What a lovely and inspiring book about Chinese American families, developing queer identities, and belonging. This book highlighted how families can be a source of light but also protection that can have negative and positive outcomes. Also am always a fan of books that highlight people discovering what they’re truly good at. I think this will be such an important book for young audiences!

Representation: Queer Chinese drag artist MC

Rating: 5/5 A story set in a Southern small town, this captured the small town feel very well. I personally grew up in a small rural town, and appreciated all the small details that really brought this place to life. I LOVE Claudia, the grandmother, and her approach to life. I appreciated that while it did show the very understandable fear of being visibly queer in a small town, it also showed that not all towns are like this, and there will always be people who are on your side, rooting for you. This also touched on being Asian surrounded by majority white people, the microaggressions and racism that comes with that. This was a heartwarming middle grade story about found family from the most unexpected places.

After 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?

Oh my goodness. SUCH an awesome read!! I wish this existed when I was Derrick's age, because I feel like so many people could benefit from hearing his story.

Middle schooler Derrick has always been into basketball–that has shaped his identity so far. But Derrick also secretly likes to paint his toenails, try on makeup, and lip sync in the bathroom. When he is forced to spend the summer with his grandma in a new town, he learns that as a kid, he used to love to put on dresses and various costumes his grandmother had made. All of these revelations hit him when he sees a drag queen perform online, and he realizes that this is what he was made to do.
This was a well written book for the most part. I did not agree with the characterization of Faye–I felt that the resolutions around her were too easy and not that realistic. The ending in general was positive and everything turned out the way you hope it would in real life, but we all know that’s not how real life works. Additionally, I think this plotline would have been better if the characters had been in high school. I’m sure there are a few 7th grade boys out there somewhere who want to do drag, but generally the 7th graders I’m around in school aren’t quite there yet.

Ever since Derrick’s mother died, he has only seen his grandmother once a year, and he doesn’t know why. He is the only Chinese-American at his southern school, and the town his grandmother lives in, it is the same. He loves playing basketball, but he also loves putting on nail polish, and tying his hair up after a shower, and singing.

When his father has to take an away job, he is sent to live with his grandmother, and discovers a past he didn’t know about, which helps explain his love of dressing up, beyond just the nail polish.

And then he discovers the beauty pageant that his grandmother is organizing, and helps out with the dancing.

Sweet story of a boy coming into his own, after having the part he used to be hidden from him, by his father. Very realistic, and heartwarming.

This book is now out, though I read it as an eARC.

What a wonderful and sweet story! It is a coming-of-age story about a twelve-year-old Chinese American boy who spent his summer with his estranged grandma, Claudia. Dad had to work in another state, and Derrick was sent to live with his grandmother. During this time he discovered along the way that he always loved dressing up in dresses, wearing nail polish, and singing. He realized he was queer and loved drag. With the help of his new friends and his grandmother, he was able to shine. I loved many things aspects of this book, especially his new friends and Claudia, who loved him unconditionally and provided him the space to grow into his new identity. I loved their own vulnerability and loyalty to Derrick. I loved how he was able to be open to his best friend JJ. Additionally, I liked the fact Derrick loved to play basketball and dress in drag. I loved his mantra, "My Summer of Yes," which demonstrated how much he learned about himself.  I loved that he had a new relationship with his grandmother that was safe and loving. I loved how he learned to love his Chinese heritage. And finally, he was brave enough to compete in drag in a beauty pageant. Brave to show his dad that he was queer, safe and loved.  Overall, this was a beautiful, heartwarming, and sweet story about a boy on a journey to find himself. Damn, I loved this book. I highly recommend it!!  Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my ARC.

Thank you to Quill Tree Books and Harper Collins Children for the gifted eARC. My opinions are my own.

This is an incredibly sweet middle grade story about a young boy who is sent to stay with his grandmother for the summer and finds himself through new friends, old memories, a pageant, and the power of drag.

Read for:
- figuring out self
- young teen boy
- drag
- supportive grandmother
- small town
- found family

My thoughts:
This is a sweet story about Derrick, a young Asian teen, who is dealing with balancing the desire to please his dad with his basketball skills (which he has plenty of) and his love of painted nails, dresses, and liking his best friend more than as just a friend. Claudia is one of my favorite characters - her level of spite and pettiness in the face of small town micro-aggressions is at the level I aspire to not give a flying duck about what others think about me. I loved Derrick’s new friends and hope that they maintain their friendship after the summer ends. But this story focuses on Derrick’s summer of yes, and his journey of finding himself.

Highly recommend this story for young teens.

I loved this coming of age story. Really good characters. I really enjoyed this sweet story about a boy trying to find his place in the world.

A sweet coming of age story about a Chinese American 7th grade basketball player who is forced to spend the summer with his grandmother in rural Tybee County, Georgia, instead of attending basketball camp. Over the course of the summer, dubbed the Summer of Yes, Derrick Chan comes out as queer and as a drag queen in the supportive environment provided by his grandmother, Claudia, and his new-found friends, Ro, and the openly gay, Giles. In the course of the summer, Derrick uncovers secrets about his family and gains a sense of self by daring to participate in the Tybee Queen Bees pageant. He ends up much wiser and more confident because of his experiences over the summer and the risks he has taken by participating in the pageant in drag.

The book is written for middle-grade readers and provides wonderful support and encouragement for any young people who are going through the difficult process of coming out in a society still much too filled with hatred. The ending is unabashedly upbeat and Derrick ends up closer to his father and is able to reconcile his life in his hometown with his life in Tybee County.

The book gets points for discussing the plight of being the only Asian American family in a small town in the South--not only is there homophobia but also racism that stunts the growth of Claudia and Derrick's father, Carson.

In support of its positive message for queer teens, the book does wrap things up neatly and the ending is predictable. Derrick's age is not specifically referenced but he is just finishing seventh grade. I would have found the plot more believable if Derrick had ben a couple of years older. The book is decently written will serve well its target demographic (of which I freely admit that I am not a member).

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

I loved this book! I loved meeting Derrick Chan, his best friend JJ, grandmother Claudia, and the new friends he meets in Heritage, Georgia.

I loved his journey of self-discovery brought by reconnecting with his grandmother and learning more about his mother and his favorite things as a young child. I really enjoyed how he was able to integrate the two sides of himself that he didn't think he would ever be able to, and that he tried drag and was accepted by his best friend and his father.

I was very excited to read this book, and I was not disappointed! As someone who has read many queer middle grade novels, I am sure this is going to be a book that is going to be constantly recommended. I think this book will be great for someone who is middle grade age who may not be aware of the queer community, but at times I do wish there were more descriptions about drag queens and their important history and contributions to the queer community. This is very much just a personal preference, but I think a younger audience could benefit from having more insight into queer history. Overall I think this book was amazing, I think middle grade aged kids will love it, as a older teen I do with there was more depth to characters, but really, I just loved the story so much that I wanted it to get to know all the characters even more.

This was a heartwarming coming of age story. This story is so important especially in our current society.

I loved all the different forms of representation whether it be from the queer community or your heritage.

This book had plenty of humor and tender moments that kept a smile on my face the entire time. It was the perfect length and combined all my favorite things.

This would make a cute little movie!

i rarely read MiddleGrade books but i found this one awesomely well written, showcasing our protagonist's self expression and finding his identity in pageants, as well as falling in love with his best friend JJ. 5 stars. tysm for the arc.

I absolutely adored this middle grade novel about Derrick Chan, a Chinese American gender-nonconforming tween boy who loves basketball and tries to please his father but also secretly loves wearing nail polish and dressing in drag.

When Derrick goes to spend the summer with his grandmother Claudia in small town Georgia, he gets caught up in her beauty pageant work and even enters one himself as his drag persona, Bee Daring. This book is all about self-acceptance, queer joy, embracing your true self and living your truth.

It also doesn't shy away from tough topics like coming out to a parent, homophobia and anti-Asian racism but the overall message is so important!! Highly recommended for fans of books like Martin McLean, middle school queen or Middle school's a drag.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

Seventh-grader Chinese-American Derrick Chan has decided that this summer is going to be the Summer of Yes. This summer he'll uncover family secrets, make new friends, and embrace the part of himself that he has kept hidden, the part of himself that paints his toenails and eyes his grandma's silk cheongsam with longing. Derrick, inspired by his Grandma Claudia and with the support of his new friends, decides that if he is going to stand out, he's going to do it on his own terms. This sweet story of self-acceptance tackles racism and homophobia, unpacking what is means to be the only Chinese-American person or the only queer person in your town and how these identities intersect and compound.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for letting me a read an advanced digital copy of this book.

I was so impressed with this heartfelt and courageous book! Derrick is a skilled point guard on his middle school basketball team who makes a championship game winning shot at the beginning of the book. He lives with his single dad in Georgia, and his dad wants Derrick to continue to focus on basketball and develop his skills. While Derrick loves basketball, he can't help but think something is missing from his life, something that will make him feel whole. When the opportunity comes up for Derrick to spend the summer with his eccentric grandmother Claudia, his dad is a bit concerned, but Derrick finally starts discovering who he really is.

What a beautiful book this is. Truly. My heart warmed for Derrick, and I was rooting for him so much throughout the entire book. His questions and feelings about his identity and then finding what made him content and comfortable in his own body was handled with such care. As readers we relate to all the emotions Derrick feels. His confusion at first over why wearing nail polish and dresses made him feel a certain way, but then he grows to embrace and love his queer identity and wearing drag. He makes terrific friends and his relationship with his one of a kind, quirky and tenacious grandmother is excellent.

This is a story about identity, acceptance, family bonds, and so much more. I really enjoyed this book. Recommended for ages 10+.

Chu has done an excellent job crafting a novel that emphasizes the experiences of queer children. Derrick's coming out story isn't a "perfect Hollywood coming out," it's messy, hard, and done in waves as he feels more comfortable sharing his identity with others. The story felt real and validating as it emphasized that there's no one right way to be queer and that acceptance of oneself doesn't come all at once or naturally. Hopefully this book will further an understanding of gender expression for both youth and adult readers. An obvious recommendation for fans of drag queen middle grade like Martin McLean, Middle School Queen or Middle School's a Drag, You Better Werk, this book is also an essential part of the larger queer middle grade canon, especially as it features a young Asian boy experimenting with his gender expression while receiving some familial support.

Thank you HarperCollins and Netgalley for this eARC, these opinions are my own. Derrick Chan plays basketball but he also like to wear nail polish on his toes. Though he keeps that secret from everyone including his dad. When he gets sent to his estranged grandma for the summer he’ll get introduced to the world of beauty pageants. He’s fascinated with the dresses, the fabrics and sequins. He also meets Ro who is a pageant girl and Giles who identifies as queer. The two help Derrick navigate the world of pageants and help him figure out his feelings for his friend JJ. Can pageants help him figure out who he is? How will his dad and JJ react? A sweet middle grade debut with a lot of heart, self-discovery, and charm! Highly recommend this beautiful told story!

One of the most gorgeously written debuts i’ve read. Derricks journey of self discovery and acceptance is gorgeous and truly inspiring. The characters were incredibly fleshed out and fun!

Despite the fact that I am a Youth Librarian, I rarely go out of my way to read something classed as juvenile fiction but I have never been so glad that I was allowed to read this ARC by Kyle Casey Chu. It seems to be a rare occurrence that we get a book that supports queer children while still letting them be children but Chu did just that with "The Queen Bees of Tybee County". Gender expression is still a big sticking point for a lot of hateful conservative people, particularly when we talk about minors wanting to express themselves as anything other than the gender they were assigned at birth.

Chu doesn't shy away from this at all in his book, letting Derrick find himself through the world of pageantry. Anyone who has ever felt like they don't particularly fit with the gender they were born with will love the support that Derrick finds among his new friends & his Grandma. This book also explores how racism impacts multiple generations, and how that intersects with queerness. This book was worth every moment that I put into reading it, and I know that some kids will find this to be the push they need to accept themselves.

I can't wait to see what the future brings for Chu and any additional things he might write.