Joan Gould (February 27, 1927 – August 20, 2022) was an American author and journalist. ^{[1] [2]} As a freelance journalist in the 1960s, Gould contributed articles to publications such as Esquire Life, Sports Illustrated, McCall's and The New York Times. ^[2] She helped to plan and was the inaugural columnist of the Times' "Hers" column, for "intelligent, involved women". ^[3]

Her first book, Otherborn (1980), was a science fiction novel for young adults. She has also published Spirals: A Woman's Journey Through Family Life (1988) and Spinning Straw into Gold: What Fairy Tales Reveal About the Transformations in a Woman's Life (2005).

Writing

After attending Bryn Mawr College where she studied with W. H. Auden, ^[4] she worked as a freelance journalist in the 1960s, contributing articles to a variety of publications. Most notably, she wrote about boat racing for Esquire. ^[5]

In 1980, Gould wrote her first book, Otherborn, a science fiction novel for young adults. The book follows a shipwrecked brother and sister who are stranded on a Pacific Island inhabited by an unusual race of people. ^[6]

In 1976, at a Manhattan party, Gould suggested the idea of a column for "intelligent, involved women" to A. M. Rosenthal, editor of The New York Times. With Gould's assistance, Rosenthal developed the New York Times' "Hers" column, ^[3] "designed as a forum for writing by women." ^[7] Gould became its first columnist. ^[3]

Her pieces focus on the unique relational roles women play in the lives of their families and friends. She draws from her own experiences as a widow navigating the world without her longtime partner. ^[8] An avid sailor, Gould also wrote about finding her sense of self on the open water: "For a while, a boat is more than a boat, and I am more than a blunderer. I am myself." ^[9]

Gould chronicles her husband's illness and subsequent death from cancer in her 1988 book, Spirals: A Woman's Journey Through Family Life. ^[10] Gould writes about her evolving roles and responsibilities as her husband dies and as her children grow up: ^[11]

"What do I count for, after all, now that my daughter is a wife and a mother and a working woman besides, now that my son is a professional man and the equal of his father, who isn't a professional man any longer, while I'm without employment?" ^[11]

Gould's travel writing has also been featured in the NY Times travel section. ^[12] Some of her work was included in Katharine Lee Bates collection Spain: The Best Travel Writing from the New York Times (2001). ^{[2] [13]}

In 2005, Random House published Gould's feminist examination of cultural lore, Spinning Straw into Gold: What Fairy Tales Reveal About the Transformations in a Woman's Life. ^{[14] [15]}

"Fairy tales tell us that a day comes when we are due to wake up to a new reality, come to life again transformed... with a sense of wonder at how far we've come," she writes, "along with a twinge of nostalgia for the person we used to call 'me' but for whom we no longer have a name." ^[16]

Critical response

Gould's memoir, Spirals, received a rave review in The New York Times. The reviewer, Bob Greene, called the book "unlike anything I have ever read before," and praised its honest representation of life's banalities: ^[17]

The real truths of our lives do not make the 6 o'clock news, and do not make the front page of the newspaper; life is far too important to permit that. Many people, including many journalists, don't understand this. Joan Gould does...

— Bob Greene ^[17]

Spirals was selected a New York Times Editor's Choice the week of July 24, 1988. ^[18]

Personal life

After graduating, she married Martin Kleinbard, a lawyer. They were married for twenty-eight years, ^[19] until his death from cancer in 1978. They had three children. ^[20] Their marriage and family life serves as the inspiration for much of her writing. ^[17]

Gould died in Rye, New York on August 20, 2022, aged 95. ^[21]

Select works

• "The Fastest, Smoothest Boat Yet," Esquire (February 1966)
• "An Aquarium for the People," Esquire (July 1966)
• "Nine Intrepid Men," Esquire (April 1, 1967)
• Otherborn (1980)
• Spirals: A Woman's Journey Through Family Life (1988)
• "Musings from the Underworld," New York Times, January 31, 1993
• "By Copter to the Wilds of Canada," New York Times, July 2, 1996
• Spinning Straw Into Gold: What Fairy Tales Reveal About the Transformations in a Woman's Life (2005)

References