Queer as Folklore
The Hidden Queer History of Myths and Monsters
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Manchester University Press
Publishing:9th Dec '25
£10.99
This title is due to be published on 9th December, and will be despatched as soon as possible.
A celebration of queer history like you've never seen it before.
Queer as folklore travels across centuries and continents to reveal the unsung heroes and villains of storytelling, magic and fantasy. Featuring images from archives, galleries and museums around the world, each chapter investigates the queer history of different mythic and folkloric characters, both old and new.
Leaving no headstone unturned, Sacha Coward takes you on a wild ride through the night from ancient Greece to the main stage of RuPaul’s Drag Race, visiting cross-dressing pirates, radical fairies and the graves of the ‘queerly departed’ along the way. Queer communities have often sought refuge in the shadows and created safe spaces in underworlds. But these forgotten narratives tell stories of resilience that deserve to be heard.
Join any Pride march and you will see a glorious display of papier-mâché unicorn heads, drag queens in mermaid tails and more fairy wings than you can shake a trident at. These are not just accessories: they are queer symbols with historic roots. To truly understand who queer people are today, we must confront the twisted tales of the past.
Longlisted for the 2025 Polari Prize
Shortlisted for the British Fantasy Society awards
‘The essays offer a welcome rebuke to those who would prefer to brand queerness as a subversive interloper only now being injected into traditional tales... Coward’s passionate and idiosyncratic tour of folk literature holds plenty of charm.’
Publishers Weekly
‘Coward shows himself to be an artful hand at simultaneously being the enthused archaeologist whilst also an engaging writer who deftly skirts both the realms of intellectual and popular culture.’
Attitude magazine
‘Essential for every seeker of hidden histories.’
Patrick Ness, author of the 'Chaos Walking' series
‘This book is a joy and a revelation.’
Divina De Campo
‘I learned something fascinating on every page.’
Christine Burns MBE
‘A magically queer celebration of darkness and light.’
Paul Baker, author of Fabulosa!
‘A glorious folkloric hug for those who have always felt different.’
Rhianna Pratchett, video game writer and journalist
‘Does the important work of writing queer people back into the idea of the traditional.’
Kit Heyam, author of Before We Were Trans
‘Mind-bogglingly compendious, queer as hell, and beautifully tender to all us fairies, unicorns and misunderstood demons.’
Will Tosh, author of Straight Acting
‘Meticulously researched ... Absolutely irresistible.’
Matt Baume, podcaster and author of Hi Honey, I'm Homo
ISBN: 9781807070397
Dimensions: 198mm x 129mm x 22mm
Weight: 314g
352 pages