It Came from the Closet: Queer Reflections on Horror Audiobook, by Joe Vallese Play Audiobook Sample

It Came from the Closet: Queer Reflections on Horror Audiobook

It Came from the Closet: Queer Reflections on Horror Audiobook, by Joe Vallese Play Audiobook Sample
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Read By: various narrators, Graham Halstead, Aven Shore, Aida Reluzco, Mark Sanderlin, Tori Barron, Krystal Hammond, Daniel Henning, Ron Butler, Hope Newhouse, Lindsey Dorcus, André Santana, Joel Froomkin, Mike Cooper, Emmett Grosland, Vikas Adam Publisher: Blackstone Publishing Listen Time: at 1.0x Speed 7.33 hours at 1.5x Speed 5.50 hours at 2.0x Speed Release Date: October 2022 Format: Unabridged Audiobook ISBN: 9798212321846

Quick Stats About this Audiobook

Total Audiobook Chapters:

27

Longest Chapter Length:

41:55 minutes

Shortest Chapter Length:

02:16 minutes

Average Chapter Length:

24:24 minutes

Audiobooks by this Author:

1

Publisher Description

Through the lens of horror—from Halloween to Hereditary—queer and trans writers consider the films that deepened, amplified, and illuminated their own experiences.

Horror movies hold a complicated space in the hearts of the queer community: historically misogynist, and often homo- and transphobic, the genre has also been inadvertently feminist and open to subversive readings. Common tropes—such as the circumspect and resilient “final girl,” body possession, costumed villains, secret identities, and things that lurk in the closet—spark moments of eerie familiarity and affective connection. Still, viewers often remain tasked with reading themselves into beloved films, seeking out characters and set pieces that speak to, mirror, and parallel the unique ways queerness encounters the world.

It Came from the Closet features twenty-five original essays by writers speaking to this relationship, through connections both empowering and oppressive. From Carmen Maria Machado on Jennifer’s Body, Jude Ellison S. Doyle on In My Skin, Addie Tsai on Dead Ringers, and many more, these conversations convey the rich reciprocity between queerness and horror.

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“As someone who grew up with posters of Freddy Krueger and Frank N. Furter over my bed, It Came from the Closet is the perfect gay bible for me. The navigations and dissections of some of my favorite slashers through various queer lenses are akin to any great horror film: mind-blowing, eye-popping, and heart-ripping.”

— Drew Droege, a.k.a. “Chloe,” drag queen and writer 

Quotes

  • “A fantastic anthology of writing about horror, all from deliciously queer perspectives.” 

    — Ms. Magazine
  • “An impressively diverse array of queer voices contribute.”

    — Bay Area Reporter 
  • “An essential look at how spooky movies so often offer solace through subversiveness.”

    — Electric Literature
  • “This compelling production, with notable performances by Aida Reluzco, Em Grossland, and Ron Butler, will deepen listeners’ engagement with the horror genre.”

    — AudioFile
  • “There’s a moment in this book that’ll resonate with every single reader: undead, queer, or otherwise.”

    — Fangoria
  • “Wonderful off-road pieces that twist and turn with skeletal precision.”

    — Los Angeles Review of Books
  • “The essays take surprising turns and don’t look for easy answers.” 

    — Bomb magazine
  • “Killers, monsters, and demons are frequently metaphors for what we don’t understand about our own humanity…I finished [the anthology] with a new appreciation for the horror genre.” 

    — Autostraddle
  • “A brilliant display of expert criticism, wry humor, and original thinking.”

    — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
  • “Each essay provides a plethora of fascinating details.”

    — Booklist (starred review)
  • “Horror teaches us about ourselves in all our thrilling extremes.”

    — Alex Marzano, author of The Fact of a Body
  • “These clear, insightful, and deeply personal essays reveal the real reasons why we’ve all been so scared.”

    — Christopher Castellani, author of Leading Men
  • “Each piece in this collection is lavishly queer in its intelligence, vulnerability, and wit.”

    — Paul Lisicky, author of Later: My Life at the Edge of the World

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About the Authors

Joe Vallese is an author whose creative and pop culture writing appears in Bomb, Vice, Backstage, PopMatters, Southeast Review, North American Review, Narrative Northeast, and VIA: Voices in Italian-Americana, among others. He is clinical associate professor in the expository writing program at New York University and previously served as site director and faculty for the Bard Prison Initiative. He holds an MFA degree from New York University and MAT and BA degrees from Bard College.

Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875) was born in Odense, Denmark, the son of a poor shoemaker and a washerwoman. As a young teenager, he became quite well known in Odense as a reciter of drama and as a singer. When he was fourteen, he set off for the capital, Copenhagen, determined to become a national success on the stage. He failed miserably, but made some influential friends in the capital who got him into school to remedy his lack of proper education. In 1829 his first book was published. After that, books came out at regular intervals. His stories began to be translated into English as early as 1846. Since then, numerous editions, and more recently Hollywood songs and Disney cartoons, have helped to ensure the continuing popularity of the stories in the English-speaking world.

About the Narrators

Neil Hellegers grew up in New Jersey and attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned a BA in theater arts and a minor in psychology before getting an MFA in acting from the Trinity Rep Conservatory in Providence, Rhode Island. He moved to New York City in 2003 and, since then, has made a career of theatrical performance, percussion, theater education, and audiobook narration. He currently lives in Brooklyn with his wife and son.

Emily Bauer is an award-winning voice-over actress who has read for dozens of popular audiobooks for children and adults, including Margery Williams’s Velveteen Rabbit, Meg Cabot’s Insatiable, and Ann Aguirre’s Enclave. Her film credits include Mona Lisa Smile and Long Distance. She has done voice-overs for Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind and Pokemon and has voiced scores of TV and radio commercials as well as cartoons, talking toys, and video games.

Corey Brill, audiobook narrator, is a stage, film, and television actor who has performed on Broadway, at The Kennedy Center, and in regional theaters across the country. He has appeared on television in The Walking Dead, Chicago PD, Scorpion, and You’re the Worst. A graduate of Otterbein College and University of California at San Diego, he also writes songs and keeps bees on a rooftop in downtown Los Angeles.

Graham Halstead, an Earphones Award and Audie Award–winning narrator, is a professionally trained actor and voice artist. As an actor, he has worked internationally in Edinburgh and London, as well as at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. His youthful, easy-flowing voice can be heard on television and radio voicing spots for Airborne and Allegra.

James Patterson is the most popular storyteller of our time. He is the creator of unforgettable characters and series, including Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Jane Effing Smith, and Maximum Ride, and of breathtaking true stories about the Kennedys, John Lennon, and Princess Diana, as well as our military heroes, police officers, and ER nurses. He has coauthored #1 bestselling novels with Bill Clinton and Dolly Parton, told the story of his own life in James Patterson by James Patterson, and received an Edgar Award, nine Emmy Awards, the Literarian Award from the National Book Foundation, and the National Humanities Medal.

Thom Rivera is a multiple Earphones Award–winning narrator. He is also a classically trained television, film, theater, and voice actor. He has toured nationally and performed at regional theatres and Shakespeare Festivals throughout the US. On television, he can be seen in Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, New Girl, The Mindy Project, and the CBS series Zoo.

Charles H. Elliott, PhD, is a clinical psychologists who specializes in the treatment of anxiety and mood disorders. He is coauthor, with Laura L. Smith, PhD, of several For Dummies books, including Borderline Personality Disorder For Dummies and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder For Dummies.

Ron Butler is a Los Angeles–based actor, Earphones Award–winning audiobook narrator, and voice artist with over a hundred film and television credits. Most kids will recognize him from the three seasons he spent on Nickelodeon’s True Jackson, VP. He works regularly as a commercial and animation voice-over artist and has voiced a wide variety of audiobooks. He is a member of the Atlantic Theater Company and an Independent Filmmaker Project Award winner for his work in the HBO film Everyday People.

Born in the United States and based in France, Hope Newhouse comes from a stage background ranging from medieval farce to contemporary drama to children’s theater. Now more often found behind a microphone, her warm and engaging voice has been heard on commercials, video games, e-learning programs, institutional films, and audiobooks.

Chelsea Stephens is an experienced voice actor with a talent for mystery, sci-fi, and YA novels. She won an AudioFile Earphones Award for her narration of Pale Horse, Pale Rider by Katherine Anne Porter. She has a longtime love and appreciation for the performing arts, with experience in onstage acting, singing, and voice-over. Her love for reading books and the pursuit of the story led her to narration. She enjoys unfolding characters and bringing listeners into new worlds.

Chelsea Clinton is the author of It’s Your World: Get Informed, Get Inspired & Get Going! and, with Devi Sridhar, Governing Global Health: Who Runs the World and Why? She is also the vice chairperson of the Clinton Foundation where she works on many initiatives, including those that help to empower the next generation of leaders. She lives in New York City with her family.

Joel Froomkin is a UK transplant, having grown up with American parents in a British commonwealth. He is often cast for his unique ability to deliver native, authentic combinations of both American and British sounds. His wit and comedic timing also appeal to producers. He has developed a strong body of work for young audience, historical, fantasy, new-adult, romance, and m/m fiction.

Mike Cooper is a British voice artist based in the United States. In addition to a wide variety of voice-over work he has narrated audiobooks including The Divine Spark, The Magician’s Way, and The Last Shaman.

Amanda Dolan is a professional actor in the MFA program at Brown University. Her credits include Richard III, Macbeth, Falsettos, The Rocky Horror Show, Hair, and The Who’s Tommy.

Vikas Adam is a classically trained actor with numerous credits in stage, film, commercials, and television, in addition to his over two hundred recorded audiobooks. His narrations have garnered numerous awards and nominations, including AudioFile Earphones Awards, various Best of the Year lists, and the prestigious Audie Award. He was an inaugural inductee into the Audible Narrator Hall of Fame.