Slayers, Every One of Us: How One Girl in All the World Showed Us How to Hold On

by Kristin Russo, Jenny Owen Youngs

Overview

"[A] joyful ode to the awesome ability of pop-culture arcana to create a solid community." —The New York Times

A memoir reflecting on heartbreak, perseverance, and life lessons learned from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, from the hosts of the hit podcast Buffering the Vampire Slayer.

Kristin and Jenny’s marriage started with an ultimatum: to further their relationship, Kristin must watch Jenny's favorite show, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. With the terms set, they began a journey that has led them through seven seasons of the beloved genre show, a podcast rewatching the series with their newly minted listenership of “Scoobies,” unexpected success, and a divorce. Through it all, their love for Buffy and their commitment to their community held them together against the odds.

Slayers, Every One of Us is the story of how two queer women navigated divorce on a very public level and managed to stay in each other’s lives through it all. While chock full of Buffy-related content (and Buffering!) for true fans, this is ultimately a memoir of queer love and chosen family. It's a heartwarming story for anyone who's experienced lost love, and a roadmap for staying close with your ex.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250286246
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	04/08/2025
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.30(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

KRISTIN RUSSO is a producer, speaker, and podcaster with a focus on LGBTQ issues. She has spoken at hundreds of universities nationwide including Harvard, Stanford, and NYU and has consulted with large-scale companies such as Hyatt, Toyota, and Virgin Galactic on diversity & inclusion. Kristin holds a Masters Degree in Gender Studies and is the author of This is a Book for Parents of Gay Kids (Chronicle, 2014) and A Quick & Easy Guide to Coming Out (Oni Press, 2024). She lives in upstate New York with her wife and two cats.

JENNY OWEN YOUNGS is a musician, songwriter, and podcaster. Her music has appeared in television shows including Bojack Horseman, Grey’s Anatomy, and Weeds, and she has performed on hundreds of stages across the US and Europe. Jenny has also cowritten songs recorded by Pitbull, Briston Maroney, Madi Diaz, and other artists, perhaps most notably the Panic! at the Disco multi-platinum hit “High Hopes.” She lives in Maine with her wife, son, and Boston Terrier.

Editorial Reviews

Praise for Slayers, Every One of Us and Jenny Owen Youngs and Kristin Russo:

"Candid and insightful." —Autostraddle

"Boom-and-bust romance memoirs are common, but mix in fervent fandom and original music and we’ve got ourselves a different approach to the well-trod ground here...a joyful ode to the awesome ability of pop-culture arcana to create a solid community." —New York Times

"[A] love letter to [Buffy] and to podcasters Russo and Youngs' complicated relationship....Whether readers are on their latest rewatch or want to dip their toes back into the Buffyverse, this book will help them do just that." —Booklist

"An enthusiastic and emotional account of how personal lives and a fandom community can entwine." —Library Journal

“At turns inspiring, hilarious, and devastating (in the best way), Slayers, Every One of Us underlines the truth that the hardest thing to do in this world may be to live in it, but found family and love of story can help ensure that you *will* be slaying - no matter what. The warmth and goofy wit that Russo and Youngs bring to everything they do is the perfect antidote for anyone who feels like cookie dough that’s not *quite* done baking.” —Joanna Robinson, cultural critic and podcaster at The Ringer

"A heartfelt story of how one couple's mutual obsession allowed them to remain in each other's lives, this tender, funny, and totally charming tale of love, divorce, and podcasting is as much an ode to queer community as it is to a certain vampire slayer." —Gabrielle Korn, author of Yours for the Taking and Everybody (Else) Is Perfect

"Recently I found myself enchanted by a book about a podcast I didn’t listen to, that recapped a TV show I’d never watched; a testament to how good Kristin Russo and Jenny Owen Youngs’ memoir Slayers, Every One Of Us is. This once-married duo cut to the quick in their deeply personal memoir recounting the creation of their massively successful podcast, Buffering the Vampire Slayer, which recaps the '90s teen drama Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The memoir’s subplot—Youngs and Russo’s meeting, falling in love, subsequent breakup and divorce, while they taped seven seasons of their wildly popular podcast—was like a dagger to the heart. A spellbinding read." —Tegan Quin, award-winning musician and New York Times bestselling author

“As the mom of a die-hard Buffy fan, I picked this book up hoping to learn more about why and how Buffy the Vampire Slayer appeals to people of a certain age. I learned that, and more. This is an in-depth look at the ups and downs of the authors' relationship, as well as a glimpse into podcasting in its infancy. Slayers, Every One of Us describes how a community of like-minded individuals can be built and fostered, and can evolve into deep, caring relationships.” ‒Camille Kovach, Completely Booked (Murrysville, PA)

"[This] savvy, creative show, hosted by Jenny Owen Youngs, a musician, and Kristin Russo, an L.G.B.T.Q. activist, is special...Both Owen Youngs and Russo are queer women, and they approach “Buffering the Vampire Slayer” with an eye for marginalized viewpoints and systemic injustice. That often makes for frank discussions about the aspects of the series that haven’t aged well — particularly given recent accusations of misogyny against its creator, Joss Whedon — but that never takes away from the hosts’ clear love for “Buffy” as a flawed but powerful feminist text." —The New York Times on Buffering the Vampire Slayer

From the Publisher

03/21/2025

At loose ends after a move from New York City to Los Angeles, spouses Youngs and Russo decided to busy themselves with a creative project: a podcast about Buffy the Vampire Slayer called Buffering the Vampire Slayer. In it, the two began recapping and dissecting all seven seasons of the 1997–2003 TV series, and their podcast soon gained a massive audience. But a few years later, Russo and Youngs were struggling through homesickness, a miscarriage, and divorce. Keeping the events of their private lives from upending their public work on Buffy became a challenge. Both women take turns in this memoir to describe the winding paths of Buffering and their relationship. They focus on the strength and inspiration they drew from the show they both loved, their podcast, and their thousands of devoted listeners. VERDICT An enthusiastic and emotional account of how personal lives and a fandom community can entwine. Potential readers should know that while the authors convey much love for Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the amount of content focusing on the TV show is relatively small, resulting in a book more likely to satisfy fans of the podcast specifically than Buffy fans in general.—Kathleen McCallister

Library Journal