Drag Teen by Jeffery Self; Scholastic/Push, $17.99
Openly gay actor, writer, and podcast star Jeffery Self, having appeared in 30 Rock, 90210, Desperate Housewives, and Logo-TVs Jeffery and Cole Casserole, seems to have distilled his extensive Hollywood experience into his new novel Drag Teen, aimed at that awkward kind of teenager who fits into high school social circles like a square peg.
Self's plot is simple and storybook-minded, but at well over 200 pages, the author takes his time and lingers over character eccentricities and (spottily amusing) episodes of silly, bantering dialogue. At the center of this young-adult novel's melodramatic neon-pink heart is JT, a chubby teen-queen who loves being gay and adores his hottie boyfriend Seth and bestie faghag Heather. But he's a restless young man who yearns for the day when he can escape the monotonous, small-minded confines of creatively stifling Clearwater, Florida (home to the Church of Scientology's worldwide spiritual headquarters) and fully spread his wings to embrace what he feels is his true destiny: becoming a successful writer and a drag queen.
Hopes are high, but his grades are not, and with high school graduation fast approaching there's little time to boost his GPA, even less to begin saving money for college. Enter the trusty boyfriend and the feisty gal-pal, who have discovered there's an exciting "Miss Drag Teen" college scholarship pageant taking place in New York City over spring break. The ensuing road trip becomes one saturated in revelations of who JT's friends really are, versus who he thought them to be. These discoveries, implausibly shrink-wrapped into the length of the car trip, are the only real weak points in Self's tale.
Some of the details will seem sketchy for adults reading this book, but younger readers will be mesmerized by all the bubbly language and sequined melodrama. Glaringly obvious is JT's experience with drag (which could fit into a stiletto heel), so his shaky performance – and his willingness to enter the contest to begin with – is a stretch.
With an array of colorful characters, the story begins to take shape with an emphasis on "letting yourself go," and on self-discovery, self-confidence, and identity. Fans of RuPaul's Drag Race will chuckle at the references scattered throughout, and older readers who moonlight as queens of the stage will find JT's drag tour-of-duty entertaining. It's refreshing to read a quirky gay-teen novel with a main character whose issue isn't his homosexuality, but is instead focused on his outward self and the social security of those orbiting his life.
With adult titles under his belt like Fifty Shades of Gay and the hilariously interactive guidebook Straight People: A Spotter's Guide, this new, glitzy, Wizard of Oz-esque title branches Self's popularity out into the young adult market, with hopefully more to come.