The Queen Bees of Tybee County by Kyle Casey Chu Published by HarperCollins Publishers on April 9, 2025
Genres: Juvenile Fiction / LGBTQ, Juvenile Fiction / People & Places / United States / Asian American & Pacific Islander, Juvenile Fiction / Social Themes / Adolescence & Coming of Age, Juvenile Fiction / Social Themes / Emotions & Feelings, Juvenile Fiction / Social Themes / Self-Esteem & Self-Reliance
Pages: 320
Format: ARC
ISBN: 9780063326958After making the buzzer-beating shot at the Georgia basketball state championships, Derrick Chan becomes the star of Bayard Middle School, and Derrick's single dad could not be prouder. But there are parts of Derrick that no one knows about, like the toenail polish he wears under his basketball sneakers, his secret lip-sync performances in the bathroom mirror, and the feelings he's developing for his best friend and teammate, JJ.
As the school year comes to a close, Derrick's dad takes an out-of-town job and ships Derrick off to spend the summer with his estranged, eccentric grandmother, Claudia. Soon, Claudia introduces Derrick to the world of small-town southern beauty pageants, and Derrick suddenly feels he's found where he belongs. But when the opportunity arises to compete in the town pageant, Derrick is forced to decide just how much of himself he's ready to show the world. Can he learn to love and accept the most unique parts of himself? And what will happen if others--like his father and JJ--can't do the same?
This book is like a big bear hug you need on a day you’re feeling down about yourself! So adorable, I couldn’t not love it.
I don’t usually read middle grade books but when I read the description for this, I knew I had to read it. It’s definitely age appropriate for middle grade, so any parents (guardians, aunts/uncles, grandparents) who are in need of a book recommendation for the pre-teens in their life, I highly recommend this novel. I will also say that it’s a fun and healing book for adults too, at least it was for me.
Granted, I am still white and don’t have racism or xenophobia to deal with on the day to day. However, reading about Derrick growing into his true self was a salve to child Darcy.
Even though Derrick was the focus, the secondary characters weren’t given the short end of the stick. Giles and Ro as Derrick’s friends in Tybee County were everything, and even though I love my grandma beyond words, I would still love to be adopted by Claudia as well. She sounds like a hoot and so much fun!
Even the ending of the novel was done so well. Derrick and his father had a real talk, as well as Derrick’s father and grandma. Plus, I love how even though there were some people angry about Der-apologies, Bee Daring performing in the beauty pageant, I appreciated that it didn’t take away Bee’s joy from performing.
There’s always going to be people who don’t like who you are, but our joy can and should be louder than their hate.
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