Becoming a queen

A queer Annandale, Mich., teen navigating grief finds solace while performing in drag in this sensitive exploration of sexual identity, Clay's debut. Seventeen-year-old Mark Davis's parents often make him feel like he's a poor imitation of his high-achieving older brother, Eric, a first-year Northwestern student. Mark also feels like he's "too gay, too much" for his ex-boyfriend, who dumped Mark after he performed at a talent show in drag. When an incipient courtship with newcomer Ezra Ambrose seems to be going too well, Mark's constant self-doubt causes panic, and he ghosts Ezra. With Eric's encouragement that relationships should make you "wanna be more of yourself," Mark patches things up with Ezra. While the boys' fresh romance fills Mark with joy, he's distressed by Eric's frequent drinking and its tragic consequences. As Mark contends with intense feelings of listlessness, he also reckons with his reemerging insecurities about attending a winter dance in a dress. A mosaic of well-drawn characters, including endlessly supportive Eric, patient and compassionate Ezra, and vulnerable and creative Mark, people this realistically rendered telling about healing, loss, and self-acceptance. Major characters cue as white. Ages 12--up. (Apr.)

Hiding one's true self from others only leads to problems. Gay Michigan teen Mark Davis' world is rocked when he has to wear a dress as part of a basketball team talent show entry and discovers how much he loves it. This discovery ultimately leads to the end of his two-year relationship with his boyfriend and fellow classmate, John, because of John's internalized homophobia. The angst of first love is quickly forgotten, however, when 17-year-old Mark meets classmate Ezra Ambrose in a Halloween store where Mark is shyly hiding from classmates as he prepares to buy another dress. Mark's journey into the world of drag coincides with his college student brother Eric's self-destructive descent into alcohol abuse--a descent with tragic ramifications. It's a complicated story but one that buoys up well thanks to its mix of humor and realism. Readers who love wit that practically crackles with energy will be drawn to Mark's first-person narration and may be surprised by the depths of emotion in his story. The book will be appreciated by adult caregivers for its frank observations about substance abuse and the many facets of and societal messages about masculinity. There's a lot that happens, but that's life, right? Characters default to White. Enjoyable, tragic, and very real. (Fiction. 13-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.