I was itching to add a nonfiction book into my read pile. So I requested this one. And perfect timing as it's Pride month. There was plenty of interesting tv facts to hold my attention. Things I hadn't realized as I watched the older shows, so clearly that programming did nothing to hurt me in my adult years. I also found it interesting about banning books with LGBT+ content could lead to a backslide in the TV/movies arena. That scares me. Why should my daughter not be able to watch a tv show that mirrors her life and her sexual preference? I hope she live in an understanding world. I learned that more people that aren't exposed to LGBT+ people, they are more tolerant if they are familiar with it on television. The author did a good job of narrating, It's not always a good thing when an author narrates a book, and he did a good job. Thanks NetGalley and Dreamscapes for the advanced copy of Honey I'm Home. #HiHoneyImHomo #NetGalley

I received the audiobook arc of this novel from NetGalley. Given the title, you wouldn’t think this book is a nonfiction teaching you about queer characters in sitcoms throughout years. Each chapter talks about a different sitcoms talking about the show, the background, and what was going on in the world at the time.

Thank you netgalley for the audiobook. I couldn't stop listening to it. I am a fan of pop culture and television so this book was perfect.

I have always loved books that look at television history. And this one was so well done. The history of LGBTQIA+ characters in sitcoms was exactly what I needed to read to begin June with. Many of the references that were made (SOAP, Dinosaurs) were before my time. But then we got to Friends and Ellen’s show and this was all stuff I lived through. Prop 8 was talked about a lot and I still remember how much it was talked about in Utah. And how much I didn’t want it to go into affect. This was great! Would definitely recommend.

I must have been living under the proverbial rock, because I didn’t know Matt Baume before I heard about this book. Baume has a YouTube channel with lots of videos about “pop culture media from a queer perspective.” This book takes a deep dive into TV sitcoms and queer representation over the years. The earliest show he delves into is Bewitched, one of my favorite shows when I was young. Believe me, I didn’t notice any of the stuff he talks about; it all went over my head at that age. And the most recent show he discusses is Modern Family, another favorite in our house. Other shows discussed include Barney Miller, All in the Family, and Will & Grace, among others.

Baume gives us wonderful anecdotes and analysis. He also cites studies that show the positive impact on attitudes across the US from being exposed to queer characters through TV shows. This is an important retrospective and it highlights how much is still to be done. Baume narrates the audiobook and does a great job.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the opportunity to listen to an advance copy of this audiobook. All opinions are my own.

I wasn’t familiar with this author or his YouTube (or even knew he had one). Learning this was comical as I spent most of this audiobook thinking it would be better in a visual medium such as a documentary.

Despite finding the subject matter fascinating and intriguing, I struggled to stay interested with the book; it was almost too dry or academic or not engaging enough. I can’t place my finger on why my mind kept wandering. Maybe it was the narrator? 🤷🏻‍♀️ . Yet I know I would have loved watching a multiple episode documentary on this topic.


Thanks netgalley for my ARC ALC

Thank you to dreamscape media and netgalley for giving me this audio arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book is coming out at such an important time in American history. This is proof that trans and queer people HAVE ALWAYS BEEN HERE! It’s proof how often trans and queer people have been the target in society and how hard it’s been for visibility and safety within this world.

Baume takes us on a walk through of the queer liberation movement as he walks us through the important sitcoms that were shaping our world at the time. Biwitched being an allegory for queer people—they’re coming out and fear of being othered. All in the Family who through its decade span on the air LEARNS and grows from the homophobia embedded in earlier seasons to mourning the death of a family member who identified as queer. After the uprising of Stonewall we see how the political movement changes the media made at the time. The Barney Miller show is born out of that era giving us major queer firsts in television history. But this didn’t happen without challenges, and nuanced views of the queerness. Baume continues to take us on the journey of other sitcoms that eventually aired and some that due to bigotry never met the airwaves. He discusses all the hurdles queer creators and queer ally’s go through to tell what was considered “cutting edge” stories for the time. We learn about how Golden Girls coincides with the aids epidemic and how forthcoming they were in especially in gay men characters and challenging marriage equality and coming out experiences. We also learn the history of using queer people as a plot device and how that is just as damaging as not seeing the queer representation at all. We are shown how pop culture navigated the landscape around the queer liberation movement and the legal progress made for queer rights and safety. This book shows us how important having visible queerness in media helps gain acceptance and momentum for queer rights and safety.

Everyone should read this book it is fascinating!

A great audiobook of the decades of inclusion of gay characters in television. I enjoyed listening to this documentary. I learned and remembered a lot.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

In the book hi honey I’m Homo by Mad Bonet it talks about the sitcom EN the introduction of gays and lesbians in modern America. This book was so entertaining I thought the double entendres and the direct statements that once you know… Then you know it’s about gays and lesbians was so funny and kind of sad at the same time from bewitched to Barney Miller friends and and of course Ellen it was truly funny and eye-opening but the thing that was most shocking was the conclusion about Cole porter in his song “I love daddy” and how the song could be played on radio stations but only if sung by a female that really let you know where these “straight“ men’s minds were. They even had a problem with the word do in his song’s. I am so glad that books and TV and movies are now an open forum for anyone because reading books and TV shows from other walks of life has always been interesting to me and now that the stories of people I don’t personally knows more accessible thanks to the sitcom‘s in the gay and lesbian actors that fought for the right to be seen for who they are or not with the expectations of those who think they have a white knuckle grip on morality
What them to be seen. It is a more colorful world when everyone can be their self because if we were all the same this would be one boring world. I love this book and thought the author did a great job covering the years of oppression and the ways they found to get around it or just run right over it. I thought the narrator did a great job and I found a book so entertaining. I received this book from NetGalley and dreamscape media but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

I generally don't read many non-fiction books. However as soon as I saw the title of this book, I was instantly intrigued. I really enjoy queer representation in all forms of media, but television has always been a central part of my life from a young age and in family bonding. A number of the shows highlighted in this book were favorites in my house growing up, namely Cheers, Golden Girls, Will & Grace, and Modern Family. Hearing about their effects on public opinion and the struggles the writers, cast, and crew went through to ensure these pivotal television moments even happened was inspiring and moving.

This book is not only a great reference tool on big moments in queer television history, but a reminder that even though a lot of work has been done, there is still more to be done and a push from the right trying to halt and undo the progress that has been made. (You also might come out of it with a new watch list of shows/episodes)

This book is so great! It shows the history of the dialectical relationship between 1) queer characters and topics being introduced in sitcoms from 1960s to the present such as Bewitched, All in the Family, Cheers, Friends, and Modern Family, 2) and broader society. It goes in-depth into how producers, actors, and studios played behind-the-scenes roles in introducing queer roles into sitcoms either to push society further or as a reaction to other political events happening in society, and how society reacted to those queer characters over the last 60 years of sitcoms.

As the sitcom becomes a dying style of television shows and same-sex marriages are now legalized, this history of queer roles in sitcoms and their role in where society is in terms of how queer people/rights are viewed comes at an important moment in our country's history. It is an important retrospective, without expecting readers to have any fore-knowledge of these shows or even to sit down and read this book all in one sitting. The importance of this topic being so well written cannot be understated!

Thank you to Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for this audio ARC!

Hi Honey, I'm Homo! is a chronological deep dive into the representation of queer and queer-coded characters on sitcom television, beginning with Bewitched and ending with Modern Family. The author goes into the hurdles the creators of the shows had to overcome in getting these characters on the air, the backlash from viewers and lawmakers, and the reception of these characters and their storylines by audiences. It is truly a comprehensive look into how society shaped television and how television shaped society in the growing acceptance of queer individuals.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, particularly in audio format. My main difficulties in maintaining interest were in the beginning, when the author went into shows that I had never seen or, sometimes, had never heard of. However, the author does a great job of getting the reader attached to these characters, even if you have never seen them or heard them speak. The chapters on shows I had seen were even more of a delight, particularly knowing that the arc, in this book at least. turned toward progress.

The author does mention briefly in the conclusion the current backlash against LGBTQ+ individuals, but he notes that he finished writing this book in 2022, and does not have much to say other than this is a "long awaited" backlash towards LGBTQ+ rights. In a time when it seems the United States is becoming more and more homophobic, this book takes a moment to reflect on how far society has come since the dawn of the television age.

Covering a variety of television shows from the 60s to today, Matt Baume highlights queer representation in an incredibly insightful and entertaining way. I loved learning about some of my favorite shows as well as shows I've never seen and examining how they portray queer relationships and the effect they had on American culture. One of my new favorite nonfiction reads, I would highly recommend this for people interested in analyzing pop culture and queer representation in an accessible, reflective, and humourous way!

4.5/5

Thank you Netgalley for providing a digital ARC.

It has a chapter on The Golden Girls?! Loved it. I laughed, I cried, I was informed, and I was entertained. Love that it was read by the author—he did wonderful. A great release for the upcoming Pride month!

WOW. WOW. WOW. Loved this book start to finish. Baume is a phenomenal storyteller and weaves a history of the sitcom in with cultural events and social landscape in this MUST READ book.

I didn't know all the sitcoms, but had fun learning more about them and all the breadcrumbs of queer history that have led us to today.

Baume is also a fantastic narrator, really enjoyed his narration throughout the book.

I like sitcoms so this book peaked my interest. This was a pretty interesting book as well but I wouldn't say i loved it. I felt like things were a bit to clinical for this subject. This book

This interesting book places the television depiction of homosexuality within the broader cultural context. It is interesting and informative, well read by the author. I found it especially engaging when it moved into the era of sitcoms that I remember. Listening to it was a bit like listening to a pretty good podcast - interesting, but not so complex that I couldn't listen to it while doing other things.

I burned through Hi Honey, I'm Homo! so fast! Matt Baume carefully curates and connects queer sitcom characters to develop an insightful trajectory. Baume's writing is accessible, thoughtful, and funny as he charts a history from Bewitched to Modern Family.

Baume's writing particularly shines when he addresses how the changing presentation of queer characters across America's sitcom landscape had a tangible impact on America's political landscape (and vice versa). TV audiences' response to queer characters had a tangible impact on legislation, and writers struggled to negotiate between their vision, the network's requirements, and possible public outcry. Baume deftly navigates the close reading of the characters themselves and their historical contexts to create an analysis that is rich with information and heart.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the audio ARC.

I really enjoyed listening to this one. There were several chapters on sitcoms I had never watched but the author provided enough information that I didn’t feel like that hindered my listening experience. I also really liked how the author incorporated the real life events surrounding gay rights and the LGBTQ+ community around the time of each sitcom.

Quite an interesting book. I really enjoyed learning more about this topic. I love the older tv shows, especially sitcoms. This book was quite enlightening.