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In recent years, several states have enacted bans on queer books, citing unsubstantiated claims ranging from content deemed inappropriate to concerns about age-appropriateness. These bans have restricted access to diverse and affirming literature for the LGBTQ+ community, leading to feelings of erasure and marginalization, and hindered the representation and visibility of queer identities, which is crucial for fostering understanding and acceptance.
In this episode, Alexander Rigby, a New York Times Bestselling Editor at Penguin Random House and curator of the publisher’s LGBTQ+ Network, joins us to discuss the impacts of queer book bans on LGBTQ+ people, how Penguin Random House is continuing to promote queer voices, and ways the LGBTQ+ community can support queer authors and push back against unjust book bans.
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Alexander M. Rigby is the New York Times best-selling editor of Baking Yesteryear, Gay Science, HealthyGirl Kitchen, and Texture Over Taste. He is an Executive Editor at DK, an imprint of Penguin Random House. Alexander is the Social Media Chair of the Penguin Random House LGBTQ+ Network, and is the curator of the network’s official Instagram channel @prhlgbtq. He is the founder of the literary magazine Allegory Ridge. Alexander holds an MFA from Stonecoast at the University of Southern Maine. An avid outdoorsman who enjoys hiking in the wilderness, Alexander is on a mission to visit every national park in the United States. He lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with his fiancé and Portuguese Water Dog, Copper Atticus.
