Hello and happy Saturday. I just typed the title and giggled because it sounds like I’m going to write an opinion piece on beauty pageants. I’m not going to do that, don’t worry, but just so you know, when I was in middle school I won a debate and I was on the pro-pageant team. What I’m going to do is tell you about the novel Beauty Queens by Libba Bray.

I’m pretty sure this is a retelling or re-imagining, or at leas somewhat based on Lord of the Flies, but since I haven’t read the source material, I can’t tell you how accurate it is. I honestly don’t mind that and I don’t read retellings or re-imaginings to compare them to the original piece; each work is the result of the creativity and effort of the author and is an original piece in and of itself. The premise of Lord of the Flies is that a plane crashed and the only survivors were a bunch of kids who had to figure out how to live in this deserted island, setting their own rules, and the challenges that come with that. Beauty Queens is that, but with, you guessed it, beauty queens.

If you want a YA book that is not centered on romance and that discusses different political and social issues in a satirical way, then this is the novel for you. Beauty Queens was published in 2011 or 2012, but let me tell you, it is so relevant to the reality of our world that it could’ve been published this year. Like I said, it deals with political and social issues, so you can expect a diverse cast of characters in terms of sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, race, ethnicity, socio-economic backgrounds, and it was done so tastefully that I am sure Libba Bray spent a long time doing her research.

In terms of the writing style, my literature teacher from high school comes to mind. He used to describe some novels to be written in a “cinematographic” way, and I feel that with Beauty Queens. It’s not just that you can picture what is going on, but you can see it being turned into a TV show.

Now, I don’t like beauty pageants or that whole industry, but I love it when it’s turned into a satire, Miss Congeniality-style. I can also think of this movie by Kirsten Dunst… Drop Dead Gorgeous (I had to google it). The narration style reminded me of Orange Is the New Black (the show, not the book) because it alternates between current day and the individual backstory of each character. I think that was so beautifully done that all the major characters were likable, and even relatable. When reading the action scenes, I was reminded of the Rebel Belle series by Rachel Hawkins, so if you liked that series, you’re probably going to enjoy Beauty Queens.