Kyle Casey Chu, aka Panda Dulce, a founding queen of Drag Story Hour, continues the tale of 13-year-old Derrick Chan in this sequel to The Queen Bees of Tybee County. After a summer spent at his grandmother’s, where he learned to embrace his queer identity and the art of drag, Derrick is back home preparing for his final middle school basketball season. He and best friend JJ have long planned their basketball careers together, moving from middle school to scholarships at a private high school, then on to Div I college ball.
Derrick hasn’t come out to his teammates, though, and his coach’s homophobic son makes him hesitate to do so. And although he confessed his crush on JJ at the end of the first volume, he is awaiting a response as JJ ponders his own identity. JJ has been hanging out more with the coach’s son and other members of the team, however, and Derrick feels that he and JJ are growing apart.
When his team makes the state tournament, Derrick arranges for them to stay at the same hotel where his favorite drag performer, teen sensation Juana Fanta, is performing. He plans to see her and sneak back to the tournament—but she suddenly goes missing, and Derrick takes it upon himself to find her. He doesn’t feel he can let JJ in on what he’s doing, though, and JJ is becoming increasingly reluctant to cover for him.
As Derrick tries to find her, keep his commitment to his team, and manage his two separate lives, he ends up on a personal journey towards greater self-awareness about what he really wants for his future. JJ makes his own journey as well, both about what he feels towards Derrick and about standing up to other teammates’ homophobia, while Juana Fanta also finds herself reconsidering her goals. Each character’s self-growth is personal, but ultimately aided by their connections to friends and community.
I appreciate again that Derrick continues to love both drag and basketball; Chu avoids the stereotype of a queer boy preferring fashion and drag to sports. Derrick is instead a nerdy, drag-loving athlete learning to balance all of those aspects of himself. Similarly, Juana Fanta blurs traditional gender boundaries, not only with her love of drag but also as a femme with a love of STEM subjects, even incorporating technology into her costumes.
Vivid scenes with various drag queens feel authentic, clearly derived from Chu’s own experiences; both drag shows and basketball games are described with energy and excitement. Chu is most lyrical when talking about drag, though; for example, telling us that drag is “like finding all of those parts you were made to feel ashamed of and turning them into power. Blowing it up, throwing sequins on it.” That’s as good a description as I’ve ever heard.
The book weaves in some explanation at the beginning for readers who haven’t read the first volume or have forgotten some details, but will probably have more impact for those who have been along for Derrick’s whole journey. Both are recommended titles.
Derrick is Chinese American and Juana Fanta is Latina. One boy in the book is implied to be bi, and a trans boy plays a minor role, shedding light on another facet of the queer community.
