Drama Queens in the House
-
-
5.0 • 2 Ratings
-
-
- $11.99
-
- $11.99
Publisher Description
All of Jessie's world is a stage, and she's determined to become a player, in Drama Queens in the House by Julie Williams.
Sixteen-year-old Jessie Jasper Lewis doesn't remember a time in her life when she wasn't surrounded by method actors, bright spotlights, and feather boas. Her parents started the Jumble Players Theater together, and theater is the glue that holds her crazy family together. But when she discovers that her father's cheating on her mother with a man, Jessie feels like her world is toppling over. And on top of everything else, she has to deal with a delusional aunt who is predicting the end of the world. Jessie certainly doesn't feel ready to be center stage in the production that is her family. But where does she belong in all of this chaos?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Williams (Escaping Tornado Season) puts her theater background to good use in this novel about a biracial girl struggling to find her footing in life. Though Jessie Lewis was heavily involved in her parents' renowned theater company growing up, she was too busy avoiding the spotlight and helping out backstage to foster her own potential. Now that she has graduated high school with no immediate college plans despite being the youngest valedictorian in the school's history at age 15 it's her chance to discover her true passions. The only problem: family drama keeps getting in the way, including her father's affair-turned-committed-relationship with a man, her "religious fanatic" aunt Loretta's obsession with Arma-geddon, and her mother's refusal to talk about her collapsing marriage. Williams's writing style takes some getting used to words written in all capitals and Jessie's parenthetical asides can throw off the rhythm of the story. But readers with an interest in performance will particularly enjoy watching Jessie rediscover her confidence as well as her talents. Ages 12 up.
Customer Reviews
A great coming of age story!
In Drama Queens in the House, Julie Williams does a wonderful job telling the story of Jesse, a young girl who is struggling to find herself in the midst of her family – a mixed-up group of characters – and all of their drama. With the backdrop of the theater, Jesse is faced with dealing with her parents separating, her dad coming to terms with being gay, the prediction of the end of the world and so much more – all while figuring out where she fits in. Drama is an understatement!
One thing I love about this story is the multidimensional and diversity of the characters and relationships. It shows how complex humans are…how life isn’t black or white or straight or gay or bisexual even. And with all of their differences, they are still one big happy loving family! We need more books like this that represent non-traditional families.
I laughed so much while reading this book. And I found myself so impressed with Jesse and how she dealt - and sometimes didn’t deal with - life around her. I think Williams created a young character that we will read about again. Jesse grows so much in this book and I found myself at the end wanting to see what she does next.
This story is a must read for any young person (and older) who is trying to find their voice…whether they’re the youngest sibling in a big family or in the middle of their parents’ divorce or not sure what they want to do when they graduate from high school.