuyos by Richard Blanco. And Richard joins us for the conversation!
Karsten Vagner was born in Bogotá, Colombia and grew up outside of New York City. He has worked in tech startups for the past 20 years, and has been awarded for his leadership, including for being a notable LGBTQ executive in New York. He has worked on community building projects with the New York City Council, was one of the first organizers with Swing Left after the 2016 election, and has been a volunteer at the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center in New York City. Karsten lives with his husband and daughter in Greenwich, Connecticut, where he has held elected office and is an organizer of the town's annual Pride celebration.
Richard Blanco was the youngest and first Latinx, immigrant, and gay poet to serve as the fifth Presidential Inaugural Poet in US History as awarded by President Barrack Obama. Originally born in Madrid, to Cuban Exile parents, Richard was raised in Miami in a working-class family. His writing explores cultural identity, place, and belonging. He is the author of several poetry collections, including his most recent Homeland of My Body. He has written two memoirs, including The Prince of Los Cocuyos. He serves as Education Ambassador for The Academy of American Poets and is an Associate Professor at Florida International University. He has received numerous awards, including a Lambda Literary Award, and in 2023, President Biden awarded him the National Humanities Medal.
Connect with Karsten and Richard
Karsten's instagram: @gaysingreenwich
Richards's website: richard-blanco.com
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of The Prince of Los Cocuyos here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780062313775
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
In some ways, the characters in this book were my first lovers.
Today we meet Michael Horvich and we're talking about the queer book that saved his life: Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin.
Michael is a retired Elementary School Educator and University Instructor. In addition he’s many things, here’s just a partial list: Poet, Collector, Museum Curator Emeritis, Book Binder, Supernumerary, Flea Circus Ringmaster, and Dementia/Alzheimer’s Advocate. He has published two volumes poetry, which in part portray his journey navigating his life partner's Alzheimer’s. His advocacy work has led to presentations at numerous organizations including at the Northwestern University Kellogg Graduate School of Business, 33rd Annual Alzheimer’s Disease International Convention, and the Chicago LGBTQ Center on Halsted. He also gave the opening key note at the 2019 Mayo Clinic / Minnesota-North Dakota Alzheimer's Association Conference. Michael was featured in ALAN TELLER’s “STILL AT IT!"ART SHOW.
James Baldwin was a novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and social critic. His first novel, Go Tell It on the Mountain, appeared in 1953 to excellent reviews, and his essay collections Notes of a Native Son and The Fire Next Time were bestsellers that made him an influential figure in the growing civil rights movement. Baldwin spent much of his life in France, where he moved to escape the racism and homophobia of the United States. He died in France in 1987, a year after being made a Commander of the French Legion of Honor.
Connect with Michael
website: www.horvich.com
substack: mhorvich.substack.com
facebook: facebook.com/mhorvichcreates
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of Giovanni's Room here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780345806567
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
How can we hold together idealism and authenticity even when the world is homophobic?
Today we meet Lucas F. Schleusener and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Lost Prophet: The Life and Times of Bayard Rustin by John D'Emilio.
Lucas is a writer, educator, and national security strategist shaping the future of equity across the national security enterprise. As Co-Founder and CEO of Out in National Security he leads a global community that advances LGBTQIA+ inclusion and drives policy change across defense and foreign policy. Luke is a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations and previously served as Chairman of the Board of No One Left Behind. His writing has appeared in Foreign Policy, Defense One, The Hill, and Law360.
John D’Emilio, PhD is professor emeritus of history and gender and women’s studies at University of Illinois at Chicago. A Guggenheim Fellow and a pioneer in the field of gay and lesbian studies, he is the author, coauthor, or editor of numerous books, including Sexual Communities and Intimate Matters, which was cited in Justice Anthony Kennedy’s opinion in Lawrence v. Texas, the 2003 Supreme Court case overturning US anti-sodomy laws. John is the founding director of the Policy Institute of the National LGBTQ Task Force, he has also served as President of the Gerber/Hart Library and Archives, a community-based library and historical archives in Chicago.
Connect with Luke and John
Luke's website: outinnationalsecurity.org
linkedin: linkedin.com/in/lucas-f-schleusener-9a470415/
John's website: americanlgbtqmuseum.org/profile/john-demilio/
facebook: facebook.com/john.demilio.7/
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of Lost Prophet: The Life and Times of Bayard Rustin here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780226142692
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, Sean Smith, and Karsten Vagner
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
One of the world's oldest surviving novels was a queer book?!
Today we meet Neil Laird and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: The Satyricon by Petronius.
Neil is a multiple Emmy-nominated Executive Producer who has worked extensively on both the network and production side of non-fiction TV since 1997. He's developed, overseen, and produced over 1,000 hours of non-fiction programs and specials in nearly every genre, with a particular passion, expertise, and contacts in history, archaeology, and international exploration. He write a series of satirical adventure novels: Prime Time Travelers, Prime Time Pompeii, and, the forthcoming Prime Time Troy. They're all about a time-traveling TV crew uncovering forgotten LGBTQ voices from the past.
Petronius (20 C.E. - 66 C.E.) served as a Governor in the Roman Empire and ultimately as Consul, the most powerful position in the Empire. When he left public service, Emperor Nero named him the Arbiter Elegantiae, or master of elegance. A prominent writer, Petronius is considered the likely author of The Satyricon.
Connect with Neil
website: neillaird.com
instagram: @primetimeauthor
facebook: facebook.com/neil-laird-author
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your copy of The Satyricon here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780806144382
For the forthcoming Prime Time Troy, as well as Prime Time Travelers and Prime Time Pompeii, check this out: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Neil-Laird/author/B0CYJ7HDB4
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
We have a new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life on December 16th! Today, Once Upon a Crime Books presents 7 Minutes in Book Heaven, the podcast where we interview LGBTQ authors about the new books they have coming out for us to love and cuddle up with.
Visit them online: onceuponacrimebooks.com
Once Upon a Crime Books is an independent bookstore specializing in mystery fiction. Located in Uptown Minneapolis, you can shop in their store Monday through Saturday 11am – 5:30pm. Or, visit their website! There, you can browse all of their books, from new releases to classic mysteries.
In this new episode, Once Upon a Crime Books introduces us to Anne Laughlin and her new novel: Clean Kill which is available to buy in in-store or on their website.
Anne Laughlin has written seven books for Bold Strokes Books, all stand alone crime novels of the classic mystery, police procedural, and psychological thrill variety. She is the winner of four Goldie Awards from the Golden Crown Literary Society and has been short listed three times for a Lammy Award from the Lambda Literary Foundation. Currently a board member of Mystery Writers of America/Midwest and MWA's Queer Advisory Board, Anne believes in giving back to the crime writing community. Anne lives in Chicago with her wife, Linda Braasch, and their two cats.
Buy Clean Kill
Visit Once Upon a Crime Books in-person or buy online: https://onceuponacrimebooks.com/book/9781636796345
Connect with Anne Laughlin
website: annelaughlinwriter.com
facebook: facebook.com/anne.laughlin
Credits
Presented by: Once Upon a Crime Books
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Theme music: Summer Mood by lesfm
Real quick: yes, you too can be a guest on our podcast! If you have a queer book that had a life-saving impact for you, then please visit thisqueerbook.com and fill out the form on the homepage! Looking forward to hearing back from you!
Support the show
Next week we have a special 7 Minutes in Book Heaven episode for you! And then, a new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops on December 16th! In our off weeks we play episodes of The Gaily Show which John hosts. The Gaily Show is the only daily LGBTQ progressive news and talk radio show in the country airing in Minneapolis (AM950-KTNF) and Chicago (WCPT 820).
In this episode, The Gaily Show starts a new partnership with author and critic Ilana Masad. She will join us on the third Fridays of the month to share LGBTQ books you need to be reading. Today’s books:
- The Future Was Color by Patrick Nathan
- Confidence by Rafael Frumkin
- Blue Skinned Gods by SJ Sindu
Get them here: https://bookshop.org/lists/the-gaily-show
But up first, Jim and I give you our reviews of Netflix’s Boots, FX’s English Teacher, and Hulu’s Golden Girls: 40 Years of Friendship.
Ilana Masad is a writer of fiction, nonfiction, and criticism whose work has been widely published. She holds a PhD from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and is the author of the novels All My Mother’s Lovers and Beings, as well as the coeditor of the forthcoming anthology Here for All the Reasons: Why We Watch The Bachelor. https://www.ilanamasad.com/
Watch on YouTube
We're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
Support the show
Can you have a happy ending in a gay relationship?
Today we meet Bobbie Smith and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Coming Out by Wallace Hamilton.
Bobbie has been a community activist for 35 years. He helped found the Gay and Lesbian community council in Salt Lake City, Utah of which he was a member. He also founded the Sacred Fairies. Bobbie started the Stonewall Community Center in Salt Lake City, where he served as its first Librarian and donated over 1,000 books to that library. He has been a leader in the local leather community here in Minnesota since 2000. He is a props designer for various community theaters in the Twin Cities, primarily with Theatre in the Round.
Wallace Hamilton was a novelist and playwright. His four novels include Coming Out and Christopher and Gay. He wrote fourteen plays and co-wrote the screenplay for Streetchild. He graduated from Harvard and was a World War II conscientious objector.
Content Warning: This episode contains a description of a suicide attempt.
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Coming Out is not available on Bookshop.org, but you can find copies at AbeBooks or Thriftbooks.
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
Am I in love with a woman or am I a woman who's in love with women?
Today we meet Lauren Sanders and we’re talking about the queer book that saved her life: Nightwood by Djuna Barnes.
Lauren Sanders (she/they) is the author of the novel Kamikaze Lust, which won a 2000 Lambda Literary Award and was reissued this fall in a 25th anniversary edition. Her other novels include With or Without You (a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award) and The Book of Love and Hate. Short fiction, reviews, rants, etc. have appeared in various publications. By day they run editorial and digital strategy for a national foundation working in education and the arts. Lauren lives in the nation of Brooklyn with her partner and staffie mix, Maverick.
Djuna Barnes (1892-1982) was born in Cornwall-on-Hudson, NY, and worked as a journalist in New York before leaving the country to spend many years in Paris and London. She returned to New York in 1941, and lived in Greenwich Village until her death.
Connect with Lauren
website: laurenisanders.com
instagram: @lisanders99
facebook: facebook.com/lauren.i.sanders
linkedin: linkedin.com/in/lauren-sanders-5345b67
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy Nightwood: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780811216715
Buy Kamikaze Lust: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781888451085
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops on November 4th! In our off weeks we play episodes of The Gaily Show which John hosts. The Gaily Show is the only daily LGBTQ progressive news and talk radio show in the country airing in Minneapolis (AM950-KTNF) and Chicago (WCPT 820).
In this episode, Theodor Seuss Geisel Award winner David LaRochelle is back with two new books: How To Draw A Tree and Mr Fox’s Game of “No!”. You can listen to David's episode on this podcast here!
Buy David’s books here:
Mr Fox’s Game of No! https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781536229677
How to Draw a Tree: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781681343211
Watch on YouTube
We're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
Support the show
A lot of us get to our 30s and we don't know what the next step is. Sometimes you make a big pivot.
Today we meet Aj Writer and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston.
Aj Writer is a nonbinary writer and general dumpster fire of a human being (editor's note: Aj's words!). After a decade in journalism and conversations with top creatives in their field, Aj opened FWDIO Studios, a creative content company, that focuses on making media that is representative of the diversity in LGBT and BIPOC populations. Aj's second book, Strip Me Down, came out in paperback this month and the company is busy working on its first pilot animation. They want to expand to comics and audiobooks next. "If we want to tell our stories, we have to do it ourselves."
Casey McQuiston is a #1 New York Times bestselling author of romantic comedies, including One Last Stop, I Kissed Shara Wheeler, and Red, White & Royal Blue, whose writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Bon Appetit. Born and raised in southern Louisiana, Casey now lives in New York City with a poodle mix named Pepper.
Connect with Aj
website: fwdiostudios.com
patreon: patreon.com/FWDIOStudios
tiktok: @ajwriter
bluesky: @ajwriter.bsky.social or @fwdio.bsky.social
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy One Last Stop: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781250244499
Buy Strip Me Down: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9798304331609
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
This book flipped on a lot of switches in my head.
Today we meet Joel Freedman and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Good Times/Bad Times by James Kirkwood.
Joel Freedman taught English at a college-prep high school in South L.A., where for most of his tenure, he was the only out gay instructor. He’s a retired writing instructor at L.A. Southwest College and a produced playwright. He published “Echoes of Silence: Empathy and Making Connections through Writing Process” in English Journal, which is a publication of the National Council of Teachers of English. As a member of his union, he contributed to the union’s paper United Teacher. He co-chaired the UCLA-WP’s LGBTQ Study Group and has three as-of-yet unpublished novels: 10 Months to Vermont, All Beneath the Sky, and Love Song. He has been married for 40 years to author-comic-producer Mike Player.
James Kirkwood was a Tony Award-winning author, actor, and playwright. During his career, he won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
Connect with Joel
bluesky: joelmfreewriter.bsky.social
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy Good Times/Bad Times: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781476767536
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Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops on October 7th! In our off weeks we play episodes of The Gaily Show which John hosts. The Gaily Show is the only daily LGBTQ progressive news and talk radio show in the country airing in Minneapolis (AM950-KTNF) and Chicago (WCPT 820).
In this episode, recent guest of This Queer Book Saved My Life, Ilana Masad joins us to discuss their new novel, Beings, which just came out. It’s based on actual events and asks, “whether extraterrestrial life might be what ties us to one another, to history, and to reality itself.” Connect with Ilana here: ilanamasad.com. Get your copy here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781639737000.
Plus, Nicole Disney’s new novel Tapout explores queer life in the world of Ultimate Fighting Championships. Connect with Nicole here and get your copy: nicoledisney.com.
Watch on YouTube
We're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
Support the show
How do I move forward in life without any queer representation in my life?
Today we meet Troy Ford and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
Troy Ford is an author and editor, and the publisher of two popular newsletters: the writing-focused Ford Knows Books, and Qstack, an LGBTQIA+ Directory, Platform, and Community of newsletter writers and readers on Substack. His debut novel, Lamb, released in June 2025. Unsung, his short film with co-director Kimberly Warner of Unfixed Media, received the OurPride 2025 Innovative Storytelling Award. A native Californian, he grew up overseas in the Middle East and eventually settled in the San Francisco-Bay Area where he earned a B.A. in Rhetoric from UC Berkeley. Since 2019, he has lived in Sitges, Spain with his husband and AmStaff Terrier.
In The Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who enjoys a comfortable, unambitious life, rarely traveling any farther than his pantry or cellar. But his contentment is disturbed when the wizard Gandalf and a company of dwarves arrive on his doorstep one day to whisk him away on an adventure. They have launched a plot to raid the treasure hoard guarded by Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragon. Bilbo reluctantly joins their quest, unaware that on his journey to the Lonely Mountain he will encounter both a magic ring and a frightening creature known as Gollum.
J.R.R. Tolkien was a distinguished academic, though he is best known for writing The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion, plus other stories and essays. His books have been translated into over sixty languages and have sold many millions of copies worldwide.
Connect with Troy
substack: troyford.substack.com
website: troyfordauthor.com
bluesky: @mrtroyfordauthor.bsky.social
instagram: @mrtroyfordauthor
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy The Hobbit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780547928227
Buy Lamb: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9798992613810
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Troy Ford, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
What this book showed me was how to balance pieces of myself that didn't fit together.
Today we meet Abdi Nazemian and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Another Country by James Baldwin.
Abdi Nazemian spent his childhood in a series of exciting locations (Tehran, Paris, Toronto, New York), but could usually be found in his bedroom watching old movies and reading. His first novel, The Walk-In Closet, was awarded Best Debut at the Lambda Literary Awards. He has written three young adult novels: The Authentics, Like a Love Story, and The Chandler Legacies. As Head of Development for Water’s End Productions, Abdi has been an executive producer or associate producer on numerous films, including Call Me By Your Name, It Happened In L.A., The Price, The House of Tomorrow, and Little Woods.
Another Country, stunning for its emotional intensity and haunting sensuality, depicts men and women, blacks and whites, stripped of their masks of gender and race by love and hatred at the most elemental and sublime. It was nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read.
James Baldwin was born in 1924 and educated in New York. The author of over twenty works of fiction and non-fiction, Baldwin received numerous accolades, including a Guggenheim Fellowship and a Ford Foundation Grant.
Connect with Abdi
website: abdinazemian.com
instagram: @abdaddy
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy Another Country: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780679744719
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
I was combating homophobia against one of the most powerful institutions in the world.
Today we meet Tim Jon Semmerling and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: The Deviant's War: The Homosexual vs. the United States of America by Eric Cervini.
Tim Jon Semmerling is an award-winning author, a respected mitigation expert, and an attorney in Illinois. His books and publications are held in over 900 libraries throughout the world and they are highly quoted in books, articles, and papers discussing the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, politics, post-colonialism, discrimination, racism, and visual culture. His written work has informed and inspired museum displays at the Mark Twain Boyhood Museum. Christie's Auctions cites Semmerling’s scholarship to value political and propaganda art for sale. Tim Jon holds a Ph.D. in Near Eastern Languages and Cultures from Indiana University, an M.A. in Middle East Studies from the University of Texas at Austin, and a J.D. from DePaul University’s College of Law.
In The Deviant's War: The Homosexual vs. the United States of America, Eric Cervini tells the story of Frank Kameny, a rising astronomer working for the U.S. Defense Department. When President Eisenhower issues an Executive Order to fire all LGBTQ federal employees, the Pentagon investigates and then fires Kameny for his sexuality. But he fights back. He founds The Mattachine Society of Washington, the first organization to protest the systematic persecution of gay federal employees.
Eric Cervini is an award-winning historian of LGBTQ+ culture and politics. He received his Ph.D. in history from the University of Cambridge. He is also the creator and executive producer of The Book of Queer, which airs on Discovery+.
Connect with Tim Jon
website: themercuryendeavor.com
instagram: @timjonsemmerling
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy The Deviant's War: The Homosexual vs. the United States of America: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781250798503
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
How do we live radiantly when the world seems bent on our erasure?
Today we meet Caro De Robertis and we’re talking about the queer book that saved their life: Notes of a Crocodile by Qiu Miaojin, translated by Bonnie Huie.
Caro’s books best-selling books have Stonewall Book Awards and the Golden Poppy Octavia E. Butler Award; and, they have been finalists for the PEN/Faulkner Award, Lambda Literary Award, and the Kirkus Prize. These books include The Palace of Eros, The President and the Frog, Cantoras, The Gods of Tango, and Perla. Caro was the first openly nonbinary person to received the John Dos Passos Prize for Literature. A professor at San Francisco State University, Caro is co-curating Conjuring Power: the Roots & Futures of Queer & Trans Movements, for San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. It will open Spring 2026. Their newest book is So Many Stars: An Oral History of Trans, Nonbinary, Genderqueer, and Two-Spirit People of Color.
Set in the post-martial-law era of late-1980s Taipei, Notes of a Crocodile is a coming-of-age story of queer misfits discovering love, friendship, and artistic affinity while hardly studying at Taiwan’s most prestigious university. Told through the eyes of an anonymous lesbian narrator nicknamed Lazi, this cult classic is a postmodern pastiche of diaries, vignettes, mash notes, aphorisms, exegesis, and satire by an incisive prose stylist and major countercultural figure.
Connect with Caro
website: caroderobertis.com
instagram: @caro_derobertis
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy Notes of a Crocodile: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781681370767
Buy So Many Stars: An Oral History of Trans, Nonbinary, Genderqueer, and Two-Spirit People of Color: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781643756875
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
Where are all the queer people in history?
Today we meet Ilana Masad and we’re talking about the queer book that saved her life: Confessions of the Fox by Jordy Rosenberg. And Jordy joins us!
Ilana Masad is a writer of fiction, nonfiction, and criticism. Their work has appeared in The New Yorker, New York Times, LA Times, Washington Post, NPR, The Atlantic, StoryQuartlerly, Catapult, Buzzfeed, Joyland, The Account, and many more. She is the author of the novel All My Mother’s Lovers and the forthcoming Beings.
Jordy Rosenberg is the author of the novels Confessions of the Fox and Night Night Fawn, as well as a scholarly monograph about 18th-century religious enthusiasts. Confessions was shortlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize, a Lambda Literary Award, among many other awards. Jordy is a professor in the Department of English and Associated MFA Faculty in the Program for Poets and Writers at The University of Massachusetts-Amherst.
In Confessions of the Fox, Jack Sheppard and Edgeworth Bess were the most notorious thieves, jailbreakers, and lovers of eighteenth-century London. Yet no one knows the true story. Their confessions have never been found. Until now. Reeling from heartbreak, a scholar named Dr. Voth discovers a long-lost manuscript—a gender-defying exposé of Jack and Bess’s adventures. But is it autobiography or a hoax? As Dr. Voth is drawn deeper into Jack and Bess’s tale of underworld resistance and gender transformation, it becomes clear that their fates are intertwined—and only a miracle will save them all.
Connect with Ilana and Jordy
website: ilanamasad.com
instagram: @ilanaslightlyignorant
bluesky: @ilanaslightly
newsletter: buttondown.com/imasadcritic
website: jordy-rosenberg.com
instagram: @jordyrosenberg
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy Confessions of the Fox: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780399592287
Pre-order Beings: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781639737000
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
Is there any theology in the religion that I grew up in that is meaningful? Or is it just hate with a halo?
Today we meet Paul Cram and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Christianity, Social Tolerance, and Homosexuality by John Boswell.
Described as “Honest, a little quirky,” Paul is a Twin Cities-based character actor, book lover, and multimedia designer. For over 15 years, he has been performing in films and onstage. He’s shared the screen with Woody Harrelson, Cillian Murphy, and Susan Sarandon. He stars in the upcoming film Anniversary, directed by Jim Cole. For the short film To Myself he was nominated for Best Actor at Z-Fest. A voracious reader, Paul launched the monthly “Men-Who-Read” nonfiction book club in 2019 which now has over 85 book lovers. Paul serves as the chair of Education and Outreach with SAG-AFTRA Twin Cities Local.
John Boswell's landmark book Christianity, Social Tolerance, and Homosexuality is credited with launching the field of gay and lesbian studies. Winner of the National Book Award, this study of Christianity's history of homosexuality in the early West revealed the Church's radically different relationship to its gay members, including priests, bishops, and even saints. There is a documentary of Boswell and his work called Not A Tame Lion. You can watch it for free on Tubi: https://tubitv.com/movies/723518/not-a-tame-lion
Connect with Paul
website: iampaulcram.com
instagram: @iampaulcram
Men Who Read Book Club: paulcramactor.com/home-twin-cities-book-club-for-men
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy Christianity, Social Tolerance, and Homosexuality: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780226345222
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
The book that showed you what a positive queer future could be. And then literally came true.
Today we meet Brendan Gillett and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Uncle Bobby's Wedding by Sarah S. Brannen. And Sarah joins us for the conversation!
Brendan is a high school English teacher in Brooklyn, New York. He works with English language learners to create poetry, picture books, cooking blogs, and literary analysis essays in every language they know. When he's not teaching, he's writing his own queer stories, poetry, and research essays about queer history. He lives with his illustrator husband and their cat, Pigeon.
Sarah S. Brannen is the illustrator of the Robert F. Sibert Honor book Summertime Sleepers and the author of Uncle Bobby's Wedding, named one of the 100 best children's books of the last 100 years by Booktrust. Sarah has written and illustrated A Perfect Day, Madame Martine, and Madame Martine Breaks the Rules. Miles Comes Home, a companion book to Uncle Bobby's Wedding, came out last November. And her forthcoming book Lolly on the Ice is now available to pre-order.
In Uncle Bobby's Wedding, when Uncle Bobby announces that he and "his friend" Jamie are getting married everyone is happy -- except Chloe. After a magical day with Uncle Bobby and his boyfriend, Jamie, Chloe realizes she's not losing an uncle, but gaining one.
Connect with Brendan and Sarah
instagram: @mrbrendangillett
website: brendangillett.com
website: sarahbrannen.com
instagram: @sarahsbrannen
bluesky: @sarahsbrannen.bsky.social
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy Uncle Bobby's Wedding: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781499810080
Buy Miles Comes Home: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781499814736
Pre-order Lolly on the Ice: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780593711828
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, Sofia Nerman, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
This book sparked a five-year long career and life journey.
In a first for us, we have two guests today! They are Arden Harris and Emily Autenrieth. We’re talking about the queer book that saved their lives: The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon and she joins us for the conversation!
Arden Harris is the buyer and lead bookseller for A Seat at the Table Books, an aspiring writer, and overall bookstore cryptid. They’re often found hiding in the shelves or crafting with their partner and four cats.
Emily Autenrieth is the founder and owner of A Seat at the Table Books. Emily saw a need in the community for a space where people of all ages and identities could be themselves and learn about others. With eir spouse Ryan's support, Emily opened a pop-up and online bookstore out of the family's home in January 2020. After getting a lease on a former float spa in April 2021, Emily and Ryan opened the brick-and-mortar store that November. They have been featured by ABC10 as business of the year for 2022!
Samantha Shannon is an award-winning and bestselling fantasy author. She studied English Language and Literature at the University of Oxford. Her novel The Priory of the Orange Tree has sold over a million copies in English worldwide. At the age of 21, she published The Bone Season, the internationally bestselling first installment in a seven-book series of fantasy novels. The Dark Mirror, the fifth installment in the Bone Season series, just came out this past February.
Special Limited Series
This episode is part of a special limited series of episodes featuring only guests who are owners or staff at LGBTQ bookstores. Airing April-June 2025, these episodes will feature six bookstores across the United States and United Kingdom.
Today's bookstore A Seat at the Table Books is a family-owned bookstore in Elk Grove, CA, that fosters community through representation in our curated book selection, eco-friendly coffee, and mission-driven events. They strive to be a third space that is safe and affirming for all identities.
Connect with Arden, Emily, and Samantha
website: aseatatthetablebooks.org
bluesky: @seatbooks.bsky.social
instagram: @ASeatattheTableBooks
instagram: @bookstore.cryptid
website: samanthashannon.co.uk
instagram: @say_shannon
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Support the show
I was hungry for language. And stories. And how to tell our stories. That's what this book gave me. But let's not make a Bible out of it.
Today we meet Kris Kleindienst and we’re talking about the queer book that saved her life: Diving Into The Wreck by Adrienne Rich.
Kris is a 72-year old queer lesbian writer, bookseller, and activist. She owns Left Bank Books, a 56-year old progressive bookstore in St. Louis, Missouri. Kris edited a collection of activist essays titled This Is What Lesbian Looks Like: Dyke Activists Take on The 21st Century, published by Firebrand Press and winner of a Lambda Literary Award. She was a gold medal winning and 4-time participant in The Gay Games (also the co-founder of Team St. Louis). She has won multiple awards locally, regionally and nationally for my work with Left Bank Books. She is at work on a memoir about growing up in the 50s-60s with a Lesbian mother. Fun fact: She once got high with Armistead Maupin.
Diving into the Wreck: Poems 1971–1972 was Adrienne Rich's seventh book of poetry, an anthology of poems described as provocative and which co-won the 1974 National Book Award for Poetry with Allen Ginsberg's The Fall of America. Adrienne Rich (1929-2012) was an award-winning poet and essayist.
Special Limited Series
This episode is part of a special limited series of episodes featuring only guests who are owners or staff at LGBTQ bookstores. Airing April-June 2025, these episodes will feature six bookstores across the United States and United Kingdom.
Today's guest owns Left Bank Books. Opened in 1969 by a group of graduate students at Washington University who wanted to create a place where one could find all kinds of literature, Left Bank Books is the oldest and largest independently-owned full-line bookstore in St. Louis, Missouri. Open seven days a week, Left Bank Books offers a full-line of new and used books, gifts, cards, toys and services. Learn more and get shopping: left-bank.com
Connect with Kris
website: left-bank.com
facebook: facebook.com/kleindienst
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
What would it feel like for other people to love me if they were to truly see me and truly know me as I am right now?
Today we meet Esmé and we’re talking about the queer book that saved their life: The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells. And Martha joins us for the conversation!
Esmé has been slinging radical books at Firestorm since 2019. They wear multiple hats including communications, event facilitation, and offsite sales. When she doesn't have her nose in a gay book, Esmé sings in a doom metal band and snuggles with the shop dog, an ancient dachshund named Julius Caesar Salad, as much as caninely possible.
Martha Wells has written many novels, including the bestselling and award-winning Murderbot Diaries series, which was adapted into an Apple Original TV series debuting May 16, 2025. She also authored Witch King, City of Bones, The Wizard Hunters, Wheel of the Infinite, and the Nebula-nominated The Death of the Necromancer, as well as YA fantasy novels, short stories, and nonfiction.
In All Systems Red, the first book in The Murderbot Diaries, a team of scientists are conducting surface tests on a distant planet, shadowed by their Company-supplied SecUnit that has hacked its own governor module. Scornful of humans, all it really wants is to be left alone long enough to figure out who it is. But when a neighboring mission goes dark, it's up to the scientists and their Murderbot to get to the truth.
Special Limited Series
This episode is part of a special limited series of episodes featuring only guests who are owners or staff at LGBTQ bookstores. Airing April-June 2025, these episodes will feature six bookstores across the United States and United Kingdom.
Today's guest is a bookseller at Firestorm Books, a collectively-owned radical bookstore and not-for-profit event space in Asheville, North Carolina. Since 2008 Firestorm Books has supported grassroots movements in Southern Appalachia while developing a workplace on the basis of cooperation, empowerment and equity.
Connect with Esmé and Martha
website: firestorm.coop
instagram: @angelicadoom
website: marthawells.com
bluesky: @marthawells.com
instagram: @marthawellswriter
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
What would it happen if I allowed my thoughts about my gender become known to me?
Today we meet Dr. Christina Neuwirth and we’re talking about the queer book that saved their life: Something That May Shock and Discredit You by Daniel M. Lavery. And Daniel joins us for the conversation!
Dr. Christina Neuwirth is a writer, researcher and bookseller based in Edinburgh. Their 2018 novella Amphibian was shortlisted for Scotland’s National Book Awards. Their writing has been published in Gutter Magazine and The Skinny. At Lighthouse Bookshop, Christina runs the Bread & Roses Prize for Radical Publishing.
Daniel M. Lavery is the “Dear Prudence” advice columnist at Slate, the cofounder of The Toast, and the New York Times bestselling author of Texts From Jane Eyre and The Merry Spinster. In 2024, he published his debut novel Women's Hotel.
From a thoughtful analysis of the beauty of William Shatner to a sinister reimagining of HGTV’s House Hunters, and featuring figures as varied as Anne of Green Gables, Columbo, and the cast of Mean Girls, Something That May Shock and Discredit You is a hilarious and emotionally exhilarating compendium that combines personal history with cultural history to make you see yourself and those around you entirely anew.
Special Limited Series
This episode is part of a special limited series of episodes featuring only guests who are owners or staff at LGBTQ bookstores. Airing April-June 2025, these episodes will feature six bookstores across the United States and United Kingdom.
Today's guest is a bookseller at Lighthouse Bookshop, a queer-owned and woman-led independent community bookshop. It is an unapologetically activist, intersectional, feminist, antiracist, lgbtq+ community space. In 2020 it was nominated Scotland’s Best Independent Bookshop.
Connect with Christina and Daniel
website: christinaneuwirth.com
website: danielmlavery.com
instagram: @daniel_m_lavery
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
I was 8,000 miles from home asking is it ok to be gay? That's when I wandered into a shop found this book.
Today we meet Stephanie Beardslee and we’re talking about the queer book that saved her life: Dare Truth or Promise by Paula Boock. And Paula joins us for the conversation!
Stephanie Beardslee is the owner of Wolf & Wyld’s Queer Bookstore, an online and pop-up bookstore based in Manitou Springs, Colorado. She is a Front Range (of Colorado) native that is really hacked off that the Pikes Peak Region doesn’t have a queer bookstore and is busy making the change she wants to see in the world. Her alter-ego slings books in the nearby Libraryland and has the pleasure of serving the county’s patrons via the bookmobile.
Paula Boock (she/her) is an award-winning New Zealand scriptwriter, producer and author. Her screen credits include story lining and writing on the The Strip, the internationally acclaimed drama series The Insiders Guide to Happiness and its 7-part prequel The Insiders Guide to Love. She won the 2003 AFTA Best Drama Script (with Kathryn Burnett) for The Strip. She has written five young adult novels and was a publisher and founding partner of Longacre Press.
In Dare Truth or Promise, self-assured Louie is gearing up for another successful year in high school. In the meantime Willa, who was kicked out of her last school, wants to be left alone. But each girl unexpectedly finds that plans mean nothing when it comes to love. Louie discovers acceptance, faith, and identity are not what they had seemed. And Willa finds herself suddenly willing to take another chance.
Special Limited Series
This episode is part of a special limited series of episodes featuring only guests who are owners or staff at LGBTQ bookstores. Airing April-June 2025, these episodes will feature six bookstores across the United States and United Kingdom.
Today's guest owns Wolf and Wyld's Queer Bookstore an independent online & pop-up bookstore based in Manitou Springs, Colorado. Wolf and Wyld's specializes in LGBTQ+ books. You can shop online at: wolfandwyld.com
Buy Paula's book at Wolf and Wyld's Queer Bookstore
Use this link: https://wolfandwyld.com/products/dare-truth-or-promise
Connect with Stephanie and Paula
website: wolfandwyld.com
bluesky: @wolfandwyldbooks.com
website: lippypictures.com/paula-boock
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
How was I going to reshape my life into something new after this fundamental part of me had been buried?
Today we meet Casey Holland and we’re talking about the queer book that saved her life: Mostly Dead Things by Kristen Arnett. And Kristen joins us for the conversation!
Casey is one of the owners of Wayfaring Booksellers, a queer bookstore in MI. She's worked in bookstores for the last six years and is a lover of all things spooky and weird. When she's not slinging books, you can find her spending time with her cat, Nemo, whose hobbies include hunting Casey for sport.
Kristen Arnett is the queer Floridian author of With Teeth: A Novel which was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award and the bestselling novel Mostly Dead Things. She just published STOP ME IF YOU’VE HEARD THIS ONE, about a lesbian birthday party clown.
Mostly Dead Things tells the story of Jessa-Lynn Morton. In the wake of her father's suicide, Jessa has stepped up to manage his failing taxidermy business while the rest of the Morton family crumbles.
Special Limited Series
This episode is part of a special limited series of episodes featuring only guests who are owners or staff at LGBTQ bookstores. Airing April-June 2025, these episodes will feature six bookstores across the United States and United Kingdom.
Today's guest owns Wayfaring Booksellers, a queer/women-owned bookstore in Lansing, MI. Their mission is to celebrate and amplify queer books and stories while uplifting the LGBTQIA+ community. Visit them at 1023 S. Washington Avenue inside the REO Town Marketplace and at wayfaringbooksellers.com. Bluesky: @wayfaringbooks.bsky.social
Buy Kristen's books at Wayfaring Booksellers
Use this link: https://www.wayfaringbooksellers.com/s/search?q=Kristen%20Arnett
Connect with Casey and Kristen
website: wayfaringbooksellers.com
bluesky: @caseyholland.bsky.social
website: kristenarnettwriter.com
bluesky: @kristenarnett.bsky.social
instagram: @kristen__arnett
Become an Associate Producer!
A professionally recognized credit, gain access to Associate Producer meetings to guide our podcast into the future! patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Support the show
How do you get out of a spiral of shame and guilt and try to make the world a better place?
Today we meet Max Yeshaye Brumberg-Kraus and we’re talking about the queer book that saved their life: The Once and Future King by T.H. White.
Max studied classics and theatre at Beloit College, received their MA in Theology and the Arts from United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities and an MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts from Goddard College. They are the author of The(y)ology: Mythopoetics for Queer/Trans Liberation with Punctum Press and the collection of poems Visions of Divine Love with AC Books, which brings together Julian of Norwich with Divine the Drag Queen. Their work explores memory, historiography, gender/sexuality, and myth through embodied practices.
Terence Hanbury "Tim" White was an English writer. He is best known for his Arthurian novels, which were published together in 1958 as The Once and Future King. One of his best known is the first of the series, The Sword in the Stone, which was published as a stand-alone book in 1938. Despite leading a single and very private life, Sylvia Townsend Warner argued in her definitive 1967 biography of white that he was gay.
The Once and Future King retells the saga of King Arthur, a fantasy classic as legendary as Excalibur and Camelot, and a poignant story of adventure, romance, and magic that has enchanted readers for generations.
Connect with Max
website: maxyeshaye.com
facebook: facebook.com/max.brumbergkraus
instagram: @cicadalamour
For ticket info for Incident at Peckerpah Ridge on March 21 and 22 head to: squirrelhausarts.com/events
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your own copy of The Once and Future King: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780441627400
Buy The(y)ology: Mythopoetics for Queer/Trans Liberation: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781685710866
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker (learn more about my name change)
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
When a queer book elevates our own expectations of ourselves and moves us to honor ourselves by saying: we deserve something more.
Today we meet Blair Fell and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: The Persian Boy by Mary Renault.
Blair Fell’s television work includes Queer as Folk, and the Emmy Award–winning California Connected. He’s written dozens of plays including the award-winning plays Naked Will and the downtown cult miniseries Burning Habits. He’s a two-time winner of the prestigious Doris Lippman Prize in Creative Writing from the City College of New York. His first novel The Sign For Home was long-listed by the Center For Fiction’s First Book Award. His upcoming novel Disco Witches of Fire Island comes out May 6, 2025.
Mary Renault was a British lesbian writer famed for her historically precise novels of the ancient world, including The Last of the Wine (1956), Fire From Heaven (1969), and The Persian Boy (1972). US publishers initially refused to publish her novel The Charioteer due to its positive portrayal of homosexuality and its happy ending. It was eventually published in 1959 and was a bestseller.
The Persian Boy traces the last years of Alexander’s life through the eyes of his lover, Bagoas. Abducted and gelded as a boy, Bagoas was sold as a courtesan to King Darius of Persia, but found freedom with Alexander after the Macedon army conquered his homeland. Their relationship sustains Alexander as he weathers assassination plots. After Alexander’s mysterious death, we are left wondering if this Persian boy understood the great warrior better than anyone.
Connect with Blair
website: blairfell.com
bluesky: @blairfell.bsky.social
instagram: @blair.fell
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your own copy of The Persian Boy: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780394751016
Pre-order Disco Witches of Fire Island (arrives May 6, 2025): https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9798892420341
Buy The Sign For Home: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781982175962
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: John Parker
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops next week on March 5! In our off weeks, we air a recent episode of The Gaily Show which J.P. hosts for AM950 Radio. The Gaily Show is one of the only daily LGBTQ news and talk shows in the country.
In this episode, author and teacher Belo Miguel Cipriani brings students from his writing courses at Metro State University in St. Paul, MN to read their work and talk about that queer writing life.
Watch on YouTube
We're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
Support the show
Ok, I've started to embody my transness. Now what?
Today we meet Seth Anderson-Matz and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: The Nearest Exit May Be Behind You by S. Bear Bergman. And Bear joins us for the conversation!
Seth Anderson-Matz is a queer & trans community organizer and minister. He has lived and worked in the Twin Cities area all his life, and currently resides in South Minneapolis with his wife (Jenn), one big dog (Roxie), one tiny dog (Saul), and one weird cat (Lucy).
S. Bear Bergman is the author of nine books, founder of Flamingo Rampant press, and frequent consultant in equity and inclusion to business and government. Bear began his work in equity at the age of 15, as a founding member of the first ever Gay/Straight Alliance and has continued to help organizations and institutions move further along the pathways to justice ever since.
Alternately unsettling and affirming, devastating and delicious, The Nearest Exit May Be Behind You is a collection of essays on gender and identity that is irrevocably honest and endlessly illuminating. With humor and grace, these essays deal with issues from women's spaces to the old boys' network, from gay male bathhouses to lesbian potlucks, from being a child to preparing to have one. It offers unique perspectives on issues that challenge, complicate, and confound the "official stories" about how gender and sexuality work.
Connect with Seth and Bear
instagram: @s.andersonmatz
website: sbearbergman.com
instagram: @bearbergman
bluesky: @sbearbergman.bsky.social
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your own copy of The Nearest Exit May Be Behind You: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781551522647
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
It's a new year, so we hope you enjoy our new format and theme song. Be sure to support us on Patreon, buy the books we feature on the show through our bookshop, or read them through Quatrefoil Library's free e-library. Links in the shows and on our website.
Support the show
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops next week on February 18! In our off weeks, we air the most recent episode of The Gaily Show which J.P. hosts for AM950 Radio.
J.P. and Jim review the films: The Writer and What We Wrote Together. Plus Morgan Morgan joins us to discuss writing My Unleashing, Memoir of a Queer Dad.
Watch on YouTube
We're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
It's a new year, so we hope you enjoy our new format and theme song. Be sure to support us on Patreon, buy the books we feature on the show through our bookshop, or read them through Quatrefoil Library's free e-library. Links in the shows and on our website.
Support the show
When you find the book that gives you the resilience, strength, and willingness to be yourself.
Today we meet Louisa Hext and we’re talking about the queer book that saved her life: Ruby Fruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown.
Louisa is a transformational coach, speaker, and mediator with over 30 years of experience helping individuals and families navigate forgiveness, healing, and personal growth. Drawing from her research and nearly 13 years as the curator of a highly regarded traveling photographic exhibition on forgiveness, Louisa has been privileged to guide countless individuals through profound emotional healing. Her coaching practice is built on empathy, deep curiosity, and a non-judgmental approach, creating a safe space for her clients to explore their unique stories and unlock their potential for growth and transformation.
Ruby Fruit Jungle is a ground-breaking coming-of-age novel from one of America's most distinctive voices. It is a transformative work which tells the story of Molly Bolt, an adopted daughter of a Southern couple who boldly forges her own queer path in America.
Connect with Louisa
Website: embraceforgiveness.com
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your own copy of Ruby Fruit Jungle: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781101965122
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
It's a new year, so we hope you enjoy our new format and theme song. Be sure to support us on Patreon, buy the books we feature on the show through our bookshop, or read them through Quatrefoil Library's free e-library. Links in the shows and on our website.
Support the show
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops next week on February 4! In our off weeks, we air the most recent episode of The Gaily Show which J.P. hosts for AM950 Radio.
Dr. Kade Goepferd from Children’s Minnesota joins us to discuss healthcare for transgender youth to clear up the lies and to show what compassionate and science-based care is and how we support it.
Watch on YouTube
We're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
It's a new year, so we hope you enjoy our new format and theme song. Be sure to support us on Patreon, buy the books we feature on the show through our bookshop, or read them through Quatrefoil Library's free e-library. Links in the shows and on our website.
Support the show
How do I keep going when my one support person isn't there for me anymore?
Today we meet Edwin Santos Lepiz and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera. And Adam joins us for the conversation!
Edwin is a gay first-generation Mexican-American graduate student at the University of Utah College of Social Work. Edwin is pursuing a Master of Social Work degree to pursue work at the intersection of language justice and suicide prevention utilizing stories such as those found in today's book as a tool to meet this goal.
Adam Silvera is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of They Both Die at the End, The First to Die at the End, More Happy Than Not, History Is All You Left Me, the Infinity Cycle trilogy, and the What If It's Us duology with Becky Albertalli. His novels have received many starred reviews. He previously worked in children’s publishing and bookselling.
History Is All You Left Me is a novel in which Griffin's first love and ex-boyfriend, Theo, dies in a drowning accident. Even though Theo had moved to California for college, Griffin never doubted Theo would come back to him when the time was right. But now, the future he's been imagining for himself has gone far off course. The only person who truly understands his heartache is Theo's new boyfriend, Jackson. Griffin's losing himself in his obsessive compulsions and destructive choices, and the secrets he's been keeping are tearing him apart. If Griffin is ever to rebuild his future, he must first confront his history, every last heartbreaking piece in the puzzle of his life.
Connect with Edwin and Adamlinkedin: linkedin.com/in/edwinsantoslepiz/
instagram: @esantoslepiz
website: adamsilvera.com
Bluesky: bsky.app/profile/adamsilvera.bsky.social
instagram: @adamsilvera
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your own copy of History Is All You Left Me: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781641293174
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link:
It's a new year, so we hope you enjoy our new format and theme song. Be sure to support us on Patreon, buy the books we feature on the show through our bookshop, or read them through Quatrefoil Library's free e-library. Links in the shows and on our website.
Support the show
Is the loss of innocence the beginning of compassion and wisdom?
Today we meet Dean Backus and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh.
Dean is a playwright, essayist, screenwriter, journalist, filmmaker, and high school English teacher. He is the author of Darts and Flowers and the forthcoming The Deep End of the Pool.
Harriet the Spy is a timeless YA classic by queer author Louise Fitzhugh. In it, Harriet M. Welsch is a spy. In her notebook, she writes down everything she knows about everyone, even her classmates and her best friends. Then Harriet loses track of her notebook, and it ends up in the wrong hands. Before she can stop them, her friends have read the always truthful, sometimes awful things she's written about each of them. Will Harriet find a way to put her life and her friendships back together?
Connect with Deanwebsite: deanbackusauthor.com
instagram: @deanbackusauthor
facebook: facebook.com/deanbackusauthor
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your own copy of Harriet The Spy: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780440416791
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
It's a new year, so we hope you enjoy our new format and theme song. Be sure to support us on Patreon, buy the books we feature on the show through our bookshop, or read them through Quatrefoil Library's free e-library. Links in the shows and on our website.
Support the show
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops next week on January 7! In our off weeks, we air the most recent episode of The Gaily Show which J.P. hosts for AM950 Radio.
Today is the literature episode from this year’s first annual The Gaily Show Awards or The Gailies. A guest judge is invited to look back at the year that was in literature, film, TV, and poetry. Our guest judge for Literature is author Patrick Nathan. His new novel The Future Was Color was selected by the Los Angeles Book Review as their "Book of the Summer." He is also the author of Some Hell and Image Control: Art, Fascism, and the Right to Resist.
You can find the full list of honorees (and some dishonorees) on The Gaily Show’s social media. On Bluesky: @thegailyshow.org. On Instagram: @the_gailyshow.
Watch on YouTube
We're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
Support the show
Happy Holidays from us to you! Whichever holiday you celebrate (or don't) we hope it's with your families of choice!
Here's a holiday message from us to you as Executive Producer Jim Pounds and I look back at the year that was, our upcoming venture with The Gaily Show, and a sneak peak of This Queer Book Saved My Life in 2025.
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
We have a special Christmas episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life dropping next week!
Today, Once Upon a Crime Books presents 7 Minutes in Book Heaven, the podcast where we interview LGBTQ authors about the new books they have coming out for us to love and cuddle up with.
Once Upon a Crime Books is an independent bookstore specializing in mystery fiction. Located in Uptown Minneapolis, you can shop in their store Monday through Saturday 11am – 5:30pm. Or, visit their website! There, you can browse all of their books, from new releases to classic mysteries. Visit them online: onceuponacrimebooks.com
In this new episode, Once Upon a Crime Books introduces us to Lev AC Rosen and his new novel: Rough Pages which is available to buy in in-store or on their website.
Lev Rosen writes books for people of all ages, including the Evander Mills series, which began with the Macavity Award winning Lavender House (Best Book of the Year from Buzzfeed, Library Journal, and others) and continues with The Bell in the Fog, (Publisher’s Weekly Editor’s Choice). The second Tennessee Russo adventure, the fourth Evander Mills mystery, and another YA rom-com will all be out in 2025. He lives in NYC with his husband and a very small cat. You can find him online at LevACRosen.com and @LevACRosen
Buy Rough PagesVisit Once Upon a Crime Books in-person or buy online: https://onceuponacrimebooks.com/book/9781250322449
Connect with Lev AC Rosenwebsite: levacrosen.com
facebook: facebook.com/LevACRosen
instagram: @LevACRosen
CreditsPresented by: Once Upon a Crime Books
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Theme music: Summer Mood by lesfm
Support the show
How do you go on in life after losing a child who is still alive?
Today, Chloé Caldwell returns to the podcast! But this time, we talk about the queer book that saved her life: Love Me Tender by Constance Debré.
Chloé is the author of the national bestseller, Women (Harper Perennial, 2024). Chloé’s next book, Trying, is forthcoming from Graywolf, on August 5th, 2025. She is also the author of the books I’ll Tell You In Person (2016), The Red Zone (2022), and Legs Get Led Astray (2012).
Love Me Tender is a novel of lesbian identity and motherhood, and the societal pressures that place them in opposition.The daughter of an illustrious French family whose members include a former Prime Minister, a model, and a journalist, Constance Debré abandoned her marriage and legal career in 2015 to write full-time and begin a relationship with a woman. In Love Me Tender, Debré goes on to further describe the consequences of that life-changing decision.
Listen to our previous episode featuring Chloé, where guest Mia Arias Tsang discussed how Chloé's book Women saved her life: thisqueerbook.com/women/
Connect with Chloéwebsite: chloesimonne.com
instagram: @chloeeeecaldwell
website: scrappyliterary.com
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your own copy of Love Me Tender: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781635901740
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
We have a new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life coming up December 10!
Today, Once Upon a Crime Books presents 7 Minutes in Book Heaven, the podcast where we interview LGBTQ authors about the new books they have coming out for us to love and cuddle up with.
Once Upon a Crime Books is an independent bookstore specializing in mystery fiction. Located in Uptown Minneapolis, you can shop in their store Monday through Saturday 11am – 5:30pm. Or, visit their website! There, you can browse all of their books, from new releases to classic mysteries.
In this new episode, Once Upon a Crime Books introduces us to Leslie Karst and her new novel: Molten Death which is available to buy in paperback in-store, or on their website, and it is also available as a digital audio book.
Leslie Karst is the author of the Lefty Award-nominated Sally Solari culinary mysteries, as well as the memoir, Justice is Served: A Tale of Scallops, the Law, and Cooking for RBG. It was during her career as a research and appellate attorney in Santa Cruz, California, that she rediscovered her youthful passion for food and cooking, at which point she again returned to school to earn a culinary arts degree. Now retired from the law, in addition to writing, she and her wife and their Jack Russell mix split their time between Hilo, Hawai'i and Santa Cruz, California.
Buy Molten DeathVisit Once Upon a Crime Books in-person or buy online: https://onceuponacrimebooks.com/book/9781448312160
Connect with Leslie Karstwebsite: lesliekarstauthor.com
facebook: facebook.com/lesliekarstauthor
instagram: @lesliekarst
CreditsPresented by: Once Upon a Crime Books
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Theme music: Summer Mood by lesfm
Support the show
I don't know who I was fooling by bringing this book to school with me and being like, "I am not gay."
Today we meet Haley Steinhilber and we’re talking about the queer book that saved their life: Annie On My Mind by Nancy Garden.
Haley Steinhilber is a public historian and host of Q4Q: The Queer Personals Podcast.
In Annie On My Mind, when Liza Winthrop meets Annie Kenyon at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, she knows there is something special between them. But Liza never knew falling in love could be so wonderful . . . or so confusing. The 25th Anniversary Edition features a full-length interview with the author. Ms. Garden answers such revealing questions as how she knew she was gay, why she wrote the book, censorship, and the book's impact on readers - then and now.
Connect with HaleyListen to Q4Q: The Queer Personals Podcast
Buy the Queer Seeking Queer Coloring Book: womenandchildrenfirst.com/product/queer-seeking-queer
instagram: @queerpersonalspodcast
email: q4qpodcast@gmail.com
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your own copy of Annie On My Mind here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780374400118
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
Today, Once Upon a Crime Books presents 7 Minutes in Book Heaven, the podcast where we interview LGBTQ authors about the new books they have coming out for us to love and cuddle up with.
Once Upon a Crime Books is an independent bookstore specializing in mystery fiction. Located in Uptown Minneapolis, you can shop in their store Monday through Saturday 11am – 5:30pm. Or, visit their website! There, you can browse all of their books, from new releases to classic mysteries.
In this new episode, Once Upon a Crime Books introduces us to John Copenhaver and his new novel: Hall of Mirrors which is available to buy in paperback in-store, or on their website, and it is also available as a digital audio book.
John Copenhaver won the Macavity Award for Best First Mystery for Dodging and Burning and the Lambda Literary Award for Best Mystery for The Savage Kind. He is a co-founder of Queer Crime Writers, a board member of Mystery Writers of America, and co-hosts the House of Mystery Radio Show. He teaches in the University of Nebraska Omaha’s Low-Residency MFA program and at VCU. His new novel, Hall of Mirrors, is the sequel to The Savage Kind.
Buy Hall of MirrorsVisit Once Upon a Crime Books in-person or buy online: https://onceuponacrimebooks.com/book/9781639366507
Connect with John Copenhaverwebsite: johncopenhaver.com
website: queercrimewriters.com
facebook: johncopenhavenauthor
instagram & threads: @JohnCope74
tiktok: @JohnCope74
CreditsPresented by: Once Upon a Crime Books
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Theme music: Summer Mood by lesfm
Support the show
This is a level of "relate" that I hadn't read in other books.
Today we meet René Zadoorian and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: I Will Greet The Sun Again by Khashayar J. Khabushani. And Khashayar joins us for the conversation!
René Zadoorian, is an Armenian writer with a degree in creative writing from California State University, Northridge. He was born in Tehran, Iran, and now resides in Los Angeles. He is a reader for Fahmidan and Orca, A Literary Journal. His short stories and film photography have been published in various magazines including WireWorm, Fruitslice, and elsewhere.
Khashayar J. Khabushani spent time in Iran during his childhood before returning to Los Angeles. He studied philosophy at California State University, Northridge and completed his MFA at Columbia University. This is his first novel.
A stunning, tender novel of identity and belonging, I Will Greet the Sun Again tells the story of a young man lost in his own family, his own country, and his own skin. Staring down the brutality of being a queer kid and a Muslim in America, Khashayar J. Khabushani transforms personal and national pain into an unforgettable and beautifully rendered exploration of youth, love, family--and the stories that make us who we are.
Connect with Renéwebsite: rene-writes.com
instagram: @lammpshade
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your own copy of I Will Greet The Sun Again here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780593243329
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
This book gave me an understanding of the queer community that I hadn’t found anywhere else.
Today we meet David Reddish and we’re talking about the queer book that saved his life: Angels in America by Tony Kushner.
Self proclaimed uber-geek David Reddish is the award-winning author of Sex, Drugs & Superheroes trilogy. The third novel in the series, The Wrath of Comic-Con, came out earlier in 2024. His novel The Passion of St. Sergius & St. Bacchus celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. David is also a noted entertainment journalist having written for such publications as MovieWeb, ScreenRant, Queerty, and Playboy.
One of the most honored American plays in history, Angels in America was awarded two Tony Awards for Best Play and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. It was made into an Emmy Award-winning HBO film directed by Mike Nichols. This two-part epic, subtitled "A Gay Fantasia on National Themes," has received hundreds of performances worldwide in more than twenty-six languages.
Connect with Davidmuck rack: muckrack.com/david-reddish-5
instagram: @thegaymagneto
Buy David's books here and at your local bookstores.
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy your own copy of Angels in America here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781559363846
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops next week on October 29! In our off weeks, we air the most recent episode of The Gaily Show which J.P. hosts for AM950 Radio.
On today's episode: Rae Leiner from the National LGBTQ Task Force and Matt Caffrey from Swing Left.
Let’s. Get. Out. The. Vote!
Phone bank with the National LGBTQ Taskforce: thetaskforce.org
Door knock with Swing Left: swingleft.org
Watch on YouTubeWe're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
Find out how to vote at vote.org
Help get out the vote by going to swingleft.org, voteforward.org, and with the National LGBTQ Taskforce: thetaskforce.org
Support the show
Who am I going to be and what is my life going to look like?
Today we meet Samantha Mann and we’re talking about the queer book that saved her life: The Hours by Michael Cunningham.Samantha writes essays & articles exploring culture, mental health, motherhood, & LGBTQ issues. Her work has been featured in The Cut, Vogue, Elle, TODAY, Romper, and more. Her forthcoming collection, Dyke Delusion, debuts June 2025.
The Hours tells the story of three women: Virginia Woolf, beginning to write Mrs. Dalloway as she recuperates in a London suburb with her husband in 1923; Clarissa Vaughan, beloved friend of an acclaimed poet dying from AIDS, who in modern-day New York is planning a party in his honor; and Laura Brown, in a 1949 Los Angeles suburb, who slowly begins to feel the constraints of a perfect family and home. By the end of the novel, these three stories intertwine in remarkable ways, and finally come together in an act of subtle and haunting grace.
Connect with Samanthawebsite: samantha-mann.com
instagram: @samantha.mann05
Shout out to Alyy PatelFor more information about Alyy Patel and the Queer South Asian Women's Network visit: qsawnetwork.com.
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Find out how to vote at vote.org
Help get out the vote by going to swingleft.org, voteforward.org, and with the National LGBTQ Taskforce: thetaskforce.org
Support the show
Am I the only one who feels this crazy about what's happening to me right now?
Today we meet Mia Arias Tsang and we’re talking about the book that saved her life: Women by Chloé Caldwell. And Chloé joins us for the conversation!
Mia is a writer, freelance editor, and former biologist based in Queens, NYC. She has conducted extensive research in evolutionary virology and epigenetics, and has studied with writers such as Chloé Caldwell, Sarah Stillman, Michael Cunningham, and Susan Choi.
Chloé is the author of the national bestseller, Women (Harper Perennial, 2024). Chloé’s next book, Trying, is forthcoming from Graywolf, on August 5th, 2025. She is also the author of the books I’ll Tell You In Person (2016), The Red Zone (2022), and Legs Get Led Astray (2012).
In Women, a young writer moves from the country to the city and falls in love with another woman for the very first time. With startling clarity and breathtaking tenderness, Chloé Caldwell writes the story of a love in reverse: of nights spent drunkenly hurling a phone against a brick wall; of early mornings hungover in bed, curled up together; of emails and poems exchanged at breakneck speed.
Connect with Mia and ChloéMia's website: miatsang.com
instagram: @mia.arias.tsang
Chloé website: chloesimonne.com
instagram: @chloeeeecaldwell
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops next week on October 1! In our off weeks, we air the most recent episode of The Gaily Show which J.P. hosts for AM950 Radio.
Today, the author Joseph Lezza is here to discuss his book I’m Never Fine: Scenes & Spasms on Loss. Connect with Joseph at his website: josephlezza.com and on Instagram: @lezzdoothis.
Watch on YouTubeWe're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
Support the show
Is it possible that my family, my mother, could ever accept me?
Today we meet Eric Marcus and we’re talking about the book that saved his life: Consenting Adult by Laura Z. Hobson.
Eric Marcus is the author of a dozen books, including two editions of Making Gay History (the original 1992 edition is entitled Making History), Why Suicide?, and Breaking the Surface, the #1 New York Times bestselling autobiography of Olympic diving champion Greg Louganis. Eric is also the co-producer of Those Who Were There, a podcast drawn from the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies. He is the founder and chair emeritus of the Stonewall 50 Consortium and is a founding board member of the American LGBTQ+ Museum.
In Consenting Adult, Tessa Lynn considers herself independent and progressive, a liberated woman of the 1960s. And yet, when she receives a letter from her youngest son, Jeff, informing her that he is gay, Tessa is distraught. At a time when homosexuality is regarded as a mental illness, she struggles with how best to be a parent to a gay son—and how to protect her family from the prejudices of the era. Elegant and subtly drawn, Consenting Adult is a stunning tribute to familial bonds, and a sympathetic portrait of a mother whose best intentions are often clouded by the stereotypes of her time.
Connect with EricMaking Gay History website: makinggayhistory.org/about
instagram: @makinggayhistorypodcast
facebook: facebook.com/makinggayhistory
Fortunoff Video Archive podcast: fortunoff.library.yale.edu/education/podcasts
Listen to full episode with Damien Martin: makinggayhistory.org/podcast/damien-martin
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsPermission to use the theme to Making Gay History provided by Eric Marcus. The theme was composed by Fritz Meyers.
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops next week on September 17! In our off weeks, we air the most recent episode of The Gaily Show which J.P. hosts for AM950 Radio.
Today, the director of the new documentary Lover of Men: The Untold History of Abraham Lincoln is here. Also joining me are two historical experts from the film. It debuted in theaters on September 6. Check your local listings for showtimes and or for when it is streaming.
Watch on YouTubeWe're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
Support the show
Exile is not a choice that anyone wants to make. It’s something we come to through necessity.
Today we meet seeley quest and we’re talking about the book that saved hir life: Exile and Pride by Eli Clare. And Eli joins us for the conversation!
seeley quest is a trans disabled environmentalist, working in literary and body-based composition, curation and facilitation.
Eli Clare: white, disabled, and genderqueer, Eli lives near Lake Champlain in unceded Abenaki territory (also known as Vermont) and is the author of Brilliant Imperfection: Grappling with Cure and Exile and Pride: Disability, Queerness, and Liberation. His next book, a mixed genre volume titled Unfurl, will be released in July, 2025.
In Exile and Pride, Eli Clare’s revelatory writing about his experiences as a white disabled genderqueer activist/writer unspools the multiple histories from which our sense of self unfolds. His essays weave together memoir, history, and political thinking to explore meanings and experiences of home.
Connect with seeley and Eliseeley's website and newsletter: questletters.net
Eli's website: eliclare.com
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase Exile and Pride visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780822360315
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the Show.
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops next week on August 20! In our off weeks, we air the most recent episode of The Gaily Show which J.P. hosts for AM950 Radio.
Today, David Saffert and Jillian Snow from the Liberace and Liza Show drop by to talk about the show and bringing these icons to life. Their next performances will be at Duluth Superior Pride Labor Day weekend.
Watch on YouTubeWe're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
Support the Show.
This book isn’t about celebrity. It’s about queer heritage. And passing it on.
Today we meet Brent Love and we’re talking about the book that saved his life: Broken Horses by Brandi Carlile.
Brent Love is the author of the memoir Leap which debuted in June 2024. He is also the host/producer of the podcasts Hope Works: A Surrogacy and You and Me and Everyone We Know. Brent currently resides in Hawaii with his family.
In Broken Horses, Brandi Carlile takes readers through the events of her life that shaped her very raw art--from her start at a local singing competition where she performed Elton John's "Honky Cat" in a bedazzled white polyester suit, to her first break opening for Dave Matthews Band, to many sleepless tours over fifteen years and six studio albums, all while raising two children with her wife, Catherine Shepherd.
Connect with Brent
website: heybrentlove.com
instagram: @heybrentlove
linkedin: @heybrentlove
podcast: Hope Works: A Surrogacy Podcast
podcast: You and Me and Everyone We Know
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase Broken Horses visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780593237267
To purchase Leap visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9798889260202
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the Show.
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops next week on August 20! In our off weeks, we air the most recent episode of The Gaily Show which J.P. hosts for AM950 Radio.
Today, Minnesota-based queer musician and bard Carlisle Evans Peck joins J.P. to discuss their new tour Iconoclasm.
Connect with Carlisle Evans Peck
website: carlisleevanspeck.com
instagram: @carlisleevanspeckmusic
soundcloud: soundcloud.com/lindelesse
Watch on YouTubeWe're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
Support the Show.
No queer person is an island. Even if we start off that way.
Today we meet Robin Jeffrey and we’re talking about the book that saved her life: Stars In My Pocket Like Grains of Sand by Samuel R. Delaney.
Robin Jeffrey is the author of the series of classic murder mysteries with scifi-twists, The Cadence Turing Mysteries and the paranormal romance series The Night. A former academic librarian, she holds a B.A. in English Language and Literature from the University of Washington and a M.S. in Library and Information Science from the University of Kentucky. Robin currently resides in the Pacific Northwest.
Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand is a science fiction masterpiece, an essay on the inexplicability of sexual attractiveness, and an examination of interstellar politics among far-flung worlds. First published in 1984, the novel's central issues―technology, globalization, gender, sexuality, and multiculturalism―have only become more pressing with the passage of time.
Connect with Robin Jeffreywebsite: robinjeffreyauthor.com
instagram: @thesidekick_ig
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase The Clothesline Swing visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780819567147
To purchase .exe A Cadence Turing Mystery visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780578959344
To purchase Hungry Is The Night visit: https://books2read.com/hungry-is-the-night
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Bob Bush, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Terry D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the Show.
Today, Once Upon a Crime Books presents 7 Minutes in Book Heaven, the podcast where we interview LGBTQ authors about the new books they have coming out for us to love and cuddle up with. Visit them online: onceuponacrimebooks.com
Once Upon a Crime Books is an independent bookstore specializing in mystery fiction. Located in Uptown Minneapolis, you can shop in their store Monday through Saturday 11am – 5:30pm. Or, visit their website! There, you can browse all of their books, from new releases to classic mysteries.
In this new episode, Once Upon a Crime Books introduces us to Katrina Monroe and her new novel: Through The Midnight Door which is available to buy in paperback in-store, or on their website, and it is also available as a digital audio book.
Katrina Monroe is the author of They Drown Our Daughters, Graveyard of Lost Children, and Through the Midnight Door. She lives in Minnesota with her wife, two children, and Eddie, the ghost who haunts their bedroom closets.
Buy Through The Midnight DoorVisit Once Upon a Crime Books in-person or buy online: https://onceuponacrimebooks.com/book/9781728248264
Buy Wrong Place, Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister:https://onceuponacrimebooks.com/book/9781633048010
Connect with KatrinaWebsite: katrinamonroe.com
Instagram: @authorkatmonroe
Newsletter: katrinamonroe.substack.com
CreditsPresented by: Once Upon a Crime Books
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Theme music: Summer Mood by lesfm
Support the Show.
You love your parents because they’re your parents. But would you if they weren’t? This and other queer stories from the Middle East to Canada.
Today we meet Mike Z. and we’re talking about the book that saved his life: The Clothesline Swing by Danny Ramadan. And Danny joins us for the conversation!
Mike Z. lives in Lebanon and works in art therapy.
Danny Ramadan is a Lambda-award winning Syrian-Canadian author. His novels, The Clothesline Swing and The Foghorn Echoes continue to receive accolades. His is the author of the award-winning children’s books The Salma Series. Ramadan has raised over $350,000 for LGBTQ+ refugees. His memoir, Crooked Teeth, came out May 2024. He lives in Vancouver with his husband and two dogs.
The Clothesline Swing is a journey through the troublesome aftermath of the Arab Spring. A former Syrian refugee himself, Ramadan unveils an enthralling tale of courage that weaves through the mountains of Syria, the valleys of Lebanon, the encircling seas of Turkey, the heat of Egypt and finally, the hope of a new home in Canada.
Connect with Danny Ramadanwebsite: dannyramadan.com
instagram: @thedannyramadan
facebook: facebook.com/dannyramadan
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase The Clothesline Swing visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780889713321
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the Show.
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops next week on July 23rd! In our off weeks, we air the most recent episode of The Gaily Show which J.P. hosts for AM950 Radio.
Today, Jennie Garner and Andrew Frisbie join us from North Liberty Library to talk about book bans, how to support public libraries, and libraries as spaces for belonging and connection.
Connect with North Liberty Library
website: northlibertylibrary.org
instagram: @nlibertylibrary
blog: northlibertylibrary.org/blog
Watch on YouTubeWe're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
Support the Show.
When the adults in your life are this reckless and dangerous, what do you do?
Today we meet Rex Ogle and we’re talking about the book that saved his life: Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs.Rex Ogle is an award-winning author and the writer of nearly a hundred children’s books, comics, graphic novels, and memoirs—most notably Free Lunch, which won the ALA/YALSA award for Excellence in Non-Fiction. He has written under several pseudonyms, including Trey King and Honest Lee, but is currently focused on reimagining classic literature as modern or fantastical graphic novels as REY TERCIERO, under which he penned bestselling Meg, Jo, Beth, & Amy, as well as Northranger, nominated for both a Harvey and GLAAD Media Award.
Running with Scissors is the true story of a boy whose mother (a poet with delusions of Anne Sexton) gave him away to be raised by her psychiatrist, a dead-ringer for Santa and a lunatic in the bargain. Suddenly, at age twelve, Augusten Burroughs found himself living in a dilapidated Victorian in perfect squalor. The doctor's bizarre family, a few patients, and a pedophile living in the backyard shed completed the tableau. Here, there were no rules, there was no school. The Christmas tree stayed up until summer, and Valium was eaten like Pez. And when things got dull, there was always the vintage electroshock therapy machine under the stairs.
Connect with Rexwebsite: rexogle.com
instagram: @thirdrex
substack: substack.com/@thirdrex
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase Running With Scissors visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780312422271
To purchase Free Lunch visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781324016946
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the Show.
This is the recording of our live episode at Twin Cities PRIDE on June 29 from the tent of AM950-KTNF Radio. Guests were Mia Lucky, showrunner of the web series Transplant. Patrick Nathan, author of the novel The Future Was Color. And Paul Kaefer, board member of Quatrefoil Library.
Connect with Transplant and Mia Lucky
Watch the pilot here: youtube.com/@watchtransplant
instagram: @watchtransplant
Connect with Patrick Nathan
website: patricknathan.com
instagram: @patrick__nathan
buy The Future Was Color: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781640096240
Connect with Quatrefoil Library
website: qlibrary.org
instagram: @quatrefoillibrary
Support the Show.
After reading about the characters in this book, I made it my mission to have their kind of life for myself.
Today we meet David Ciminello and we’re talking about the book that saved his life: More Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin.David Ciminello is a Lambda Literary Fellow and author of The Queen of Steeplechase Park. As an actor, David guest starred on Seinfeld (“The Barber”), Murder She Wrote, Matlock, and Kojak. His original screenplay Bruno was made into a motion picture directed by Shirley MacLaine and stars Kathy Bates, Gary Sinese, and Jennifer Tilly.
In More Tales of the City, the tenants of 28 Barbary Lane have fled their cozy nest for adventures far afield. Mary Ann Singleton finds love at sea with a forgetful stranger, Mona Ramsey discovers her doppelgänger in a desert whorehouse, and Michael Tolliver bumps into his favorite gynecologist in a Mexican bar. Meanwhile, their venerable landlady takes the biggest journey of all--without ever leaving home.
Connect with Davidwebsite: davidciminello.com
instagram: @djciminello
Facebook: facebook.com/david.ciminello
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase More Tales of the City visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780060929381
To purchase The Queen of Steeplechase Park visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781942436614
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
June 18: 2-Year Anniversary Livestream: Follow us on Instagram @thisqueerbook. (7:30am EST/6:30am CST)
June 22: Queer Speculations: A Reading and Gathering. On Zoom. Visit armenianliterary.org to register. (1pm EST/12pm CST)
June 29: Live broadcast from Twin Cities PRIDE. 2pm CST. Listen to AM950 Radio on your radio app or am950radio.com. Or, visit our tent!
Support the Show.
Here is the recording of our live stream we held on Instagram on June 18! We talk about impactful episodes. We had a couple of trivia questions for the audience. We got into our book ban episodes. Then we shared about upcoming shows!
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
June 18: 2-Year Anniversary Livestream: Follow us on Instagram @thisqueerbook. (7:30am EST/6:30am CST)
June 22: Queer Speculations: A Reading and Gathering. On Zoom. Visit armenianliterary.org to register. (1pm EST/12pm CST)
June 29: Live broadcast from Twin Cities PRIDE. 2pm CST. Listen to AM950 Radio on your radio app or am950radio.com. Or, visit our tent!
Support the Show.
Our first-ever live stream starts today June 18 at 7:30am Eastern, 6:30am Central. Follow us on Instagram to join us. We’re @thisqueerbook. Once it’s over I’ll be uploading it here so you can listen to it here, on your favorite podcast app. Hopefully, see you all soon. If not, stay tuned to this space for the recording of today’s livestream!
June 18: 2-Year Anniversary Livestream: Follow us on Instagram @thisqueerbook. (7:30am EST/6:30am CST)
June 22: Queer Speculations: A Reading and Gathering. On Zoom. Visit armenianliterary.org to register. (1pm EST/12pm CST)
June 29: Live broadcast from Twin Cities PRIDE. 2pm CST. Listen to AM950 Radio on your radio app or am950radio.com. Or, visit our tent!
Support the Show.
This book made me think about how my relationship to myself is lifelong.
Today, we meet Saraid de Silva and we’re talking about the book that saved her life: Paul Takes The Form of a Mortal Girl by Andrea Lawlor. And Andrea joins us for the conversation!Saraid de Silva is the author of Amma and is a screen writer on the TV series Shortland Street.
Andrea Lawlor teaches writing at Mount Holyoke College and has received the Whiting Award for Fiction. Their publications include a chapbook, Position Papers.
Paul Takes The Form of a Mortal Girl takes place in 1993 and follows Paul Polydoris who tends bar at the only gay club in a university town thrumming with politics and partying. He studies queer theory, has a dyke best friend, makes zines, and is a flaneur with a rich dating life. But Paul’s also got a secret: he’s a shapeshifter. Oscillating wildly from Riot Grrrl to leather cub, Paul transforms his body and his gender at will as he crossed the country––a journey and adventure through the deep queer archives of struggle and pleasure.
Connect with Saraid and Andreainstagram: @saraiddesilva
Saraid's linktree: linktr.ee/ammasaraiddesilva
Andrea's website: anderlawlor.com
instagram: @anderlawlor
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780525566182
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
It's our two-year anniversary and we have new episodes and live events all month long! Check back for the links for the live events!
Support the Show.
A deep dive into LGBTQ book bans with two of the nation's leading researchers.
Today, we are joined by Sabrina Baêta and Tasslyn Magnusson. They are leading researchers in the United States on LGBTQ book bans in our schools. They led efforts to research and write the new 2024 PEN America report Banned in the USA: Narrating the Crisis.
Here is part of the official description: "This report provides data, alongside a comprehensive narrative of the censorship crisis affecting public schools. It shows the nuance of the current moment and damage that occurs when stories—compassionate, reflective, educational, and entertaining—are restricted or removed on the basis of fear, intimidation, or bigotry."
Read the full report here: https://pen.org/report/narrating-the-crisis/
Check out our earlier coverage on Book Bans: thisqueerbook.com/book-bans/
Learn more about Sabrina and TasslynSabrina: sabrinabaeta.com
Tasslyn: tasslynmagnusson.com
Our BookshopBuy banned books! Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
It's our two-year anniversary and we have new episodes and live events all month long! Check back for the links for the live events!
Support the Show.
When I read his work, I feel like he is a close friend that I lost. That’s how much he resonates with me.
Today we meet Kim Hines and we’re talking about the book that saved her life: The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin.Kim Hines is a playwright, actor, director, and author. Her plays have been produced across the United States, including tours at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Kim has performed at many theaters including the Illusion Theater, Penumbra Theater, and the Guthrie Theatre. She was a founding member of Mixed Blood Theater. Kim has directed at theaters across the Twin Cities of Minnesota, and at Cornell University in New York, University of Northern Iowa, and Kansas University. Her YA novel Wingo Fly was published in 2020.
The Fire Next Time was a 1963 national bestseller. It galvanized the United States, giving passionate voice to the civil rights movement. Both a evocation of James Baldwin's early life in Harlem and an examination of racial injustice, this book is intensely personal and provocative. It is written as two "letters" on the occasion of the centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation.
Connect with Kimfacebook: facebook.com/kim.hines920/
website: simplykimhines.com
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase The Fire Next Time visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780679744726
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the Show.
Today, Once Upon a Crime Books presents 7 Minutes in Book Heaven, the podcast where we interview LGBTQ authors about the new books they have coming out for us to love and cuddle up with.
Once Upon a Crime Books is an independent bookstore specializing in mystery fiction. Located in Uptown Minneapolis, you can shop in their store Monday through Saturday 11am – 5:30pm. Or, visit their website! There, you can browse all of their books, from new releases to classic mysteries.
In this new episode, Once Upon a Crime Books introduces us to Jessie Chandler and her new novel: Shanghai Murder which is available to buy in paperback in-store, or on their website, and it is also available as a digital audio book.
Jessie Chandler is the author of seven novels, including the humorously suspenseful Shay O’Hanlon Caper Series. Her crime fiction has garnered a Lambda Literary finalist nod, three Golden Crown Literary Awards, three USA Book Awards, and an Independent Publisher Book Award.
Buy Shanghai MurderVisit Once Upon a Crime Books in-person or buy Shanghai Murder online: https://onceuponacrimebooks.com/book/9781642475197
Buy the first book in the Shay O'Hanlon Caper series: https://onceuponacrimebooks.com/book/9781633048010
Connect with Jessie ChandlerWebsite: www.jessiechandler.com
Instagram: @jchandlerauthor
Facebook: facebook.com/shayohanloncaperseries/
CreditsPresented by: Once Upon a Crime Books
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Theme music: Summer Mood by lesfm
Once Upon a Crime Books Presents: 7 Minutes in Book Heaven. Visit onceuponacrimebooks.com to purchase this episode's featured novel: Shanghai Murder by Jessie Chandler.
Support the Show.
Seriously though. When you're life is hyphenated, how do you put it altogether to live the life you want?
Today we meet Natalie Cruz and we’re talking about the book that saved her life: We Are All Armenian edited by Aram Mrjoian and featuring eighteen essayists.
Natalie lives in Philly, is the managing editor of the Queer Armenian Library, teaches Art History at Camden County College, and is a PhD candidate at Temple University.
We Are All Armenian brings together established and emerging Armenian authors to reflect on the complications of Armenian ethnic identity today. These personal essays elevate diasporic voices that have been historically silenced inside and outside of their communities, including queer, multiracial, and multiethnic writers. The eighteen contributors to this contemporary anthology explore issues of displacement, assimilation, inheritance, and broader definitions of home.
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase We Are All Armenian visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781477326794
Queer Armenian LibraryBookmark the Queer Armenian Library to view the art curation Natalie will provide: queerarmenianlibrary.com
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Permission to use a clip from Literary Lights provided by the International Armenian Literary Alliance
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the Show.
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops next week on May 11th! In our off weeks, we air the most recent episode of The Gaily Show which J.P. hosts for AM950 Radio.
On today’s episode, Jeff Gavin’s debut album Magic is out now and we have clips from three tracks. Plus, Keith Haring: Art is For Everyone just opened at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. The exhibit runs through September and features over 100 of Keith’s artworks, including videos of his residency at the Walker from 1984.
Listen to Jeff Gavin's Magic: songwhip.com/jeffgavin/magic
More information on Keith Haring: Art is for Everybody: https://walkerart.org/calendar/2024/keith-haring-art-is-for-everybody/
Watch on YouTube
We're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
Support the Show.
They say what matters most is love. But for a lot of us...that’s not what matters most.
Today we meet Jake Mier and we’re talking about the book that saved their life: Loveless by Alice Oseman.
Jake lives in the Twin Cities and works in restorative justice.
Loveless is the funny, honest, messy, completely relatable story of Georgia, who doesn't understand why she can't crush and kiss and make out like her friends do. She's surrounded by the narrative that dating + sex = love. It's not until she gets to college that she discovers the A range of the LGBTQIA+ spectrum -- coming to understand herself as asexual/aromantic. Disrupting the narrative that she's been told since birth isn't easy -- there are many mistakes along the way to inviting people into a newly found articulation of an always-known part of your identity.
Jake's Ace/Aro Book Recommendations
Let's Talk About Love by Claire Kann
The City of Spires (series) by Claudie Arseneualt
Elatsoe and A Snake Falls To Earth by Darcy Little Badger
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase Loveless visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781338751932
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the Show.
That moment when you meet kindred queer spirits in podcasting.
Today we have a special cross-pollination episode with the Queer Spirit podcast. The Queer Spirit podcast has conversations with embodied artists, practitioners and activists who care for, enliven and empower our 2SLGBTQ+ communities to thrive + flourish. Their hosts are Nick Venegoni, MA (he>they) and TanyaMarck Oviedo (they/them).
Nick is a holistic psychotherapist based on unceded Ohlone territory (San Francisco, CA), where he supports queer folks to heal from trauma and anxiety, to create more joyful lives and fulfilling relationships. Nick’s primary spiritual practices these days include Earth based wisdom, Buddhist Psychology, Mindfulness meditation, and sound healing.
TanyaMarck is an intuitive + trauma informed practitioner, guide, mentor, educator, witch, and medicine person who identifies as a queer, non-binary, native indigenous being of color, and person in recovery. Their healing arts practice (Vamonos) and home are based out of Tongva + Kizh and Chumash lands (Long Beach, CA).
Connect with Queer Spiritwebsite: queerhealingjourneys.com/podcast
instagram: @holisticqueerhealing
facebook: facebook.com/queerhealingjourneys
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
All the love in our queer families.
Today we meet Archie Arnold and we’re talking about the book that saved his life: Love Lives Here: A Story of Thriving in a Transgender Family by Rowan Jetté Knox.
Archie is a grant writer working at a community college in Minnesota. His career in grants and fundraising spans twenty years.
Rowan Jetté Knox is an author, speaker and human rights advocate. His work in LGBTQ2S+ inclusion and mental health awareness has sparked change worldwide. was humbled to be inducted into the 2021 Order of Ottawa for his advocacy of transgender, gender-creative, and non-binary youth.
Love Lives Here: A Story of Thriving in a Transgender Family is an inspirational story of accepting and embracing two trans people in a family--a family who shows what's possible when you "lead with love.". Told with remarkable candor and humor, and full of insight into the challenges faced by trans people, Love Lives Here is a beautiful story of transition, frustration, support, acceptance, and, of course, love.
Content warning: This episode contains brief mentions of interpersonal violence and suicide.
Connect with Rowanwebsite: rowanjetteknox.com
instagram: @maven_of_mayhem
facebook: facebook.com/mavenofmayhem
bluesky: @mavenofmayhem.bsky.social
Our Bookshop
Visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase Becoming A Man: Half A Life Story visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780735235175
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
A new episode of This Queer Book Saved My Life drops next week on April 16th! In our off weeks, we air the most recent episode of The Gaily Show which J.P. hosts for AM950 Radio.
On today’s episode, Stephanie Miller joins us to talk about her upcoming Sexy Liberal Save the World Tour which kicks off in Minneapolis on April 13. Plus, F.T. Lukens has a new queer YA novel that just came out on April 2nd. They join us to talk all about it!
- Buy F.T.'s book here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781665916257
- Buy tickets to the Sexy Liberal Tour here: https://hennepintheatretrust.org/events/stephanie-millers-sexy-liberal-save-the-world-comedy-tour-pantages-theatre-minneapolis-mn-2024/
Watch on YouTubeWe're in video too! You can watch this episode at youtube.com/@thegailyshow
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Production and Distribution Support: Brett Johnson, AM950
Marketing/Advertising Support: Chad Larson, Laura Hedlund, Jennifer Ogren, AM950
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
Support the show
As gay kids we have to get through so much that we end up not remembering a lot of our childhoods.
Today we meet K Jason Bryan and we’re talking about the book that saved his life: Becoming A Man: Half A Life Story by Paul Monette.
Jason is a Sr Client Consultant for corporate insurance, and used to chair his company’s LGBT & Allies ERG. He is a former member of the Governors Board at the Human Rights Campaign. He also served as the Membership Director at Quorum, Minnesota's LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce.
Becoming A Man: Half A Life Story won the National Book Award and the LAMBDA Literary Award. Paul Monette was haunted, and finally saved, by a dream, "The thing I'd never even seen: two men in love and laughing." This searingly honest, witty, and humane merging of memoir and manifesto has become the definitive coming out story--and a classic of the coming-of-age genre.
Hear more Romanovsky and Phillips!
website: romanovskyandphillips.com
Featured song in this episode: "When Heterosexism Strikes" from their album Be Political, Not Polite (1991)
Connect with JasonFacebook: facebook.com/kjason.bryan
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase Becoming a Man: Half a Life Story visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780060595647
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryan and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Permission to use a clip from "When Heterosexism Strikes" provided by Romanovsky and Phillips
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
No one ever told me that I could be divine. That my sexuality was a gift.
Today we meet Sandy Hope and we’re talking about the book that saved her life: Swinging on the Garden Gate by Elizabeth Jarrett Andrew. And Elizabeth joins us for the conversation!
Sandy is a licensed mental health counselor whose practice focuses Internal Family Systems theory. She works with people around sexuality, spirituality, couples therapy, and people who struggle with eating disorders.
Elizabeth is an author, writing coach, spiritual director, and co-founder of the Eye of the Heart Center.
Swinging on the Garden Gate: A Memoir of Bisexuality and Spirit describes a period of time in award-winning writer and teacher Elizabeth Jarrett Andrew's life when she came to know bisexuality as an embodied manifestation of divinity. Andrew not only reconciles her United Methodist faith with her sexuality but realizes that her body is holy, her sexuality is holy, and the word she carried within her has always been holy.
Connect with Sandy and ElizabethSandy's website: sandrahopecounseling.com
Elizabeth's websites: elizabethjarrettandrew.com and spiritualmemoir.com
Eye of the Heart Center: eyeoftheheartcenter.org
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase Swinging on the Garden Gate visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781558968783
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryant and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
Everyone calls me ma'am on the phone. I love it.
Today we meet Jacob Budenz and we’re talking about the book that saved their life: Dress Your Family In Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris.
Jacob is a true multi-hyphenate: musician, author, performance artist, director, and witch. Jacob published their new book Tea Leaves in 2023 and is the front person for the band Moth Broth.
Dress Your Family In Corduroy and Denim is an essay collection where David Sedaris lifts the corner of ordinary life, revealing the absurdity teeming below its surface. His world is alive with obscure desires and hidden motives -- a world where forgiveness is automatic and an argument can be the highest form of love.
Connect with JacobWebsite: jakebeearts.com
Instagram: @dreambabyjake
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase Dress Your Family In Corduroy and Denim visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780316010795
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, K Jason Bryant and David Rephan, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Permission to use clips from the tracks Baba Yaga and Fairy Queen performed by Moth Broth provided by Jacob Budenz.
Audio clip from Dress Your Family In Corduroy and Denim read by David Sedaris is used here under the Fair Use doctrine for the purposes of literary commentary and criticism.
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
When a closeted queer kid meets his fairy godfather what does he wish for?
Today we meet Ricardo Galaviz and we’re talking about the book that saved his life: Am I Blue? by Bruce Coville. And Bruce joins us for the conversation!
Ricardo (all pronouns) is the Associate Director of the Milwaukee LGBT Center.
Bruce (he/him) is the author of over 100 books including My Teacher is an Alien, Into the Land of Unicorns, and Jeremy Hatcher, Dragon Hatcher.
Am I Blue? Coming Out From The Silence is an anthology of short stories edited by Marion Dane Bauer and the title comes from the Bruce's short story Am I Blue? in which a fairy godfather offers a young queer kid three wishes.
Read more!The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wrote a fantastic article about this episode. Many thanks to Amy Schwabe!
Connect with Ricardo and BruceRicardo's website: mkelgbt.org
Bruce's website: brucecoville.com
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase Am I Blue? visit Bruce's website: brucecoville.com
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our LGBT podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
A tomboy who wants to be Perry Mason (and has a crush on Della) included this book on job applications.
Today we meet Jean M. Gustafson and we’re talking about the book that saved her life: To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee.
Jean M. Gustafson is a seasoned attorney who specializes in various branches of law, including employment law, elder law, criminal and family law. She is licensed in the states of Minnesota, South Dakota, Utah and Federal Court of the District of Minnesota. She has also received training in Basic Mediation. Jean is a firm believer in mediation and she has seen it obtain better results for her clients than adversarial court battles. She is currently highly involved in the Minnesota bar association serving as a diverse attorney in two affinity bars, Elder Law Education committee member and former chair of the Elder Law Institute Planning Committee.
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a gripping, heart-wrenching, and wholly remarkable tale of coming-of-age in a South poisoned by virulent prejudice, it views a world of great beauty and savage inequities through the eyes of a young girl, as her father--a crusading local lawyer--risks everything to defend a black man unjustly accused of a terrible crime.
Connect with Jeanwebsite: guslaw.net
email: jean@guslaw.net
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase To Kill A Mockingbird: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780060935467
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
Are you ready to un-ban LGBT books in real time?
I share with you about The Banned Book Club and then I sit down with the head of the project: John Bracken who is the Executive Director of The Digital Public Library of America.
How to start reading:
- Download the Palace Project App for iOS or Android in the Apple App store or Google Play.
- Open the app
- Select Banned Book Club
- Start reading!
Banned Book Club website: thebannedbookclub.info
Digital Public Library of American website: pro.dp.la
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Support the show
It was such a catharsis that I took the book into the woods and acted out scenes from it.
Today we meet Leon Acord and we’re talking about the book that saved his life: The Front Runner by Patricia Nell Warren.
Leon Acord is the author of the memoirs Expletives Not Deleted and Sub-Lebrity: The Queer Life of a Showbiz Footnote. Leon created, wrote, and starred in the TV series Old Dogs & New Tricks on Amazon Prime Video. On stage, he has performed in numerous West Coast premieres at the New Conservatory Theatre Center, including Last Sunday in June, Dreamboy, and Thief River.
The Front Runner by Patricia Nell Warren was published in 1974. With 10 million copies in 7 languages, this landmark classic is the most popular gay love story of all time.
Connect with Leonwebsite: leonacord.com
instagram: @leonacord
threads: @leonacord
facebook: facebook.com/leonacordactor
Content WarningWe have a conversation that references and has a general description of sexual assault. Support organizaitons: National Queer and Trans Therapists of Color network, Forge, and CenterLink. Lifelines: the GLBT National Help Center 1-888—246–7743. Trans Lifeline 1-877—565-8860. The Black Line, created with an LGBTQ+ Black Femme lens 1-800-604-5841. DeQH hotline for South Asian/DESI LGBTQ persons 908-367-3374.
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase The Front Runner visit your local bookstore!
To purchase Leon's memoir Expletives Not Deleted visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9798449228505
To purchase Leon's memoir Sub-Lebrity: The Queer Life of a Showbiz Footnote visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9798622243110
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Permission to use audio clips from the audio book Expletives Not Deleted provided by Leon Acord
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Support the show
You go to his place to hook up. The book that saves your life is on his coffee table.
Today we meet Philip Anthony and we’re talking about the book that saved his life: The Homosexualization of America by Dennis Altman. And Dennis joins us for the conversation!
Philip is based in Minneapolis and is host of the podcast The Downright Upright Show.
Dennis is the son of Jewish refugees, and a writer and academic who first came to attention with the publication of his book Homosexual: Oppression & Liberation in 1972. Altman is a Vice Chancellor's Fellow and Professorial Fellow in the Institute for Human Security at LaTrobe University in Melbourne.
The Homosexualization of America describes the emergence of an influential homosexual subculture as a result of the Gay Liberation Movement and examines the impact of this community on United States society. It is the follow-up to Altman's groundbreaking book Homosexual: Oppression and Liberation.
Connect with Philip and DennisPhilip's website: am950radio.com/events/philip/
Dennis' website: scholars.latrobe.edu.au/daltman/about
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase The Homosexualization of America visit your local bookstore!
To purchase Dennis' novel Death in the Sauna visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780645732801
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
View the full video of Monday Conference with Dennis Altman through ABC’s YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/WXdAeJhR1RU?si=8gH08QHwHbaHteq3
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
Today, we meet Jeff Billington and his new novel: Summer's Second.
In this novel, Asher Brock’s last summer of youth is far from ideal. His hopes for the future, including an escape from his constricting Ozark Mountains hometown, seem increasingly fragile as he faces hurdles of poverty and abuse, all while coming to terms with being gay.
Jeff Billington is the author of Chicken Dinner News and Summer's Second. He has worked as a journalist, Communications Director for a member of Congress, and for environmental and advocacy nonprofits.
Buy Summer's SecondVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy directly: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781648905926
Connect with Jeff BillingtonWebsite: jeffbillington.com
Instagram: @jdbillington
Twitter: @jeffbillington
Facebook: facebook.com/jeffbillingtonauthor
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Accounting and Creative Support: Gordy Erickson
Support the show
My eighth grade brain was like: they're such great friends AND they kiss on the mouth?! That's great!
Today we meet Maya Williams and we’re talking about the book that saved their life: The Color Purple by Alice Walker.
Maya Williams (ey/em, they/them, and she/her) is a religious Black multiracial nonbinary suicide survivor who is currently an Ashley Bryan Fellow and the seventh Poet Laureate of Portland, Maine .
Maya's debut poetry collection, Judas & Suicide, is available through Game Over Books . And Maya's second poetry collection, Refused a Second Date, is available now through Harbor Editions.
A powerful cultural touchstone of modern American literature, The Color Purple depicts the lives of African American women in early-twentieth-century rural Georgia. Through a series of letters spanning nearly thirty years, first from Celie to God, then from the sisters to each other, the novel draws readers into a rich and memorable portrayal of Black women--their pain and struggle, companionship and growth, resilience and bravery.
Connect with MayaWebsite: mayawilliamspoet.com
Instagram: @emmdubb16
Twitter: @emmdubb16
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase The Color Purple visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780143135692.
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Creative and Accounting support provided by: Gordy Erickson
Permission to use audio from the Kennedy Center Arts Across America - Maya Williams 'Definitions of Home' provided by Maya Williams.
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
Without this book, I wouldn't have become me. And I guess I'd be married to a man.
Today we meet Adrineh Der Boghossian and we’re talking about the book that saved her life: Princess Freak by Nancy Agabian. And Nancy joins us for the conversation!
Princess Freak documents through poetry and prose texts Nancy's coming-of-age of as a shy, funny, bisexual Armenian-American woman who flees the small town of Walpole, Massachusetts to tell the stories of her family.
Adrineh Der Boghossian (no relation!) is an editor who works as a project manager for a Vancouver-based book publisher. Originally from Toronto, Adrineh taught at the American University of Armenia and researched factors affecting media trust at CRRC-Armenia.
Nancy Agabian is a writer, teacher, and organizer. A winner of the Jeanne Córdova Prize for Lesbian/Queer Nonfiction, her new novel The Fear of Large and Small Nations is out now.
Connect with Adrineh and NancyTwitter: @_adrineh_
Instagram: @adrinehmacaan
Website: nancyagabian.com
Princess Freak newsletter (for updates about a reprint): nancyagabian.com/mailing-list
Instagram: @nancyagabian
Our BookshopVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Princess Freak is currently out of print. You may be able to find a copy through used book retailers. Sign-up for Nancy's newsletter for updates on a reprinting (see above).
To purchase The Fear of Large and Small Nations visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9798985969238. In December, Nancy is donating portions of book sales to the Women's Support Center in Armenia.
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Ida Göteburg, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Permission to use clips from Literary Lights: Nancy Agabian in conversation with Aida Zilelian provided by the International Armenian Literary Alliance.
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
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Today, Once Upon a Crime Books presents 7 Minutes in Book Heaven, the podcast where we interview LGBTQ authors about the new books they have coming out for us to love and cuddle up with.
Once Upon a Crime Books is an independent bookstore specializing in mystery fiction. Located in Uptown Minneapolis, you can shop in their store Monday through Saturday 11am – 5:30pm. Or, visit their website! There, you can browse all of their books, from new releases to classic mysteries.
In this new episode, Once Upon a Crime Books introduces us to Joshua Moehling and his new novel: Where The Dead Sleep which is available to buy in paperback in-store, or on their website, and it is also available as a digital audio book.
Joshua Moehling (he/him) is the author of the Ben Packard series. The first book, And There He Kept Her, was a Barnes & Noble monthly Mystery/Thriller pick and a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award for Best LGBTQ+ Mystery. His second novel, Where the Dead Sleep, was described as “a well-paced whodunit” and “devastating” by The New York Times. Joshua lives in Minneapolis and works in the medical device industry.
Buy Where The Dead SleepVisit Once Upon a Crime Books in-person or buy online: https://onceuponacrimebooks.indielite.org/book/9781728247922
Buy the first book in the series And There He Kept Her: https://onceuponacrimebooks.indielite.org/book/9781728275772
Also, in this episode, we talked about Five Decembers by James Kestrel, which is also available at Once Upon a Crime Books:
https://onceuponacrimebooks.indielite.org/book/9781789098679
Connect with Joshua MoehlingWebsite: joshuamoehling.com
Instagram: @jmoehling
Twitter: @JoshuaMoehling
Facebook: facebook.com/jmoehling
CreditsPresented by: Once Upon a Crime Books
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Theme music: Summer Mood by lesfm
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Ancient queer Greek love. The Easter Bunny. And everything in between.
Today we meet Christina Bagni and we’re talking about the book that saved her life The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller.
Christina is an editor, host of Classics and Chill, and the author of the YA novel My Only Real Friend is the Easter Bunny at the Mall.
For Christina, The Song of Achilles not only helped her to process a painful past relationship, but it also put her on a path to host a podcast based on the novel's source The Iliad, as well as to her write her own YA novel.
Connect with ChristinaTo connect to Christina's website, social media, her novel, and Classics and Chill, visit: linktr.ee/christinabagni
Buy The Song of Achilles and My Only Real Friend is the Easter Bunny at the MallDid you know that you can visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts? So many titles on sale now! bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase The Song of Achilles visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780062060624
To purchase My Only Real Friend is the Easter Bunny at the Mall visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781738767786
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Permission to use clips from Classics and Chill provided by Christina Bagni.
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
You didn't realize you'd end up reading a charming gay couple's 3,100 love letters.
Today we meet Scott Bane and we’re talking about the book that launched a life-saving journey for him: American Renaissance by F.O. Matthiessen.
Scott is a Program Officer at the John A. Hartford Foundation and author of A Union Like Ours: The Love Story of F.O. Matthiessen and Russel Cheney.
Imagine coming across a book in a New York Times Book Review that introduces you to a writer whose little told life-long love story happened right in your hometown years before you lived there. After reading American Renaissance, Scott began a years-long journey to bring that love story to life.
Connect with ScottWebsite: scott-bane.com
Russell Cheney art gallery: russellcheney.com
Buy American Renaissance and A Union Like OursDid you know that you can visit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts? So many titles on sale now! bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase American Renaissance visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780195007596
To purchase A Union Like Ours visit: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781625346377
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Permission to use clips from Author Talk "A Union Like Ours: The Love Story of F. O. Matthiessen and Russell Cheney" provided by Scott Bane.
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
I knew something was wrong, but what? This book helped me realize I have a disability. And it's treatable.
Today we meet David-Elijah Nahmod and we’re talking about the book that saved his life: Blind: A Memoir by Belo Miguel Cipriani. And Belo joins us for the conversation!
David-Elijah Nahmod is a freelance journalist in San Francisco, who writes for publications all over the country and in Canada.
Belo Miguel Cipriani is a digital inclusion strategist, author, and publisher. Blind: A Memoir is the story of how he became blind as a result of an assault.
In Blind, Belo chronicles the two years immediately following the assault. At the age of 26, Belo found himself learning to walk, cook, and date in the dark. Armed with visual memory and his newly developed senses, Belo shows readers what the blind see. He narrates the little known world of the blind, where microwaves, watches, and computers talk, and where guide dogs guard as well as lead.
The topics we discuss today include interpersonal violence resulting in blindness, brief descriptions of interpersonal violence, as well as conversations on emotional abuse, depression, and anxiety. Please listen with your self-care in mind.
If you feel like you are, or may be, in need of support, don’t go through this alone. There are people ready to help. There is the National Queer and Trans Therapists of Color network to find a provider near you. There is Forge, who focuses on supporting trans and non-binary survivors. CenterLink can connect you to your local LGBT center. And there are a number of lifelines that you can call for immediate support: the GLBT National Help Center 1-888—246–7743, the Trans Lifeline 1-877—565-8860, the Black Line, created with an LGBTQ+ Black Femme lens 1-800-604-5841, and the DeQH hotline for South Asian/DESI LGBTQ individuals, family, and friends 908-367-3374.
Connect with David-Elijah and BeloDavid-Elijah on Facebook: facebook.com/DavidElijahNahmod
Belo's website: belocipriani.com
Oleb Books' website: olebbooks.com
Oleb Media's website: olebmedia.com
Buy Blind: A MemoirVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
To purchase Blind: A Memoir: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781732312722
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Permission to use clips from Firsts: Coming of Age Stories by People with Disabilities provided by Oleb Media and Belo Miguel Cipriani.
Permission to use clips from the audiobook, Blind: A Memoir provided by Oleb Media and Belo Miguel Cibriani.
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil Library
Support the show
We meet Dianna Hunter and her new novel Clouded Waters which releases today: October 10!
What's it about? When a local water scientist goes missing, newspaper owner Susan B. Ellingson follows a trail of evidence from a tiny, off-grid community into a global tangle of lies, corruption, whistleblowing, and danger. All the while her mother-in-law leads a group of Ojibwe and Métis grandmothers fighting to protect the water, and when after an intriguing new woman comes to town, Susan isn't sure how to feel or act.
Dianna Hunter (she/her or they/them) is the author of Wild Mares: My Lesbian Back-to-the-Land Life and Breaking Hard Ground: Stories of the Minnesota Farm Advocates. Both were finalists for the Minnesota Book Award. Dianna was a farmer and farm advocate before beginning a career in writing and college teaching. She earned an MA in English (Creative Writing) from Iowa State University,
Buy Clouded WatersVisit our Bookshop at bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook or buy directly right now: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781737405160
Also, we talked about the poem "Election Season" by Julie Gard. It's in Julie's collection I Think I Know You. Buy it here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781952593338
Connect with Dianna HunterWebsite: diannahunter.com
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Steven Flamm, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
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Coming out wasn’t a switch that fixed everything. This book explained why.
Today we meet Chris Tompkins and we’re talking about the book that saved Chris' life: The Velvet Rage by Alan Downs.
Chris is an LGTBQ affirmative therapist and author of the new book Raising LGBTQ Allies: A Parent's Guide to Changing the Messages from the Playground.
In The Velvet Rage, psychologist Alan Downs draws on his own struggle with shame and anger, contemporary research, and stories from his patients to passionately describe the stages of a gay man's journey out of shame and offers practical and inspired strategies to stop the cycle of avoidance and self-defeating behavior.
Connect with ChrisInstagram: @aroadtriptolove
Twitter: @aroadtriptolove
Facebook: facebook.com/aroadtriptolove
Website: aroadtriptolove.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/christompkinslife
Buy The Velvet Rage and Raising LGBTQ AlliesVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Buy The Velvet Rage directly: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781538136263
Buy Raising LGBTQ Allies directly: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781538136263
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Permission to use the TEDx talk "What Children Learn From The Things They Aren't Told" provided by Chris Tompkins.
Additional permissions provided by Chris Tompkins.
Music and SFX credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil Library
Quatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
I had no queer friends. I kept going to the same bookstore hoping a girl would hit on me.
Welcome to our new season! Today we meet Leslie Vincent and Michelle Tea!
We’re talking about the book that saved Leslie's life: Valencia by Michelle Tea.
As a music maker, Leslie Vincent performs jazz and the great American Songbook. She released her new album About Last Night earlier this year.
Michelle Tea is a writer, Guggenheim Fellow, founder of Drag Queen Story Hour, and host of the podcast Your Magic with Michelle Tea.
Valencia is the fast-paced account of one girl's search for love and high times in the drama-filled dyke world of San Francisco's Mission District.
Connect with Leslie and Michelleinstagram: @leslie_della_vincent
website: lesliedellavincent.com
facebook: facebook.com/LeslieVincentMusic
website: www.michelle-tea.com
instagram: @michelleteaz
twitter: @TeaMichelle
Buy ValenciaVisit our Bookshop for new releases, current bestsellers, banned books, critically acclaimed LGBTQ books, or peruse the books featured on our podcasts.
Or, buy Valencia directly: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781580052382
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Jonathan Fried, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Stephen Flamm, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Permission to use "Laura" and "Stars Fell Over Alabama" provided be Leslie Vincent.
Permission to use the film trailer to Valencia provided by Michelle Tea.
Permission to use Your Magic with Michelle Tea provided by Michelle Tea.
Music credits: visit thiqueerbook.com/music
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Support the show
Welcome to our Summer of Book Love series!Our series concludes today as we meet Rebecca Turkewitz and her new new spooky story collection: Here in the Night. New episodes of This Queer Book Saved My Life! drop next Tuesday! September 19th! What's it about? The thirteen stories in Rebecca Turkewitz’s debut collection, Here in the Night, are engrossing, strange, eerie, and emotionally nuanced. Preoccupied with all manner of hauntings, these stories traverse a boarding school in the Vermont woods, the jagged coast of Maine, an attic in suburban Massachusetts, an elevator stuck between floors, and the side of an unlit highway in rural South Carolina.
At the center of almost every story is the landscape of night, with all its tantalizing and terrifying potential. After dark, the familiar becomes unfamiliar, boundaries loosen, expectations fall away, and even the greatest skeptics believe—at least fleetingly—that anything could happen.
Buy Here in the NightVisit our Bookshop or buy directly right now: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781625570574
Connect with Rebecca TurkewitzWebsite: rebeccaturkewitz.com
Instagram: @Rebecca_Turkewitz_Writes
Twitter: @R_Turkewitz
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Steven Flamm, Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Register and Support Unstoppable Stories: A Banned Books FestivalRegister: https://uucf.org/unstoppable
Donate: https://onrealm.org/UUCF/give/BBFestText: UUFAIRFAX BBFest to 73256.All donation options: thisqueerbook.com/unstoppable
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Welcome to our Summer of Book Love series!Every Tuesday this summer we will feature new episodes of 7 Minutes in Book Heaven which has your next summer read! New episodes of This Queer Book Saved My Life! drop September 19th.
Today we meet Robert Kirby and his new graphic memoir: Marry Me A Little.What's it about? Rob recounts his experience of marrying his longtime partner, John, just after same-sex marriage was legalized in Minnesota in 2013. Heartwarming, honest, and slyly humorous, Marry Me a Little is a wonderfully illustrated celebration of a romantic partnership between two men and a personal account of a momentous and historic moment in the fight for gay rights.
Buy Marry Me A LittleVisit our Bookshop or buy directly right now: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781637790397
Connect with Rob KirbyWebsite: robkirbycomics.com
Instagram: @robkirbycomics
Twitter: @robkirbycomics
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Support the show
Welcome to our Summer of Book Love series!Every Tuesday this summer we will feature new episodes of 7 Minutes in Book Heaven which has your next summer read! New episodes of This Queer Book Saved My Life! drop this September.
Today we meet Marisa Crane and their new novel: I Keep My Exoskeletons to Myself.
What's it about? Dept. of Speculation meets Black Mirror in this lyrical, speculative debut about a queer mother raising her daughter in an unjust surveillance state. Kris is a new mother, grieving the loss of her wife and thoroughly unprepared for the reality of raising a child alone. Kris teeters on the edge of collapse, fumbling in a daze of alcohol, shame, and self-loathing. Yet as the kid grows, Kris finds her footing, raising a child whose irrepressible spark cannot be dampened by the harsh realities of the world. She can’t forget her wife, but with time, she can make a new life for herself and the kid, supported by a community of fellow misfits who defy the Department to lift one another up in solidarity and hope.
Buy I Keep My Exoskeletons to MyselfVisit our Bookshop or buy directly right now: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781646221295
We also talk about the writing craft book Meander, Spiral, and Explode by Jane Alison. Buy it here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781948226134
Connect with Marisa CraneWebsite: marisacrane.org
Instagram: @marisa_crane
Twitter: @mcrane_12
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Support the show
Welcome to our Summer of Book Love series!Every Tuesday this summer we will feature new episodes of 7 Minutes in Book Heaven which has your next summer read! New episodes of This Queer Book Saved My Life! drop this September.
Today we meet Tristan Taormino and their new memoir: A Part of the Heart Can't Be Eaten.What's it about? Sex educator, filmmaker, and podcast host Tristan Taormino shares her coming-of-age story, revealing how her radical sexuality and unconventional career grew out of an extraordinary queer father-daughter relationship. Tristan’s world began to fall apart when her dad was diagnosed with AIDS. After a series of devastating events, she moved to the messy, glorious world of 1990s New York City. In the midst of grief and depression, she helped change queer sexual subculture with her zine Pucker Up, her infamous The Village Voice column, and her editorship of legendary lesbian porn magazine On Our Backs. After the publication of her first book, The Ultimate Guide to Anal Sex for Women, Tristan followed her own path that marked the beginning of her work as a trailblazing feminist pornographer.
Releasing in September 2023, you can pre-order through Duke University Press!
Connect with Tristan TaorminoWebsite: tristantaormino.com
Instagram: @tristantaormino
Twitter: @tristantaormino
Facebook: facebook.com/tristantaormino
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Support the show
Welcome to our Summer of Book Love series!Every Tuesday this summer we will feature new episodes of 7 Minutes in Book Heaven which has your next summer read! New episodes of This Queer Book Saved My Life! drop this September.
Today we meet Lin Thompson and their new novel: The House That Whispers.What's it about? Eleven-year-old Simon and his siblings, Talia and Rose, are staying the week at Nanaleen's century-old house. This time, though, it’s not their usual summer vacation trip. In fact, everything’s different. It’s fall, not summer. Mom and Dad are staying behind to have a “talk.” And Nanaleen’s house smells weird, plus she keeps forgetting things. And these aren’t the only things getting under Simon’s skin: He’s the only one who knows that his name is Simon, and that he and him pronouns are starting to feel right. But he’s not ready to add to the changes that are already in motion in his family.
Buy The House That WhispersVisit our Bookshop or buy directly right now: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780316277112
We also talk about When the Angels Left The Old Country by Sacha Lamb. Buy it here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781646141760
Connect with Lin ThompsonWebsite: linthompson.com
Instagram: @linthompsonbooks
Twitter: @lin__thompson
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Support the show
Welcome to our Summer of Book Love series!Every Tuesday this summer we will feature new episodes of 7 Minutes in Book Heaven which has your next summer read! New episodes of This Queer Book Saved My Life! drop this September.
Today we meet Lucian Childs and his new novel: Dreaming Home.What's it about? When a sister's casual act of betrayal awakens their father's demons--ones spawned by his time in Vietnamese POW camps--the effects of the ensuing violence against her brother ripple out over the course of forty years, from Lubbock, to San Francisco, to Fort Lauderdale. Swept up in this arc, the members of this family and their loved ones tell their tales. A queer coming-of-age, and coming-to-terms, and a poignant exploration of all the ways we search for home, Dreaming Home is the unforgettable story of the fragmenting of an American family.
Buy Dreaming HomeVisit our Bookshop or buy directly right now: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781771965491
Connect with Lucian ChildsWebsite: lucianchilds.com
Instagram: @lucian_childs
Facebook: Lucian-Childs-Author
Twitter: @lucianchilds
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Support the show
Welcome to our Summer of Book Love series! New episodes of This Queer Book Saved My Life! drop this September.
Every Tuesday this summer we will feature new episodes of 7 Minutes in Book Heaven which has your next summer read!
Today we meet Dr. Gwen Bass and her new memoir: Immaculate Misconception: A Story of Biology and Belonging.What's it about? In the early 1980’s, 95% of all artificial inseminations were performed for married, heterosexual couples. Among the other 5% were people like Gwen’s parents– lesbians navigating a homophobic medical system ready to deny them children. They found a doctor willing to perform the procedure in secret, using sperm from an anonymous donor.
She grew up straddling two worlds. In one–rainbow flags waved and love made a family. In the other– she and her family tried to fit in with everyone else. Immaculate Misconception isn’t just a window into a sliver of queer history, it raises questions we all grapple with: who we are and the forces that influence us. It’s a reflection on nature, nurture, identity, and belonging.
After earning her BA in Psychology and Education, Gwen became a teacher and school counselor. She then pursued an M.Ed in school counseling and her doctorate in special education while training and mentoring teachers on practical, evidence-based tools to nurture kids’ educational and emotional well-being.
Buy Immaculate MisconceptionVisit our Bookshop or buy directly right now: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9798889269526
Connect with Dr. Gwen BassWebsite: drgwenbass.com
Instagram: @drgwenbass
Facebook: facebook.com/drgwenbass
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/dr-gwen-bass
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard
Visit the Spectacle Shoppe and ask for the Pride Special!Until August 1st, the Spectacle Shoppe is offering you $250 off as a Pride special. For locations, visit: https://spectacleshoppe.com
Support the show
Welcome to our Summer of Book Love series!
Every Tuesday this summer we will feature new episodes of 7 Minutes in Book Heaven which has your next summer read!
Today we meet Christine Suggs and their graphic novel ¡Ay, Mija! My Bilingual Summer in Mexico.In this bilingual, inventive, and heartfelt debut, graphic novel sixteen-year-old Christine explores a trip they took to Mexico to visit family, embracing and rebelling against their heritage and finding a sense of belonging.
At first, Christine struggles to connect with family they don't yet share a language with. Soon Christine settles into life in Mexico, eating pan dulce, drawing what they see, and growing more comfortable with Spanish. But when Mom joins their trip, Christine's two worlds collide. Through exploring the impacts of colonialism in both Mexico and themselves, they find their place in their family and start to feel comfortable with their mixed identity.
Christine (they/them) is a comic artist and designer living in Dallas, TX with their wonderful partner, 1 dog, and 2 cats. Christine's work explores the intersection of their identities, namely being a queer, fat, Latinx leftist who loves all things cute. Bonus facts: their day job is in app design, they are an avid Dungeons & Dragons player, and they're quite obsessed with their cats.
Buy ¡Ay, Mija! My Bilingual Summer in MexicoVisit our Bookshop or buy directly right now: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780316591928
Connect with Christine SuggsWebsite: christinesuggs.com
Instagram: @csuggsillustration
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard
Visit the Spectacle Shoppe and ask for the Pride Special!Until August 1st, the Spectacle Shoppe is offering you $250 off as a Pride special. For locations, visit: https://spectacleshoppe.com
Join Me In Supporting Lambda Literary
As a Lambda Literary Fellow, I hope you can donate to Lambda's Writers Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices. They're raising $56k to ensure every fellow attend!
You can donate to the scholarship fundraising campaign by visiting lambdaliterary.org/writers-retreat & clicking on SUPPORT EMERGING WRITERS or by texting LITVOICES to 44-321.
Support the show
Welcome to our Summer of Book Love series!
Every Tuesday this summer we will feature new episodes of 7 Minutes in Book Heaven which has your next summer read!
Today we meet Kelly Balch and their novel Aphrodite's Sister.
This novel series follows Petra Ambrosi, who is a Goddess with empathic abilities, though she is emotionless herself. Throughout the novel, and its subsequent sequel, she is sent down to earth, falls in love with a mortal woman, wrestles to understand her diminishing gifts, breaks Zeus' laws, and navigates an uprising against the gods.
Kelly Balch is an author of an adult queer-fantasy/fiction. Drawing on their passion for storytelling, Kelly brings a creative and empathetic approach to their photography, always striving to understand and convey the unique truths of their clients and couples. Their warm and compassionate demeanor has made them a trusted and beloved photographer in the industry.
Also, Kelly is an accomplished wedding and editorial photographer based in Los Angeles, California! With over 14 years of experience in the industry, Kelly has established themselves as a pioneering force in the queer wedding industry, having started their career before queer love was legalized in the United States. Visit their website below to see videos, photo galleries, and Human Capitol workshop.
Buy Aphrodite's SisterVisit our Bookshop or buy directly right now: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781674510521
Connect with Kelly BalchWebsite: kellybalch.com
Instagram: @kellybalch
Facebook: facebook.com/kellybalchphoto
Vimeo: vimeo.com/kellybalch
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Visit the Spectacle Shoppe and ask for the Pride Special!Until August 1st, the Spectacle Shoppe is offering you $250 off as a Pride special. For locations, visit: https://spectacleshoppe.com
Join Me In Supporting Lambda Literary
As a Lambda Literary Fellow, I hope you can donate to Lambda's Writers Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices. They're raising $56k to ensure every fellow attend!
You can donate to the scholarship fundraising campaign by visiting lambdaliterary.org/writers-retreat & clicking on SUPPORT EMERGING WRITERS or by texting LITVOICES to 44-321.
Support the show
Welcome to our Summer of Book Love series with our newest episode of 7 Minutes in Book Heaven! Every Tuesday we feature your next summer read.
Meet C.H. Williams and his new book One of a Thousand Names.
This fantasy novel follows Rose, who is on a mission to avenge her father's death. As she sacrifices her friends, she must make a decision about whether avenging her father is worth the increasingly steep price. With gods and shadows and betrayal after betrayal, Rose will have to decide whether coming face-to-face with the person who killed her father is really worth the high price of justice.
C.H. Williams is a fantasy author and illustrator living in the Mid-Atlantic with his husband. His writing couples the darker side of fairy tales with the radiance and joy of queer love. In addition to his fantasy fiction, C.H. published Gender and Personality Stereotyping in Collegiate Orchestras (Univ. of No. Colorado 2018) and Transition which is featured in Lockdown Literature: Anthology of Pandemic Literature.
Buy One of a Thousand Names
Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781733356954
C.H. William's website: https://www.chwilliamsliterary.com/store/one-of-a-thousand-names-handbound-7shxg
Connect with C.H. Williams
Website: chwilliamsliterary.com
Instagram: @chwilliamsliterary
Newletter: chwilliamsliterary.com/stay-in-the-loop
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Visit the Spectacle Shoppe and ask for the Pride Special!Until August 1st, the Spectacle Shoppe is offering you $250 off as a Pride special. For locations, visit: https://spectacleshoppe.com
Join Me In Supporting Lambda Literary
As a Lambda Literary Fellow, I hope you can donate to Lambda's Writers Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices. They're raising $56k to ensure every fellow attend!
You can donate to the scholarship fundraising campaign by visiting lambdaliterary.org/writers-retreat & clicking on SUPPORT EMERGING WRITERS or by texting LITVOICES to 44-321.
Support the show
Today, Executive Producer Jim Pounds and I sit down to reflect on favorite moments from Season 3, what we have planned for this summer, and our upcoming Season Infinity!
Connect With Ustwitter and instagram: @jpderboghossian
website: jpderboghossian.com
facebook: @JimPounds
Buy The Books We Feature On The PodcastsVisit our Bookshop at thisqueerbook.com/bookshop
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Visit the Spectacle Shoppe and ask for the Pride Special!Until August 1st, the Spectacle Shoppe is offering you $250 off as a Pride special. For locations, visit: https://spectacleshoppe.com
Join Me In Supporting Lambda Literary
As a Lambda Literary Fellow, I hope you can donate to Lambda's Writers Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices. They're raising $56k to ensure every fellow attend!
You can donate to the scholarship fundraising campaign by visiting lambdaliterary.org/writers-retreat & clicking on SUPPORT EMERGING WRITERS or by texting LITVOICES to 44-321.
Support the show
Today we meet Clark Carlton and Robert Rodi!
Our guest is novelist, playwright, and producer Clark Carlton. You may know him from his sci-fi/fantasy novel Prophets of the Ghost Ants which launched his Antasy series.
Our featured author is Robert Rodi who has published seven novels, and he also writes comic books, nonfiction, as well as a spoken-word performer and jazz singer.
We’re talking about the book that saved Clark's life: Fag Hag by Robert Rodi.
Fag Hag is a cult classic. Set in Chicago, the novel is about Natalie who is obsessed with her gay best friend Peter. When Natalie’s attempts to sabotage Peter’s new relationship with the love of his life, Natalie is forced to resort to … let’s say extreme measures.
Connect with Clark and Robert
twitter: @clarktcarlton
website: clarkthomascarlton.com
website: robertrodi.com
Facebook: @RobertRodi
Visit our website for more links to Robert's and Clark's projects: thisqueerbook.com/fag-hag.
Buy Fag HagVisit our Bookshop or buy directly: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781469953168
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Quatrefoil LibraryQuatrefoil has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Visit the Spectacle Shoppe and ask for the Pride Special!Until August 1st, the Spectacle Shoppe is offering you $250 off as a Pride special. For locations, visit: https://spectacleshoppe.com
Join Me In Supporting Lambda Literary
As a Lambda Literary Fellow, I hope you can donate to Lambda's Writers Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices. They're raising $56k to ensure every fellow attend!
You can donate to the scholarship fundraising campaign by visiting lambdaliterary.org/writers-retreat & clicking on SUPPORT EMERGING WRITERS or by texting LITVOICES to 44-321.
Support the show
Our guest todays are Nick Bussett and A. Rey Pamatmat!
Nick is the co-host of Gay Talk 2.0 and the Director of Development at the Shubert Theatre. Rey is an award winning playwright and writer. He is a GLAAD and Lambda nominee and the co-Director of the Ma-Yi Writers Lab.
We’re talking about the play that saved Nick's life: Edith Can Shoot Things and Hit Them by A. Rey Pamatmat.
Edith Can Shoot Things and Hit Them is about three kids - Kenny, his sister Edith, and their friend Benji – who are all but abandoned on a farm in remotest Middle America. With little adult supervision, they feed and care for each other, making up the rules as they go.
We’re going to talk about seeing yourself represented on stage for the first time, having too grow up to fast, and rebuilding relationships with our family.
Connect with Nick and Rey
Instagram: @Nbussett
Instagram: @gaytalk2.0
website: gaytalk20.com
Twitter: @AReyP
Instagram: @a_rey_p
Buy Edith Can Shoot Things and Hit ThemVisit our Bookshop or buy directly: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780573700163
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
SponsorsUntil August 1st, the Spectacle Shoppe is offering you $250 off as a Pride special. For locations, visit: https://spectacleshoppe.com
M Health Fairview is the presenting sponsor of Living Well Park at Twin Cities Pride Festival. Visit Living Well Park to learn more about M Health Fairview’s commitment to a healthy and equitable future for all––and talk with specialists from our Comprehensive Gender Care Program.
Join Me In Supporting Lambda Literary
As a Lambda Literary Fellow, I hope you can donate to Lambda's Writers Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices. They're raising $56k to ensure every fellow attend!
You can donate to the scholarship fundraising campaign by visiting lambdaliterary.org/writers-retreat & clicking on SUPPORT EMERGING WRITERS or by texting LITVOICES to 44-321.
Support the show
Our guest today is the CEO and founder of editaudio, Steph Colbourn.
editaudio is a podcast production company with a mission to hire more women, nb and trans people in media. Founded in 2014, Steph put together an amazing queer team of producers and staff to make the audio industry more representative of what the word actually looks like. And it looks queer!
Steph (they/she) shares with us the book that saved her life: The Waves by Virginia Woolf. And what are we exploring in this episode? What’s that feeling when you read an unrequited love story from decades before your time? How does that feel to know we were there, queer people falling in love? And how does it feel feel to read on the page your queer life being normalized, even your anxiety?
The Waves is one of Woolf's most experimental novels. Some say, her masterpiece. It begins with six children—three boys and three girls—playing in a garden by the sea, and follows their lives as they grow up, experience friendship and love, and grapple with the death of their beloved friend.
Connect with StephTwitter: @steph_colbourn
Instagram: @stephcolbourn
LinkedIn: https://ca.linkedin.com/in/steph-colbourn-52b11212a
email: hello@editaud.io
website: https://editaud.io
Buy The WavesVisit our Bookshop or buy immediately: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780156949606
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
SponsorsUntil August 1st, the Spectacle Shoppe is offering you $250 off as a Pride special. For locations, visit: https://spectacleshoppe.com
M Health Fairview is the presenting sponsor of Living Well Park at Twin Cities Pride Festival. Visit Living Well Park to learn more about M Health Fairview’s commitment to a healthy and equitable future for all––and talk with specialists from our Comprehensive Gender Care Program.
Join Me In Supporting Lambda Literary
As a Lambda Literary Fellow, I hope you can donate to Lambda's Writers Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices. They're raising $56k to ensure every fellow attend!
You can donate to the scholarship fundraising campaign by visiting lambdaliterary.org/writers-retreat & clicking on SUPPORT EMERGING WRITERS or by texting LITVOICES to 44-321.
Support the show
Meet A.J. Irving and her new book The Wishing Flower!
An LGBTQ-inclusive story about understanding your peers, your feelings, and yourself, The Wishing Flower is a love letter to longing, belonging, and longing to belong. With stunning illustrations by Kip Alizadeh, The Wishing Flower will inspire readers to honor their wishes and show the world their truest selves.
A.J. Irving grew up in Boise, Idaho, writing stories and daydreaming about becoming an author. Now, she writes picture books and poetry beneath an old elm tree in Salt Lake City. A.J. reads kidlit every day and dances every chance she gets. She is also the author of Dance Like a Leaf (Barefoot Books, 2020).
Buy The Wishing FlowerHead to our Bookshop store or buy directly: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780593430446
Connect with A.J. IrvingWebsite: ajirving.com
Twitter: @aj_irving
Instagram: @aj_irving
Facebook: facebook.com/ajirvingauthor
Show linksAs promised in the episode, links to:
- A Night Without Armor by Jewel (https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/a-night-without-armor--poems_jewel/581143/#edition=2334061&idiq=6502050)
- A Million Quiet Revolutions by Robin Gow (https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780374388416).
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
As a former Lambda Literary Fellow, I hope you can donate to Lambda Literary's Writers Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices. This year, they're raising $56k by August in order to let every fellow attend regardless of ability to pay.
You can donate to the scholarship fundraising campaign by visiting lambdaliterary.org/writers-retreat & clicking on SUPPORT EMERGING WRITERS or by texting LITVOICES to 44-321.
Support the show
Our guest today is Nathan Eckstein (he/they) who is a writer, playwright, and graduate student at the University of Minnesota pursuing a Masters degrees in Architecture. They are also a candidate for another masters degree in Science Research Practices.
Nathan shares with us how the memoir I Am Not Myself These Days by Josh Kilmer-Purcell saved his life. What’s extra special about this episode is that it was recorded live in front of an audience at Lush Lounge and Theater in Northeast Minneapolis. This was a Drag Edition of our podcast with performances by the Haus of Taylor: Connie Taylor, Maiden Taiwan, and a special performance by Eduardo (Nathan!).
I Am Not Myself These Days follows Josh's life, as well as his drag persona Aqua's life. By day, he works at a So-Ho advertising agency. By night, he performs drag throughout New York. His is a life of vodka and a new relationship with Jack, a BDSM sex worker. The memoir is a tragic-comedy-romance, charting Josh's, Aqua's, and Jack's life as they navigate love, substance abuse, and New York's 90s subculture.
Donate to the ACLU's Drag Defense FundDuring our live event, we fundraised for the ACLU's Drag Defense Fund. Join us by donating here: https://action.aclu.org/give/support-drag-defense-fund
Buy I Am Not Myself These DaysVisit our Bookshop or buy it here: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780060817329
Connect with Nathan and the Haus of TaylorOn Instagram:
Nathan Eckstein: @notstraightnate
Connie Taylor: @connie_taylormn
Maiden Taiwan: @maiden.taiwan
Also, shout out to photographer Nick Lents who shot the live event! Follow him on Instagram: @nicklents
Watch Nathan's Play: Technically Lovehttps://youtu.be/ZTBW3irw-_I
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olilla, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Recently, we featured an interview with Jay Quinn (episode 9 of this season). Shortly after the episode aired, Jay reached out to let us know that his partner Jeff had passed away.
As Jay and Jeff rescued Weimaraners, we're asking that you consider donating to your local rescue in any amount or through volunteering. We'll miss you Jeff.
Support the show
Meet four-time HQ MIX Trophy winner for best Webcomic, Mário César and his new book Blessed Cure.
Like Alison Bechdel's Fun Home, César's Blessed Cure uses comics to explore queer life.
In this book, our hero, Acacio do Nascimento, knew he was a different boy from others. He would rather be playing with dolls than playing soccer. The hula hoop interested him more than cowboy pistols. Scared by the possibility of their son being a homosexual, Acacio's parents begin conversion therapy, starting when he was five years old, to make him a "normal boy" like the others.
Mario Cesar is an awarded comic book's author from Brazil. He has published comics since 2006 and he was one of the first openly gay authors to address issues of sexual and gender diversity in Brazilian comics with the book Ciranda da Solidão (2013). He is also one of the creators and producers of POC CON, the first brazilian LGBTQ+ Comic Con.
Buy Blessed CureHead to our Bookshop store or buy directly: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781908030542
Connect with Mário CésarTwitter: @mas_que_mario
Instagram: @mas_que_mario
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Support the show
Our guest today is writer, actor, and teacher Jonathan Fried. Jonathan shares with us how the play The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams saved his life. What’s extra special about this for Jonathan is that not only did this play have life-saving features for him as a teenager, he went on to star in it in a production with Olympia Dukakis!
The Glass Menagerie follows the lives of the dysfunctional Wingfield family, son Tom, mother Amanda, daughter Laura. Tom longs to escape from his stifling home, wanting to be a poet and escape the realities of working in a shoe warehouse. While he "goes to the movies" every night, his mother struggles to find a husband for Laura who lives with a disability.
Buy The Glass MenagerieVisit our Bookshop or buy it directly right now: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780811214049
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Join us May 18th!
Support the show
Meet A.J. Bermudez and her darkly playful (and Lambda Literary Award nominated!) story collection: Stories No One Hopes Are About Them.
These short stories explore characters who are ni de aquí, ni de allá—neither from here nor there—straddling competing worlds, disrupting paradigms, and transitioning from objects of other people’s stories to active subjects and protagonists of their own.
Big things happen in this collection. But it’s also a collection of small intimacies: misremembered names, chipped teeth, and private rituals; unexpected alliances and barely touched knees beneath uniform skirts; minutiae of the natural world; incidents that quietly, achingly, and delightfully transgress the familiar.
Buy Stories No One Hopes Are About ThemHead to our store at thisqueerbook.com/bookshop or click: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781609388638
Connect with A.J. BermudezTwitter: @AmandaJBermudez
Instagram: @a.j.bermudez
Website: https://amandajbermudez.com
Check out this Lambda Literary award (Lammy) finalist:We shout out Gods of Want by K-Ming Chang in the show. Here's where you can buy it: https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780593241585
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
We're back live in May 2023!
Support the show
Our guests today are attorney David Rephan and Lambda Literary Award finalist Jay Quinn!
David shares with us how Jay's novel Metes and Bounds saved his life and how David continues to return to the novel as a queer true north. This was Jay's first novel and he went on to write four more as well as a memoir.
Metes and Bounds follows 18-year surfer, Matt, as he leaves home after his high school graduation to work for his uncle, a land surveyor. It’s about Matt's story of claiming his place as a surfer and as a gay man in the small and large world of construction sites, fishing piers, and surf breaks.
Buy Metes and Bounds
AbeBooks has a variety of copies for you to peruse. Check them out here:
https://www.abebooks.com/book-search/title/metes-and-bounds/author/jay-quinn/
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Join us at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis for a live recording featuring drag performances, signature cocktails, inspirational conversation with Nathan Eckstein about performing drag, sobriety, and persevering as queer people. May 18 at 6pm at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis. It's free but RSVP here: https://bit.ly/TQB-live
Support the show
Meet Joseph Plaster and his new book Kids on the Street: Queer Kinship and Religion in San Francisco's Tenderloin. It's 7 Minutes in Book Heaven! Where we meet queer authors and talk with them about the new books they have coming out for us to love and cuddle up with.
What's Kids on the Street about? Joseph explores the informal support networks that enabled abandoned and runaway queer youth to survive in tenderloin districts across the United States. He shows how they collectively and creatively managed the social trauma they experienced, in part by building relationships with johns, bartenders, hotel managers, bouncers, and other vice district denizens. By highlighting a politics where the marginal position of street kids is the basis for a moral economy of reciprocity, Plaster excavates a history of queer life that has been overshadowed by major narratives of gay progress and pride.
Buy Kids on the StreetVisit Duke University Press: https://www.dukeupress.edu/kids-on-the-street
Connect with Joseph PlasterTwitter: @Jplaster3
Facebook: Joey Plaster
Website: https://www.josephplaster.com
Check out the film Song of Love (Un Chant d'Amour) that we chatted about
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043084/
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Join us at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis for a live recording featuring drag performances, signature cocktails, inspirational conversation with Nathan Eckstein about performing drag, sobriety, and persevering as queer people. May 18 at 6pm at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis. It's free but RSVP here: https://bit.ly/TQB-live
Support the show
Our guest is writer, educator, and theater maker Allison Vincent and we talk about the queer book that saved her life: the novella Goodbye to Berlin by Christopher Isherwood.
Goodbye to Berlin is a Queer classic. Our hero moves to Berlin where he meets the incomparable Sally Bowles. They become roommates as he explores Berlin and his sexuality. The novella was adapted into the award-winning theatrical production and film Cabaret.
For Allison, it not only saved her in writing her college thesis, but it also provided visibility to her as a Queer woman to see herself represented in history. We dive into all the queer meanings of the novella's most famous line: "I am a camera with a shutter open, quite passive, recording, not thinking" and threading together all of our different identities.
Buy Goodbye to BerlinVisit thisqueerbook.com/bookshop to purchase Goodbye to Berlin and all the books we discuss on our podcasts.
Connect with AllisonTwitter: @allisonrvincent
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=13955074
Transatlantic Love Affair: https://www.transatlanticloveaffair.org
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
E-Lending LibraryQuatrefoil Library has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Join us at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis for a live recording featuring drag performances, signature cocktails, inspirational conversation with Nathan Eckstein about performing drag, sobriety, and persevering as queer people. May 18 at 6pm at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis. It's free but RSVP here: https://bit.ly/TQB-live
Support the show
Meet McKenzie Wark and her new book Raving. It's 7 Minutes in Book Heaven! Where we meet queer authors and talk with them about the new books they have coming out for us to love and cuddle up with.
What's Raving about?McKenzie takes us into the undisclosed locations of New York's thriving underground queer and trans rave scene. Techno, first and always a Black music, invites fresh sonic and temporal possibilities for this era of diminishing futures. Raving to techno is an art and a technique at which queer and trans bodies might be particularly adept but which is for anyone who lets the beat seduce them. Extending the rave's sensations, situations, fog, lasers, drugs, and pounding sound systems onto the page, Wark invokes a trans practice of raving as a timely aesthetic for dancing in the ruins of this collapsing capital.
Buy RavingVisit our Bookshop page at thisqueerbook.com/bookshop or at https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781478019381
Connect with McKenzieTwitter: @mckenziewark
Instagram: @mckenziewark3000
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Join us at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis for a live recording featuring drag performances, signature cocktails, inspirational conversation with Nathan Eckstein about performing drag, sobriety, and persevering as queer people. May 18 at 6pm at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis. It's free but RSVP here: https://bit.ly/TQB-live
Support the show
This episode is the recording of our live event at Lush Lounge and Theater. And we welcome back William Burleson! You remember him from Season One, when we discussed how his book Bi America was life-giving for our guest Neil Aasve. Now, William talks with me about the book that saved his life: The Bisexual Option by Fritz Klein, MD. He shares with us, "I have to say, coming out as Bi, at first to myself, and then later to other people, there is really an uphill climb to find community. It's better today. We have Google. But nonetheless, it's still difficult. So when I went into a bookstore and I found the book The Bisexual Option, that was revolutionary."
And....William went on to meet Fritz who wrote the forward to Bill's own book!
Buy the books we discuss on this episode!Visit thisqueerbook.com/bookshop to purchase The Bisexual Option or at https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9780985871703.
You can also purchase William's books too!
Home: Anthology at https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781733976329.
Bi America: Myths, Truths, and Struggles of an Invisible Community at https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781560234791
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
E-Lending LibraryQuatrefoil Library has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Join us at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis for a live recording featuring drag performances, signature cocktails, inspirational conversation with Nathan Eckstein about performing drag, sobriety, and persevering as queer people. May 18 at 6pm at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis. It's free but RSVP here: https://bit.ly/TQB-live
Support the show
Welcome to our LGBT podcast 7 Minutes in Book Heaven – presented to you by This Queer Book Saved My Life! In this podcast, we spend 7 minutes in our virtual studio interviewing LGBTQ authors about their new and upcoming books for us to love and cuddle up with. Today, we meet Gerardo Sámano Córdova and his new novel Monstrilio.
What it's about?Grieving mother Magos cuts out a piece of her deceased eleven-year-old son Santiago’s lung. Acting on fierce maternal instinct and the dubious logic of an old folktale, she nurtures the lung until it gains sentience, growing into the carnivorous little Monstrilio she keeps hidden within the walls of her family’s decaying Mexico City estate. Eventually, Monstrilio begins to resemble the Santiago he once was, but his innate impulses—though curbed by his biological and chosen family’s communal care—threaten to destroy this fragile second chance at life.
Buy MonstrilioVisit our Bookshop page at thisqueerbook.com/bookshop or at https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781638930365
Connect with GerardoWebsite: gerardosamanocordova.com
Twitter: @samanito
Instagram: @samanito
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Sponsors
Join us at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis for a live recording featuring drag performances, signature cocktails, inspirational conversation with Nathan Eckstein about performing drag, sobriety, and persevering as queer people. May 18 at 6pm at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis. It's free but RSVP here: https://bit.ly/TQB-live
Support the show
Welcome to our LGBT podcast! In this episode, we meet Gerard Cabrera (he/him) and I talk with him about The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann. Gerard tells me that, "The Magic Mountain is about educating yourself and trying to make decisions for how you want to live your own life. Do you want to follow a path of seeking freedom or do you want to follow a path of just maintaining a status quo so that you can survive? With AIDS raging, I think that was a very salient sort of internal debate for me."
Gerard is the author of the new novel Homo Novus and I talk with him all about it. What is the plot? It's Holy Week 1987. And Fr. Linus Fitzgerald, a Catholic priest, is confined to his hospital bed by an AIDS diagnosis, while being comforted by the seminarian he sexually abused as an adolescent.
Episode transcripts and more info are available at thisqueerbook.com/podcast/magic-mountain.
Buy the books we discuss on this episode!
Visit thisqueerbook.com/bookshop to purchase Gerard's novel Homo Novus and Thomas Mann's The Magic Mountain.
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our LGBT podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
E-Lending LibraryQuatrefoil Library has created a curated lending library made up of the LGBT books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Visit our friends!
Join us at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis for a live recording featuring drag performances, signature cocktails, inspirational conversation with Nathan Eckstein about performing drag, sobriety, and persevering as queer people. May 18 at 6pm at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis. It's free but RSVP here: https://bit.ly/TQB-live
Support the show
Welcome to our LGBT podcast 7 Minutes in Book Heaven – presented to you by This Queer Book Saved My Life! In this podcast, we spend 7 minutes in our virtual studio interviewing LGBTQ authors about their new and upcoming books for us to love and cuddle up with.
Today, we meet B.G. Wolfe and and her new novel April Renegade. B.G. aims to write diverse characters and storylines, with emphasis on those in the LGBTQ+ community and those who struggle with their mental health like she does.
April Renegade is a coming-of-age punk rock and roll romance. According to Ash Lancing's fans, he has it all. He is the lead singer for a popular punk rock band, he's got a literal model for a girlfriend, a beautiful loft in NYC, and through the past ten years, he's had his best friend, Drew Dawson by his side through it all. But Ash doesn't really have it all. Because the one thing he desires, he can only have in the shadows and behind closed doors, and the exhaustive secrecy is no one's fault but his own.
Buy April RenegadeVisit our Bookshop page at thisqueerbook.com/bookshop or at https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9798800797916
Connect with B.G.Website: bgwolfe.com
Facebook: facebook.com/bgwolfeauthor
Instagram: @author_bgwolfe
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Join us at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis for a live recording featuring drag performances, signature cocktails, inspirational conversation with Nathan Eckstein about performing drag, sobriety, and persevering as queer people. May 18 at 6pm at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis. It's free but RSVP here: https://bit.ly/TQB-live
Support the show
Welcome to our LGBT podcast! In this episode, we meet Jacob Aloi (he/him) and I talk with him about Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli. This YA novel follows 16-year old Simon Spier as he navigates coming out as well as meeting his first love. The book really tackles coming out stories and owning them. It was also adapted into the rom-com Love, Simon which was the first LGBT rom-com by a major film studio.
Plus, Becky (she/her) joins us to discuss writing Simon and the challenges she had writing the novel as she navigated her own coming out journey.
Ticket Giveaway!Email us at thisqueerbook@gmail.com to be entered into our contest to give 2 free tickets to the Guthrie Theater's production of Born With Teeth. The tickets are for March 10th. Email us by March 8th and we'll announce the winners on March 9th! Buy tickets at guthrietheater.org
Buy The Books We Discussed On This Episode!
Visit thisqueerbook.com/bookshop to purchase Becky's novels Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda and Imogen, Obviously.
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
E-Lending LibraryQuatrefoil Library has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can’t buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Join us at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis for a live recording featuring drag performances, signature cocktails, inspirational conversation with Nathan Eckstein about performing drag, sobriety, and persevering as queer people. May 18 at 6pm at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis. It's free but RSVP here: https://bit.ly/TQB-live
Support the show
Welcome to our LGBT podcast 7 Minutes in Book Heaven – presented to you by This Queer Book Saved My Life! In this short podcast, we spend 7 minutes in our virtual studio interviewing LGBTQ authors about their new and upcoming books for us to love and cuddle up with.
Today, we meet Michele Kirichanskaya and their new book Ace Notes: Tips and Tricks on Existing in an Allo World. Michele is a freelance journalist, primarily writing book reviews, interviews, pop-culture think pieces, and more.
Michele's book Ace Notes covers everything from coming out, explaining asexuality and understanding different types of attraction, to marriage, relationships, sex, consent, gatekeeping, religion, ace culture and more. This is the ultimate arsenal for whatever the allo world throws at you.
Pre-order Ace Notes!To pre-order visit our Bookshop page! or at https://bookshop.org/a/82376/9781839975226
You can also find the books we chat about on this episode: The Invisible Orientation (Julie Decker) and Ace: What Asexuality Reveals about Desire, Society, and the Meaning of Sex (Angela Chen).
Connect with Michele!Website: michelekirichanskaya.com
Twitter: @michelekiricha1
Instagram: @michelekirichanskaya
Become an Associate Producer!Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Join us at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis for a live recording featuring drag performances, signature cocktails, inspirational conversation with Nathan Eckstein about performing drag, sobriety, and persevering as queer people. May 18 at 6pm at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis. It's free but RSVP here: https://bit.ly/TQB-live
Support the show
Welcome to our LGBT podcast 7 Minutes in Book Heaven – presented to you by This Queer Book Saved My Life! In this short podcast, we spend 7 minutes in our virtual studio interviewing LGBTQ authors about their new and upcoming books for us to love and cuddle up with.
Today, we meet Joshua Gonzales and his new book Keep Sweet: My Homemade Recipe for a Fulfilling Gay Life. He is an LGBTQ+ Latino actor and writer living in NYC. He is also the host of the podcast Keep Sweet: The Positive World podcast.
Joshua's book Keep Sweet tells the story of his life as a Mexican-American kid, raised in the small town of Huntsville, Texas, and believing in his innate fabulousness. This is no Misery Memoir. Through tough lessons learned, Joshua shows that, with your own foresight and self-determination, you can skirt the path of potential misery, while keeping your humor and optimism intact. And may we all help the next generation of queer youth grow into the out, proud, empathetic, kind, and powerful adults they were born to be.
Pre-order Keep Sweet!To pre-order visit: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or iBooks.
- https://www.amazon.com/Keep-Sweet-Homemade-Recipe-Fulfilling-ebook/dp/B0BW6CQ4F6
- https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/keep-sweet-joshua-gonzales/1142805929
- https://books.apple.com/book/keep-sweet/id6445048924
Connect with Joshua!
Twitter and Instagram and Tiktok: @joshwadam
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Join us at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis for a live recording featuring drag performances, signature cocktails, inspirational conversation with Nathan Eckstein about performing drag, sobriety, and persevering as queer people. May 18 at 6pm at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis. It's free but RSVP here: https://bit.ly/TQB-live
Support the show
Welcome to our LGBT podcast!In this episode, we meet Barrak Alzaid (he/him) and talk with him about Ties That Bind: Familial Homophobia and Its Consequences by Sarah Schulman. This book invites us to understand familial homophobia as a cultural crisis, rather than a personal or an individual problem. Barrak shares with us, "What I think saved me is not just feeling seen in the book, but also feeling like I had a roadmap and a set of tools for reengaging with a family where I experienced scapegoating, shunning and cruelty."
Plus, Sarah joins us to discuss writing Ties that Bind, the challenges of getting Lesbian fiction past publishing gatekeepers, and the interventions we need to make within families to stop homophobia.
Literary Lights
Join me on 2/7, as I'm in conversation with Taleen Voskuni about her novel Sorry, Bro
More info at armenianliterary.org and register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMvd-ivqzwrE93AmJg62886-Vs0b9os7W7N
Buy The Books We Discussed On This Episode!
Visit thisqueerbook.com/bookshop to purchase: Ties That Bind: Familial Homophobia and Its Consequences , Faltas : Letters to Everyone in my Town Who Is Not My Rapist (Cecilia Gentili), Army of Lovers (KM Soehnlein), Confessions of the Fox (Jordy Rosenberg), The World We Make (N.K. Jemisin), The White Album (Joan Didion).
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Join us at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis for a live recording featuring drag performances, signature cocktails, inspirational conversation with Nathan Eckstein about performing drag, sobriety, and persevering as queer people. May 18 at 6pm at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis. It's free but RSVP here: https://bit.ly/TQB-live
Support the show
Welcome to our LGBT podcast 7 Minutes in Book Heaven – presented to you by This Queer Book Saved My Life! In this short podcast, we spend 7 minutes in our virtual studio interviewing LGBTQ authors about their new and upcoming books for us to love and cuddle up with.
Today, we meet Loren A. Olson, MD and his new book No More Neckties: A Memoir in Essays. Loren is the award-winning author of Finally Out: Letting Go of Living Straight and in this new memoir he flings open the doors on the hard stuff in this candid and inspiring new memoir. A practicing psychiatrist and a proud husband and grandfather, Dr. Olson writes about intensely personal events such as tragedy and loss; love and heartbreak; infidelity and betrayal; fear of aging; and never feeling good enough.
Order Today!
Buy No More Neckties at thisqueerbook.com/bookshop.
Literary Lights
Join me on 2/7, as I'm in conversation with Taleen Voskuni about her novel Sorry, Bro
More info at armenianliterary.org and register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMvd-ivqzwrE93AmJg62886-Vs0b9os7W7N
Connect with Dr. Loren!
Facebook: facebook.com/LorenAOlsonMD
Twitter: @LorenAOlsonMD
Website: www.lorenaolson.com
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Credits
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Subscribers: Awen Briem, Stephen D., Thomas Michna, and Gary Nygaard.
Support the show
Welcome to our LGBT podcast! In this episode we’re talking with the Reverend Shannon TL Kearns (he/him) about Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson. Rev. Kearns was raised fundamentalist Evangelical, however he went on to become the first openly Transgender man ordained to the Old Catholic Priesthood. Our wide-ranging conversation includes how Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit helped him reconcile his gender identity, sexuality, and faith tradition. We also talk queerest stories in the Bible and I ask Shannon if Christianity needs Queerness to survive into the future.
Buy the books featured on our podcast at thisqueerbook.com/bookshop
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Quatrefoil Library has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Connect with Reverend Kearns!
All social media platforms: @shannontlkearns
Website: shannontlkearns.com and queertheology.com
CREDITS:
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, Bill Shay, and Sean Smith
Patreon Supporters: Awen Briem, Stephen D., and Thomas Michna.
Support the show
Welcome to our LGBT podcast 7 Minutes in Book Heaven – presented to you by This Queer Book Saved My Life!
In this podcast, we spend 7 minutes in our virtual studio interviewing LGBTQ authors about their new and upcoming books for us to love and cuddle up with.
Today, we meet Tess Sharpe and her upcoming book 6 Times We Almost Kissed (And One Time We Did). What’s this new YA novel about? After years of bickering, Penny and Tate have called a truce: they’ll play nice. They have to. Their mothers (life-long best friends) need them to be perfect, drama-free daughters when Penny’s mother becomes a living liver donor to Tate’s mom. Forced to live together as the Moms recover, the girls’ truce is essential in keeping everything—their jobs, the house, the finances, the Moms’ healing—running smoothly. They’ve got to let this thing between them go. There’s one little hitch: Penny and Tate keep almost kissing.
Available January 24, you can order it now at thisqueerbook.com/bookshop.
Connect with Tess!Twitter: @sharpegirl
Instagram: @forest_of_arden
Website: https://www.tess-sharpe.com
Become an Associate Producer!
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
CreditsHost/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Paul Kaefer, Nicole Olila, Joe Perazzo, and Bill Shay
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Welcome to our LGBT podcast! In this episode we’re talking with Nicole Olila (she/her) about the Lambda Literary Award winning novel Out of Time by Paula Martinac. Today’s conversation is one of those life imitates art imitates life moments as Nicole’s work as an archivist and owner of a vintage feminist and queer bookshop mirrors Out of Time’s main character Susan who finds a scrapbook in a vintage store that leads her on a ghostly journey into the past lives of the four Lesbians featured in the scrapbook.
Plus, Paula (she/her) joins us for the conversation and we talk about her training as a historian, how queer storytelling has changed, and the persistent question she asks in her work: how do queer people find each other?
Buy the books featured on our podcast at thisqueerbook.com/bookshop
Become an Associate Producer of our podcast through a $20/month sponsorship on Patreon! A professionally recognized credit, you can gain access to Associate Producer meetings to help guide our podcast into the future! Get started today: patreon.com/thisqueerbook
Quatrefoil Library has created a curated lending library made up of the books featured on our podcast! If you can't buy these books, then borrow them! Link: https://libbyapp.com/library/quatrefoil/curated-1404336/page-1
Connect with Paula!
Facebook: facebook.com/pmartinac
Website: paulamartinac.com
Visit Nicole’s website lspotshop.com to learn more about her, and connect to her vintage bookshop on Etsy—The L Spot Bookshop—where she holds space for Sapphic, feminist and offbeat reads.
Nicole is always interested in connections and collaborations. If you want to chat about open access issues, vintage LGBTQIA materials, recommend a chocolate stout, or anything else, do not hesitate to reach out.
CREDITS:
Host/Founder: J.P. Der Boghossian
Executive Producer: Jim Pounds
Associate Producers: Archie Arnold, Natalie Cruz, Bill Shay, and Paul Kaefer
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Welcome to our LGBT podcast 7 Minutes in Book Heaven – presented to you by This Queer Book Saved My Life!
In this short podcast, we spend 7 minutes in our virtual studio interviewing LGBTQ authors about their new and upcoming books for us to love and cuddle up with.
Today, we meet Eli Cohen and his upcoming book A Body Hair Experiment. What’s it about? Eli removes all the hair from one side of his body, the left side. From his chest down to his toes. This photo essay captures Eli's body, body part by body part, all while he writes about the experience. The luscious photos were taken by O Zhang.
The book comes out in January 2023. The book is not available for pre-order just yet. Follow Eli on social for all the details when they are available.
Twitter: @spacioushuman
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spacioushuman/
Website: https://spacioushuman.com
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Welcome to our LGBT podcast! In this episode we’re talking with Henry Holden (he/they) about Peter Darling by S.A Chant. This novel is a sequel and really a re-telling of Peter Pan, in which Peter is trans, an adult now, and starts a relationship with Captain James Hook! For Henry, he told us, that reading Peter Darling was, "the first moment that I saw a potential future for someone like me. And I think it was the first time I was allowed to let myself say, 'Yes, you're trans.'"
Plus, S.A. joins us for the conversation and we get into where the idea for this novel came from, as well as queering fairy tales and how Peter Pan can represent a possibility space for queerness and transness.
Buy Peter Darling at our Bookshop page: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Connect with Henry on Instagram: @the_names_henry
Connect with S.A. at austinchant.com and on Twitter: @essaychant.
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Welcome to our LGBT podcast 7 Minutes in Book Heaven – presented to you by This Queer Book Saved My Life!
In this short podcast, we spend 7 minutes in our virtual studio interviewing LGBTQ authors about their new and upcoming books for us to love and cuddle up with.
Today, we meet Lindsey A. Freeman and her upcoming book is Running. What’s it about? Lindsey presents the feminist and queer handbook of running that she always wanted but could never find. For Freeman, running is full of joy, desire, and indulgence in the pleasure and weirdness of having a body. It allows for a space of freedom—to move and be moved.
Buy Running at our Bookshop page: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Follow Lindsey on social!
Twitter: @lindseyafreeman
Instagram: atomic_lindsey_freeman
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Welcome to our LGBT podcast! In this episode we’re talking with community organizer and activist LaSaia Wade (she/they) about Secret Society by Miasha. This novel starts as a story about two flashy women who hustle men for money, but then dives into the twists and turns of living and loving in the world as trans women of color. LaSaia tells us that Secret Society "was part of me building the language to translate transness to my parents."
Plus! Miasha (she/her) joins us to talk discuss her inspiration for the novel, what she hoped for it, and how she turned it into a film franchise.
Buy Secret Society at our Bookshop page: bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Stream Secret Society on Tubi or purchase it at Amazon Prime.
Connect with LaSaia at lasaiawade.com
Stay connected with Miasha on Instagram: @miashaofficial
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On today’s episode, we have a special crossover episode for you with one of my favorite podcasts The Sewers of Paris. The Sewers of Paris is a podcast about how queer people's lives are shaped by our favorite books, movies, music, and shows. So, how could we not have a crossover?
The host is writer, podcaster, and video-maker Matt Baume. He’s been nominated for a GLAAD award for journalism and he created the YouTube pop culture series Culture Cruise and the LGBTQ news shows Weekly Debrief and Marriage News Watch. He is an author with a new book on the way called Hi Honey! I’m Homo!
Matt interviews me about the entertainment that changed my life (Phantom of the Opera!) and I interview Matt about the Queer book that saved his life: Harriet the Spy.
Subscribe to the Sewers of Paris on Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-sewers-of-paris/id983828051
Pre-order Hi Honey! I'm Homo at Matt's website: mattbaume.com/hi-honey-im-homo
Follow Matt on Instagram and Twitter: @mattbaume
Buy the books featured on our podcast at bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook.
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Welcome to our LGBT podcast and in this episode we’re talking with actor Troy Stanley (he/him) about Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin. This novel kicked off a landmark series as well as numerous television adaptations. For Troy, he told us, "I think what Tales of the City said to me was be who you are don't apologize for who you are be who you want to be."
See Troy live in these upcoming productions!
MNM Theatre Company’s production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. The show opens December 2, 2022 and runs through the 18th. https://mnmtheatre.org
Anything Goes at the Wick Theatre. It runs from January 12, 2023 through February 12th. https://thewicktheatre.thundertix.com/events/197579
Maltz Jupiter Theatre’s production of Oliver. It runs from March 14 through April 2nd. https://www.jupitertheatre.org/season-productions
Buy Tales of the City and other books from our LGBT podcast at our Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/thisqueerbook
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Welcome to the LGBT podcast 7 Minutes in Book Heaven - presented to you by This Queer Book Saved My Life!
In this short podcast, we spend 7 minutes in our virtual studio interviewing LGBTQ authors about their new and upcoming books for us to love and cuddle up with.
Today, we meet Dr. Nyri Bakkalian. Her new book is Confluence: A Person Shaped Story. What’s it about? It is a novel set in Japan's Northern Tohoku region in a cyberpunk world. It's about a trans-lesbian couple. An Armenian-American combat specialized cyborg and her Japanese cyberneticist spouse Isawa Kasu. Their intense loyalty to each other carries them through a fight against long odds and systemic injustice.
Purchase today at Balance of Seven (https://balance-of-seven.square.site/product/confluence/161?cs=true&cst=custom).
For international sales visit Sapphic Sweets and Reads (https://shop.sweetreadsict.com/products/confluence-a-person-shaped-story).
Follow Nyri!
@riversidewings on itch.io, Twitter, Twitch, Patreon, Mastodon, Countersocial, and Tumblr.
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Welcome to our LGBT podcast and in our new episode we're talking with dr. finn schneider (he/him) about Bless Me, Ultima. It is a coming-of-age novel by Rudolfo Anaya. For finn it saved his life three (!) different times and we’ll talk all about them, especially as the novel created a space to explore his spirituality in a new and meaningful way. As finn told us, "It created some room metaphorically for me to breathe into this my own questions around spirituality."
Buy Bless Me, Ultima and other books from our LGBT podcast at our Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/thisqueerbook
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It's election day! Go vote!
And then listen to our podcast crossover event with the podcast DEI Is. Host Enrico Manalo and I interview Brian McComak the founder of Hummingbird Humanity. Much of Brian's work focuses on LGBTQ inclusivity at organizations throughout the world, but his work is very expansive as a consultant, speaker, author and facilitator. He has a new book coming out in 2023: Humanity in the Workplace, A Framework for Developing a Human Centered Culture.
We talk about books and human-centered workplaces!
Connect with Brian at BrianMcComak.com or HummingbirdHumanity.com.
Listen to the DEI Is podcast wherever you listen to your podcasts.
Follow them at @diveritypbc on Instagram and DiVerity PBC on YouTube.
You can also connect with them here: linktr.ee/diverity
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Welcome to our LGBT podcast This Queer Book Saved My Life! In this episode, we talk with lighting designer, radio host, and teacher Rachael Cady (she/her) about the book that saved her life: Whipping Girl by Julia Serano. It's a collection of personal essays that debunk many of the myths and misconceptions that people have about trans women, femininity, and gender.
Rachael shares with us that, "for the first time I saw someone who was like me. It was incredible. It was an epiphany for me. Finally, I was able to give myself permission to be myself."
And Julia (she/her) -- the slam poetry champion, spoken word artist, and musician, with a PhD in Biochemistry -- joins us for the conversation. She explains why she wrote Whipping Girl, "The book felt necessary for me to write because I wrote it as I was making sense of the first time in my life I was actually moving through the world as a woman, but then I was also facing the day-to-day sexism and sexualization that many women face."
Don't forget to join us on November 10 at Lush Lounge and Theater in NE Minneapolis for our 2nd ever live event! We're recording the new episode "From Unseen to Seen" with author and publisher William Burleson. It's free, but we recommend you RSVP: https://bit.ly/liveatlush
Buy Whipping Girl and other books from our LGBT podcast at our Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/thisqueerbook
Follow Julia on Twitter: @juliaserano
www.juliaserano.com
Julia's music Soft Vowel Sounds is here: https://softvowelsounds.com
Follow Rachael on Facebook: RachaelKCMO
Rachael (as KC Vixen) co-hosts Siren Song on KKFI: https://kkfi.org/program/siren-song/
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Welcome to our new LGBT podcast short 7 Minutes in Book Heaven - a partner podcast to This Queer Book Saved My Life!
We spend 7 minutes in our virtual studio interviewing LGBTQ authors about their new and upcoming books for us to love and cuddle up with.
On our premiere episode, we meet Taleen Voskuni. Her new book is Sorry, Bro. What's it about? An Armenian-American woman rediscovers her roots and embraces who she really is in this vibrant and heartfelt queer rom-com.
Episode Transcript: https://thisqueerbook.com/podcast/sorry-bro
Pre-order the book here: https://bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Follow Taleen!
Twitter: @taleenvoskuni
Instagram: @taleenauthor
www.taleenvoskuni.com
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Welcome to our LGBT podcast This Queer Book Saved My Life! This episode is the recording of our first-ever live event at Lush Lounge and Theater. We talk with James Darville (he/him) about the LGBT book The Evening Crowd at Kirmser's by Ricardo J. Brown. This memoir invites us into Kirmser's, which was the first and only queer gay bar in St. Paul, MN in the 1940s. When the book came to James, he was in college in North Dakota and on his own coming out journey as a gay black man. He shares, "It was the right book for the right time for what I was experiencing in my life."
Buy the LGBT books on this LGBT podcast at our Bookshop page! (bookshop.org/thisqueerbook)
Join us on November 10th at Lush Lounge and Theater for our second-ever recording in front a live audience. We're calling the episode, "From Unseen to Seen." We'll be chatting with William Burleson, author and Founder of Flexible Press. The event is free, but we encourage RSVPs: https://bit.ly/liveatlush
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It’s an LGBT podcast crossover event with the delightful Queer Lit podcast! We enter a unicorn union with guest host Lena Mattheis and discuss the Queer Armenian Library and the books that saved each of our lives. We laugh, we sigh… an unmissable double feature that will turn you gay on the spot.
Listen to new episodes of Queer Lit at: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/queer-lit/id1562201493
Follow Lena on Twitter and Instagram: @queerlitpodcast
Check out the Queer Armenian Library (queerarmenianlibrary.com)
Buy the LGBT books on this LGBT podcast at our Bookshop (bookshop.org/thisqueerbook)!
Join us on November 10th at Lush Lounge and Theater for our live recording event with William Burleson, author and Founder of Flexible Press. The event is free, but we encourage RSVPs: https://bit.ly/liveatlush
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Welcome to the Season 2 premiere of our LGBT podcast This Queer Book Saved My Life! In this episode, we talk with Joe Perazzo (he/him) about the LGBT memoir Breaking the Surface by Greg Louganis (he/him), with special guest: 4-time gold medalist Greg Louganis! Breaking the Surface is Greg's memoir and it shares his journey not only in becoming the greatest diver of all time, but also as a gay man living with HIV. For Joe, the memoir played a crucial role in his life. First, when he was about 12-years old and dealing with gay slurs. Then at 16-years old as he came out. And then again in his early 20s as he began his career as a nurse and in HIV research. As Joe shares with us, "It's liberating to read it and then you want to live the same experience. You want to stop giving people so much power over you and become happy on your terms."
Buy the LGBT books on this LGBT podcast at our Bookshop (bookshop.org/thisqueerbook)!
Learn more about Greg and his writing at greglouganis.com. He is on Twitter and Instagram: @greglouganis
Follow Joe on Twitter: @writer_RN
Join us on November 10th at Lush Lounge and Theater for our live recording event with William Burleson, author and Founder of Flexible Press. The event is free, but we encourage RSVPs: https://bit.ly/liveatlush
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Now that season one is over, I sit down with my executive producer Jim Pounds to reflect on our first season. We just turned on the microphones and chatted. Audio quality be damned. So...our favorite moments! And things that surprised us! And what is planned for season two!
Stream all of season one now on your favorite podcast listening service or on our website: thisqueerbook.com.
Mark your calendars: Season two premieres October 4, 2022!
Buy the LGBT books on this LGBT podcast at our Bookshop (bookshop.org/thisqueerbook)!
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In this episode, we talk with Michael Barakiva (he/him) about the LGBT book Dreadnaught by April Daniels (she/her), with special guest April Daniels! Dreadnaught is a groundbreaking YA novel about a trans teen superhero. Michael shares with us, “The honesty of her anger and the challenges that she faces helped me come to terms in really profound ways about my own coming out process.” Then, Michael and April talk about the politics of comics, writing queer superheroes, and what writing and publishing has meant to April as a trans author. She shares, “Writing was an escape for me. It was a way for me to take control of my life in a world that frequently strips me of control.”
Buy the LGBT books on this LGBT podcast at https://bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Episode transcript available at thisqueerbook.com/podcast/dreadnaught
Learn more about Michael and his writing at michaelbarakiva.com
Stay tuned to April’s writing and the next novel in her trilogy at aprildaniels.com
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In this episode, we talk with award-winning children’s author David LaRochelle (he/him) about the LGBT book Conundrum by Jan Morris. David shares with us, "So, on the one hand this book taught me a lot, but the bigger impact that this book had on me was the feeling that just because I don't experience something doesn't mean that it's not true.”
We have a fascinating conversation David about knowing our true selves, expanding our empathy, as well as LGBTQ children’s literature.
Buy the LGBT books on this LGBT podcast at our Bookshop!
Join us for Toasting Twin Cities Historic LGBTQ Nightlife on August 24, 2022: https://fb.me/e/51jKKC697
Visit davidlarochelle.com to read David's books and to invite him to speak at your school!
The transcript of this episode is available at: thisqueerbook.com/podcast/conundrum
Here is the link to the Dr. Sarah McKay's neuroscience about empathy I reference in the episode: https://drsarahmckay.com/this-is-your-brain-on-empathy/
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In this episode, we talk with writer and teacher Lara Lillibridge (she/zher) about the LGBT book Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel. Lara shares with us, "There's two things about Fun Home that were huge for me. The first was just representation. I had never seen anything at all like my family in a book." Also, we are SO proud to welcome Alison Bechdel (she/her) to the podcast! We have a fascinating conversation about writing Fun Home, part of her coming out story, and reflecting on writing about our families. She told us her take that we shouldn't wait to write about people until after they are deceased. However, she said, "There is something monstrous when you turn people in your life into characters. There's no way around that. It’s an aggressive act no matter how loving or well written it is." Transcript below!
Buy the LGBT books on this LGBT podcast at https://bookshop.org/shop/thisqueerbook
Episode transcript available at thisqueerbook.com/podcast/fun-home.
Learn more about Lara Lillibridge and her writing at her website: laralillibridge.com
Read more of Alison Bechdel's books and comics at: dykestowatchoutfor.com
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In this episode, we talk with fundraiser and philanthropist Neil Aasve (he/him) about the LGBT book Bi America: Myths Truths and Struggles of an Invisible Community by William Burleson. Neil recalls the first time he read Bi America, "I remember my heart pounding. I just remember saying the words out loud: I’m bisexual! Also, we have a special guest! William Burleson joins us to talk about how he saw writing Bi America as an opportunity to preserve history.
Episode transcript available at: thisqueerbook.com/podcast/bi-america
Buy the books on this podcast at our Bookshop!
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In this episode, we talk with idealist, legal advocate, and author ellie krug (she/her) about the memoir She's Not There by Jennifer Finney Boylan. ellie told us, "I will say that the book caused me to pivot. It did. There’s no question about it. But it also helped me believe that maybe I can write a book." Then we discuss writing She's Not There with Jennifer Finney Boylan (she/her). Jenny shared, "Looking at it now, I think there’s a little bit of the aroma of apology to the book. There’s a certain sense in She’s Not There of trying to justify myself." Our conversation with ellie and Jenny range from cathartic writing vs. good storytelling, navigating loss while living authentically, and how trans narratives have changed over the past two decades.
Transcripts available at: thisqueerbook.com/podcast/shes-not-there
Buy the books on this podcast at our Bookshop!
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In this episode, we talk with Zaylore Stout (he/him) about the book Don't Sweat the Small Stuff by Richard Carlson. Zaylore told us, "I was digging through the archives of the library, trying to see if there was anybody like me...and it’s like you have to piece these things together, on your own." Our discussion spring boards into Zaylore’s legal career, his coming out journey, and writing his own book: Our Gay History in 50 Stateswhich is an LGBTQI plus history book that highlights significant people places and queer facts on a state-by- state basis.
Transcripts available at: thisqueerbook.com/podcast/dontsweat
Don't forget to visit our Bookshop.
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In this special episode, J.P. reads his essay Naming Names which will be workshopping at the 2022 Lambda Literary Writers Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices. The draft essay is part of his essay collection tentatively titled: A Home at the Beginning of the World. This special episode is part of J.P.'s fundraiser for the Writers Retreat. If you would like to make a tax-deductible donation of any size to Lambda Literary on his behalf, please go to: https://bit.ly/jpwriter
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In this episode, we talk with Paul Kaefer (he/him) about the book Quatrefoil: A Modern Novel by James Barr. Paul told us, "it’s not just realizing that there are other people like me, but it’s the realizing that I’m part of a community that has always existed and will always exist. " We discuss how Quatrefoil: A Modern Novelhelped Paul learn that he has the power to decide when and how to share his LGBTQ story. We also learn about Paul's plan to read a book from every country in the world!
Episode transcripts available at: thisqueerbook.com/podcast/quatrefoil.
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In this episode, we talk with Suyane Oliveira (she/they) about the book Stone Butch Blues by Leslie Feinberg. Suyane told us, "Books don't really make me cry and this book made me cry so many times. It just pulled something out of me. I've never cried so much while reading a book." We discuss how Stone Butch Blues opened up a whole new world for Suyane and how it inspired the work she does at the New Haven Pride Center.
Episode transcripts are available at thisqueerbook.com/podcast/stonebutchblues
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In this episode, we talk with Gary Nygaard (he/him) about the book Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin. This book is a classic of LGBTQ literature. For Gary, he read it as a cautionary tale of how destructive it can be to pretend to be straight and how damaging it can be for yourself not to live an authentic life. We discuss how Giovanni's Room shaped and reaffirmed the life decisions he was making, particularly as he attended seminary.
Episode transcripts are available at: thisqueerbook.com/podcast/giovannisroom
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In this episode, we talk with writer and literary organizer Nancy Agabian (she/her) about the book In The Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado. It is a memoir about an abusive queer relationship Carmen had with an ex-girlfriend. Nancy shares how In The Dream House saved her and then we meet Carmen (she/her) to discuss the writing of her memoir and how it was like passing a kidney stone - something she needed to do to move on to get to the writing she wanted to do.
Episode transcripts are available at thisqueerbook.com/podcast/inthedreamhouse
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Welcome to This Queer Book Saved My Life! We have conversations with LGBTQ guests about the queer books that gave new life to who they are and how they live and love in this world. In our official trailer, we begin to meet the guests and authors we will feature in upcoming episodes. Authors include: Carmen Maria Machado, Alison Bechdel, and April Daniels. Guests on the show include: Nancy Agabian, Gary Nygaard, Paul Kaefer, Lara Lillibridge, Zaylore Stout, David LaRochelle, Michael Barakiva, Neil Aasve, William Burleson, Dr. Finn Schneider, and ellie krug. Our first episode premieres June 21, 2022!
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In this teaser, host J.P. Der Boghossian introduces why he wants to create the podcast and what he hopes for it.
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