Robots, Dogs, and Drags: The Politics of Reading and Being Read

Abstract Employing a mixed postqualitative methods approach, this article examines the concept of reading imaginaries in public library events in three cases where children read with robots, dogs, and drag performers. Using the critical analytical tools of sociotechnical imaginaries and matters of care , we regard our cases as containers for resolving societal problems, and we explore how they contain societal expectations and imaginaries about reading and literacy in postdigital ecologies. The care practices observed in our case studies transcend digital technologies, encompassing broader and politically charged issues and the importance of situating the hype and fear surrounding emerging technologies, such as AI, within a more comprehensive and far-reaching framework. As concerns over privacy, data flows, and security increasingly extend to analog technologies such as books, curriculum content, and the embodiment of educators, mediated public discourse continues to play a significant role in shaping these dynamics. An example of this is how drag reading events become hot-button issues in a politicised and polarised school debate, while dogs and robots do not.