Oct 1, 2024
This episode marks the return of History is Gay after hiatus,
and we're excited to be back in your podfeeds diving into the
fascinating world of classic children's literature through the lens
of queer authors. Leigh is joined by wonderful guest co-host,
Aubree Calvin, to explore the lives and works of several
groundbreaking authors, revealing how their sexualities and
personal experiences shaped the books we cherished as children.
In this first of a multi-part episode, we're focusing on four
beloved authors whose works were some of our favorites: Tomie
dePaola, most notable for our favorite Italian
grandma Strega Nona, Margaret Wise Brown, the
bisexual poet behind beloved picture books Goodnight Moon
and The Runaway Bunny, Ann M. Martin, who introduced us to
our friends in The Babysitters Club, and Arnold Lobel, the
man behind the cozy shared lives of Frog and
Toad.
This conversation doesn't end here; stay tuned as we will continue
to explore more queer authors and their impact on the world of
children's literature in the next episode, coming soon!
Outline
0:00 – Introduction
4:51 – Socio-Historical Context: History of queer children's
literature
10:00 – Who Were They? Bio Time for some of your queer kid lit
faves
1:00:15 – Why do we think they're gay?
1:15:57 – 1:16:03 – CONTENT WARNING: Mention of suicidal
ideation
1:37:01 – Closing and Where to Find us Online
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