When Joan Bartl moved to Princeton in 1970, she was denied service at the Yankee Doodle Tap Room because she was a woman. Shortly after, she joined the central New Jersey Chapter of NOW. The group’s first action was to stage a successful sit-in at the Tap Room. Alongside fellow NOW colleagues, Joan went on to analyze sex stereotyping in early childhood readers. In this interview she speaks about the heady work of the Women on Words and Images, an offshoot of the central New Jersey NOW. This team of women, which worked alongside the activists setting up the University NOW Day Nursery, went on to influence publishers as well as public opinion, and to inspire Joan throughout her career. As interviewed by Carolyn Jones.