Boy Wonder by Day, Boy Toy by Night: Jobert Abueva on Boy Wander - Ep 20

“Boy wonder by day. Boy toy by night.” In this candid conversation, host Ian Henzel talks with Jobert Abueva Reed about Boy Wander—a memoir that moves from Manila to Kathmandu, Bangkok, and Tokyo, then across the U.S., tracing a brilliant student leader’s secret life in 1970s Japan. As a child TV personality and top performer at an all-boys Catholic international school, Jobert seemed destined for greatness. After class, he lived another reality—turning tricks with foreign guests at Tokyo’s Imperial Hotel—while trying to reconcile family expectations, faith, and the truth of who he was. They discuss how a pre-AIDS coming-of-age shaped the book’s urgent honesty, why Tokyo felt uniquely safe, and how an episodic writing process became a propulsive narrative. The episode is equal parts craft talk and cultural history—about surviving, remembering, and finally being seen. What we cover The “golden boy” mask: student council, debate, track, theater—and the secret after dark Tokyo as a safe(-r) haven for queer exploration in the 1970s Pre-AIDS context and how it frames risk, shame, and liberation Turning raw episodes into memoir: structure, voice, and truth-telling Reconciling family values, Catholic schooling, and personal identity Migration, transience, and finding home across continents Why diverse LGBTQ voices matter to younger readers now Get the Book: 🛒 Rattling Good Yarns Press→ ⁠https://rattlinggoodyarns.com/product/boy-wander-a-coming-of-age-memoir/⁠ 🛒 Bookshop.org→ ⁠https://bookshop.org/a/110292/9781955826273⁠ 🛒 Amazon→ ⁠https://amzn.to/3PX0Blt⁠