By: Libba Bray
Format: Hardcover, 390 pages
Published: May 24, 2011; Scholastic Press
Source: Received at BEA
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Synopsis (from Goodreads): From bestselling, Printz Award-winning author Libba Bray, the story of a plane of beauty pageant contestants that crashes on a desert island.
Teen beauty queens. A "Lost"-like island. Mysteries and dangers. No access to email. And the spirit of fierce, feral competition that lives underground in girls, a savage brutality that can only be revealed by a journey into the heart of non-exfoliated darkness. Oh, the horror, the horror! Only funnier. With evening gowns. And a body count.
My Review: Like a master juggler, Libba Bray manages to keep track of a large cast of characters, tackle some serious issues, and inject some seriously funny satire in Beauty Queens.
I read this book after a rather serious read, and it took a few chapters for my brain to shift into the mode that would allow me to see this book for what it was. It starts out with a pretty serious satire against commercialism and corporate control. Much of the dialogue (both inner and outer) between the characters is extremely entertaining and surprising.
I am absolutely fascinated by the dynamics of women when they are in a group. It takes just a matter of moments for a pecking order to be established. Libba absolutely nails this dynamic in a way that is both funny and very real. Once I got into this book, I breezed through the next three-quarters of the book.
And then it's like the story kind of started to fall apart. I felt like many of the social issues that Libba was trying to tackle became overdone. The sexuality became much more overt. And the story just started to lose its luster. There were a few funny passages here and there, but overall, the last 100 pages just weren't impressive. I ended up skimming most of it.
I was specifically bugged by the not-so-subtle comparison of Ladybird Hope to Sarah Palin. Without getting really political in this review, I'm just really tired of Sarah Palin. I'm tired of the bashing, making fun, and media attention. I'm tired of seeing her on the news and will she run for president, what will she do, OMG what's in her email?! So, instead of just taking Ladybird Hope for what she was, I was just annoyed.
I know that many readers have adored this book, and while I think that it had some redeeming qualities, I think it's best if we just remain friends.
My rating:
Profanity: Frequent
Sexuality: Lots
Violence: Death is pretty frequent
Drugs and Alcohol: One of the fruits eaten on the island gets the beauty queens high, and there is underage drinking
