THE QUEEN BEES OF TYBEE COUNTY

Bee who you’re meant to bee.

Derrick Chan, a Chinese American basketball player, is stuck spending the summer after seventh grade with his paternal grandmother in Heritage, Georgia (“the most boring place on earth”), after financial problems prevent him from attending basketball camp while his widowed father is out of town working. There Derrick befriends goth roller skater Ro and photographer Giles. He also discovers a talent for fashion and later becomes a stand-in for an absent contestant at Tybee County’s Queen Bee Junior Pageant, thanks to Grandma Claudia’s connections to the event and his ability to quickly pick up the dance routines. Derrick’s time with Grandma Claudia opens new doors that allow him to explore his sexuality, discovering unexpected feelings for his best friend and fellow b-ball player, JJ. The book tackles a lot of issues from sexuality to race (Giles is cued Black; Derrick feels isolated in his largely white environment), and while the messaging is positive, the uneven pacing undermines the connections readers should make with Derrick. In its slow moments, the plot meanders around a mysterious rift between Grandma Claudia and Derrick’s father while speeding through both Derrick’s budding friendship with Ro and Giles and his coming out. This debut by Chu, a founder of Drag Story Hour who performs as Panda Dulce, will satisfy readers looking for a light, feel-good story. Readers seeking substance may be frustrated by the two-dimensional characters and saccharine resolutions.

Original and encouraging, but inconsistently executed.