My Fairy Godmother is a Drag Queen

March 13, 2017
In a contemporary gay riff on Cinderella, 17-year-old Manhattanite Chris Bellows attends a high-society ball with the help of a drag queen, Ms. Coco Chanel Jones. Soon after, Chris begins a secret romance with a young political hopeful, J.J. Kennerly, even though J.J. is dating Chris’s stepsister Kimberly. First-time novelist Clawson touches on topics of class, sexuality, and politics, but the story’s pacing and characterizations leave much to be desired. Chris and J.J.’s romance is kept so hidden that their chemistry is nearly nonexistent, and while Chris’s complicated relationship with his stepfamily could be discussion worthy, the secondary characters are largely one-dimensional. Chris’s relationship with Coco is more interesting, but the language surrounding their interactions reads as stereotypical and off-putting (Chris’s first impression of Coco when she’s not in drag is of a “slightly thuggish-looking black guy in oversized hip-hop clothes... dressed in a way that would have made me wonder if I was being racist or just reasonably cautious if I tried to avoid crossing his path too closely”), even if it’s intended to reflect Chris’s naiveté. Ages 14–up. Agent: Claire Abramowitz, Cartel Entertainment.

April 1, 2017
When Prince Charming meets his beau.... Seventeen-year-old Chris Bellows is pretty much a modern-day, white, male Cinderella. He's at the beck and call of his WASP-y, boozy, socialite stepmom, Iris, his bitchy, attention-hungry stepsister, Kimberly, and his jock douchebag stepbrother, Buck, who has an endless supply of gross one-liners on tap. The novel opens with Chris helping his family get ready for New York City's most elite social event, The Autumnal Ball at The Plaza. Once the steps are on their way, Chris runs into a fabulous, shade-throwing, foulmouthed African-American drag queen named Coco Chanel Jones, who, in true fairy-godmother form, decks him out in some oversized Ferragamos plus a fancy suit. Before he knows it, he's inside the party making googly eyes at the prince of New York City society, dreamy, white J.J. Kennerly. Readers can imagine what happens next. Clawson clearly loves all of his characters, as they are eloquently drawn, with just as many reasons for readers to love them as faults. He also knows how to spin double-edged zingers that are simultaneously gross yet witty: "You're later than my first period." What ensues is a fast-paced, riotous, laugh-out-loud yet insightful story of secret love between two closeted gay teens, with Kimberly unknowingly serving as J.J.'s beard. A fresh, funny, new twist on a classic fairy tale. (Fiction. 14-18)

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April 1, 2017
Gr 9 Up-Chris is a high school senior caught in a Cinderella-like role at home and afraid to reveal his sexual orientation there or anywhere else. He narrates the story of the winter when he found love, self-respect, his stepsiblings' esteem, and a true friend in fashionista drag queen Duane/Coco Chanel Jones. Clawson deftly walks a thin line between realism and wish fulfillment, and readers will happily suspend disbelief. Chris is complex, admirable, and wholly likable, while the equally sharp and more acid-tongued Duane/Coco leavens the plot with enough humor and meddling to keep Chris buoyed up even when the rich, politically poised guy of Chris's dreams-who also happens to be the designated escort of his vapid stepsister-seems to choose the closet over true love and honesty. In this endearingly reconceived version of the fairy tale, the stepmother isn't cruel but rather a thoughtless drunk, the shoe is thrown more often than simply lost, and the fairy godmother spends more time helping stepfamily members apply makeup than dolling up Chris himself. In short, it's a spot-on modern version for contemporary teens, with an artful balance of serious insights about being true to oneself and riffs on pop culture. VERDICT A fun, lighthearted YA retelling that's an especially strong choice for collections in need of LGBTQ romances.-Francisca Goldsmith, Worcester, MA

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