American Girls

Join us as we turn to our archives to bring you one of our favorite episodes: In episode nine, we turn our gaze to the American Southwest & the youthful, plucky Josefina Montoya. Our analysis of Josefina’s books begins with two powerful questions—first, given the place and time, is this the story of a colonial girl? Second, just how many references to Tejana queen Selena will we make per episode? While representations of imperialism in early American history are hard to unpack, over the course of this show, we’ll reveal why Meet Josefina had us reeling for still other reasons. Maybe you didn’t see how this book set in an 1820s borderland community (what’s now New Mexico) was essentially ripped from the 1990s melodrama THE PIANO. But once you hear our take on Tia Dolores, you’ll see that’s why we’re here—note: we are also here to remind you of 90s crossover stars gone too soon. You can find episodes, resources, and a link to our merch store and patreon on our website: dollsofourlivespod.com Support us