A fun and engaging exploration of queerness in folklore and pop culture that felt well-paced, even if some themes seemed to be too brief despite the book's hefty word count.

What a beautiful book this has been! A big thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with early access to this gem.

I've been diving into folklore, tales, and legends over the last few months, and "Queer as Folklore" has been a wonderful addition to my reading list. Sacha Coward takes us on a well-researched journey through history, myths, art, and media, exploring queer representation in a refreshingly inclusive way. I was pleasantly surprised by how the book covers a wide range of cultures and experiences, moving beyond the usual Western focus, and it gave me a new perspective on stories I thought I already knew. And I looooved that the gorgeous art images discussed were included in the book, as most, it not all, of them l wasn't familiar with.

This is the kind of book that would be lovely to have on your coffee table to revisit and flick through from time to time; it’s so richly detailed that I’m sure I missed a few things on my first read.

Overall, I highly recommend this book to readers interested in LGBTQ+ history, folklore enthusiasts, students of gender studies, fans of alternative histories, and anyone looking to explore diverse and inclusive narratives in myths and legends.
4/5 ⭐

This felt like two different books smushed together, and one I really appreciated and one felt like grasping at straws. I enjoyed the way that Coward traced the history of individual folklore archetypes throughout western history (though I would have appreciated more of a global perspective). The portions of each chapter that attempted to draw connections between folklore figures and contemporary queer culture felt like it would have been better suited to a collection of essays as the conclusions didn't match with the historical rigor.

I loved learning and relearning folklore. I like where things came from and this was well done. It's a good book to read a section here and there when you just need a short story to read between things.

I love history, but I've never been particularly good at it. All the specifics dates just seemed to slip through my brain. I couldn't tell you what happened when or where but I absolutely love a story.

Post-school I've gotten more interested, thanks in part to the Betwixt The Sheets a brilliant podcast hosted by I-daily columnist and sex historian Kate Lister. She explores the more sordid sides of the past, from Sex in the middle ages to Victorian Drag, bringing on all sorts of experts for lively and often amusing discussions.

Ever since I started listening, I've been looking out for non-fiction books on obscure histories, so as soon as I discovered Queer as Folklore on NetGalley I had to request a copy!

The book (published on 22nd of August, World Folklore Day) explores the ways in which Folkloric creatures - Fairies, Unicorns, Vampires and the like - have resonated with the LGBTQ+ community through time. It's fascinating to behold the breadth and depth of research here, I was unaware of just how many Queer stories were out there... or how much the collective imagination has been sanitized - mostly by the prudish Victorians. (An often mythologized culture that Dr Lister has revealed to be anything but)

It's galvanizing for Ally's and Queer people alike to read a text like this, and to know that fantastic fiction has been molded by and for the Community for centuries. It was particularly enriching to learn about the Queer subtext of The Little Mermaid. I'll not spoil anything here, but the new context gave a fresh dimension to a story that I found beautifully sad as a child.

Whatever the topic covered, Coward writes it all a brilliantly accessible way, drawing out stories from all kinds of sources making everything feel contemporary. Through my first read, I found myself highlighting passages to go back and revisit. I could easily do a deep dive into each and every example mentioned - however briefly, which is what the best sort of history books do.

I love myths, legends and folklore (and I'm queer) so this book was perfect for me.

The author describes and analyzes popular characters from broadly understood folklore through queer lenses. We go from mermaids through werewolves to even superheroes. For each character we have an introduction, history, mentions of pop culture and connections with queer people today and in the past. Sacha Coward clearly did a lot of research, the chapters are filled with interesting information and great study on queer history. I appreciate how in some chapters (like pirates or Ancient Greece) some facts about relationships between men were not sugarcoated.

Some chapters could use a little more information on poc myths, but the author warned that the book will be Eurocentric.
I would love to see another part of this book, there's a lot of potential here for a series.

A book of queer history, not just folklore. There are so many aspects of the LGBTQ+ community that are discovered by people all the time, and Queer as Folklore embraces this not just in teaching the theoretical, but also the history and the present of queer people.

I've not technically read this in its entirely yet, but given I've bought my own copy so I can read it at a more casual pace, I feel I can give it 5*!

MY only real complaint is that I want more depth for each chapter, but I suspect that'd make each chapter its own book, so I do understand the brevity

I received an advance copy for free from NetGalley, on the expectation that I would provide an honest review.

This was a very enjoyable addition to queer history. Coward delves into the intersections of queerness and folklore, finding some obvious connections and some less obvious ones. He includes both ancient and modern folklore, moving from mermaids and demons to superheroes. This is thoroughly researched and well-written. Very good book.

This was such a fun surprise of a book! I have a degree in folklore and mythology, so to read Coward's retellings of famous tales and connecting them to queer history was amazing. Coward does such a great job of breaking down the history, and his reasoning behind the connections that he makes. It was even delightful to read the sections about why we might connect to certain mythologies and see parts of myself reflected back.

I find myself info-dumping things that I learned from this story to the people around me, and I cannot wait to gift them copies of this book!

A wonderful book! I loved the way the author writes and the images and history tied into this book. A fantastic read for anyone interested in folklore or queerness. A great read.

This book has really open my eyes to so many LGBTQ+ things embedded in the stories we thought we knew.
There were definitely some chapters that went over my head, but when I understood and had a recollection of the myths in question I was really invested. It makes you see the world in a different way.
Really recommend!

"Even among less overtly anti-LGBT fans, you can still come upon a certain level of background hostility against the introduction of LGBTQ+ characters...this is often described using such language as 'shoehorning', being 'unnecessary', or 'pandering' to a perceived liberal agenda."

This quote from Queer as Folklore really stuck out to me because, as a fantasy and comic reader, I've seen plenty of reviews where people have Opinions about queer characters. Queer as Folklore dives deep into the past to show that, far from being a recent phenomenon of "woke" culture, queer characters have been a part of folklore, myths, legends, and art for literally thousands of years. By using examples throughout history (Gilgamesh, The Little Mermaid, Zeus, Wonder Woman) Coward paints a picture of the myriad ways that LGBTQ+ characters have impacted the social landscape and provided representation for people who exist outside of societal stereotypes. Although some of the examples were a bit of a stretch (looking at you, sections on robots and AI), I found the book as a whole to be informative and well-researched.

Queer as Folklore is the book I wish I had when I did my folklore and oral traditions module two years ago in university. It is informative, diverse and recognises colonial impact on oral tradition. This is not a read you can whip through: you need to sit with it, be patient and allow the stories to be told.

A guide through various folklore with wider context and history than is easily found otherwise!

I really enjoyed this book, easy to read and seemed well thought out.

Thank you Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book. These opinion are completely my own.

For some reason I was expecting this to be a humor book. I'm so glad it wasn't

I have learned so much about the history of mythological creatures and their relation to queer culture. This book is fascinating and Sasha Coward goes extremely in depth, yet manages to stay interesting.

although I did get to review this book for free, I shall be buying it for my home library.

From pirates to Greek mythology to medieval tales and everything in between; this has a little something for absolutely everyone. What a vast array of topics Sacha Coward has covered with stunning writing! A truly impressive feat to discuss such huge topics without the reader ever feeling rushed or crammed in. This was a really interesting collection of some very dark stories and the accepted and disputed parallels experienced by LGBTQIA+ people.

I loved slowly working my way through this anthology and found it to be incredibly affirming; the inclusion of the phrase “people like us” when discussing the community is so simple yet truly impactful.

I would highly recommend this to lovers of mythology, folklore and all things wonderfully queer!

Curator, guide and historian Sacha Coward is a well known and loved social media presence. Here he brings his wealth of knowledge and research to the subject of just how queer much of folklore and mythology is. And it's a beautiful book packed with accessibly written knowledge and stunning illustrations. I've instantly ordered a hard copy. It's a beautiful book and Sacha's personality shines through. I like the glimpses he gives of his own life and how relatable his writing is.

'Queer as Folklore' takes readers on a journey through the hidden queer history woven into the fabric of our most beloved myths and monsters. Challenging heteronormative narratives that have long dominated these timeless tales, Coward shines a spotlight on the LGBTQ+ identities and experiences that have been obscured throughout history..

I really enjoyed this anthology of Queer folklore stories! As a college student majoring in cultural studies, I love folklore and history and culture in all forms, and as a queer person I love Queer history, so this was a perfect read for me. I would highly recommend for anyone interested in Queer folklore/stories. It was well organized and well written, definitely easy to follow and a great read to take either chapter by chapter or in one go!