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therainbowshelf's review against another edition
informative
fast-paced
3.0
This is an interesting overview of drag, but not really “the complete story” as the subtitle claims. The author speeds through name drops, glosses over topic explanations, and uses many art terms that are not accessible by non-art-scene folks like he wants drag to stay exclusive to that community. Lots of interesting info and photos, and much deeper dives with great info in the last two chapters. I wish the rest of the book was more like the last two chapters.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Homophobia, Transphobia, Racism, and Misogyny
wildgurl's review against another edition
4.0
From Caligula to Julian Eltinge to RuPaul, (and so many many more), this history of Drag was absolutely fantastic. Filled with so many great photos, quotes, and with much wit and humor, this is a historical and cultural book of the history of drag that should be on every coffee table, everywhere. Drag has evolved so much over the years. I never realized there were so many different themes, so many talented and unique performers with such varied pasts, and lives. It was a fascinating peek into a lifestyle and a world of individuality, uniqueness, glamour, glitz, humor and amazing personalities. At the end of this book, is a list of biographies of many of the drag queens/kings and more books about the history of drag, and I hope I can find them all.
A Must read.
A Must read.
leelsrivers's review against another edition
3.0
This book is really a misnomer. It is very much an incomplete story. In fact, it hardly scratches the surface of drag. I would say what it covers is quite broad, but not very deep (and coupled with the writing style, I would even use the word “shallow” to describe it). There are little nuggets of information that leave you wanting to learn more about the historical figures and contemporary drag artists, as well as do your own research (read: google the performances mentioned). But ultimately, I wanted every section to be at least three times longer and the writing more academic.
Don’t get me wrong, it is a stunning book. The gorgeous photographs and paper quality are its best assets. It's a joy to hold this book in your hands and flip through its pages. It will make a perfect coffee table book for those who own a coffee table. And I do not regret putting it on my shelf and will undoubtedly come back to flip through its pages in the future.
However, Choices were made.
My biggest problem is that [b:Drag: The Complete Story|42284074|Drag The Complete Story (A Look at the History and Culture of Drag)|Simon Doonan|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1554137066l/42284074._SX50_.jpg|65921037] is very much its author’s book. I didn’t like the language, every other word choice felt grating to me. I was perplexed by the structure. The division into Glamour Drag, Art Drag, Radical Drag etc. felt pretty arbitrary to me and I would put these sections in a different order anyway. In general, it seemed pretty chaotic. I also don’t think that the framing of certain chapters that relied on psychoanalysis (e.g. a glamour drag queen as Freud’s Medusa symbol. What?) worked for me personally.
I feel that Simon Doonan is from a vastly different generation and cultural background than I am. I do appreciate how much of his personal experiences he included in the story, especially as someone who has been keeping up with drag since the 1960s. He is really trying to be inclusive, but there is no excuse that I had to read the phrase "biologically intact females" with my own two eyes, more than once(!). He also seems to really emphasize the birth names, pronouns, and sexual orientations of the people he writes about; and while it worked in some contexts, it mostly looked like a weird thing to focus on. Plus, I feel like he unintentionally ended up deadnaming a couple of people.
If you don’t know much about drag and want an entertaining introduction and you are not scared of some dated queer language or British slang, you will probably like this book far more than I did. Otherwise, enjoy the pictures, but proceed with caution.
Don’t get me wrong, it is a stunning book. The gorgeous photographs and paper quality are its best assets. It's a joy to hold this book in your hands and flip through its pages. It will make a perfect coffee table book for those who own a coffee table. And I do not regret putting it on my shelf and will undoubtedly come back to flip through its pages in the future.
However, Choices were made.
My biggest problem is that [b:Drag: The Complete Story|42284074|Drag The Complete Story (A Look at the History and Culture of Drag)|Simon Doonan|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1554137066l/42284074._SX50_.jpg|65921037] is very much its author’s book. I didn’t like the language, every other word choice felt grating to me. I was perplexed by the structure. The division into Glamour Drag, Art Drag, Radical Drag etc. felt pretty arbitrary to me and I would put these sections in a different order anyway. In general, it seemed pretty chaotic. I also don’t think that the framing of certain chapters that relied on psychoanalysis (e.g. a glamour drag queen as Freud’s Medusa symbol. What?) worked for me personally.
I feel that Simon Doonan is from a vastly different generation and cultural background than I am. I do appreciate how much of his personal experiences he included in the story, especially as someone who has been keeping up with drag since the 1960s. He is really trying to be inclusive, but there is no excuse that I had to read the phrase "biologically intact females" with my own two eyes, more than once(!). He also seems to really emphasize the birth names, pronouns, and sexual orientations of the people he writes about; and while it worked in some contexts, it mostly looked like a weird thing to focus on. Plus, I feel like he unintentionally ended up deadnaming a couple of people.
If you don’t know much about drag and want an entertaining introduction and you are not scared of some dated queer language or British slang, you will probably like this book far more than I did. Otherwise, enjoy the pictures, but proceed with caution.
roguemedvsa's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
4.75
mx_madster's review against another edition
5.0
It took me a little while to get used to the fact that this work is not chronological, but rather examines subgenres of drag in their own individual chapters. In spite of organizational confusion, this was a remarkably comprehensive work.
Occasionally some turns of phrase gave me pause - commenting on marginalization equating to cultural cachet stuck out to me specifically - but I was glad to see Doonan doing the work to use accurate pronouns and be respectful of individual’s self-actualization, identity, and wishes.
Occasionally some turns of phrase gave me pause - commenting on marginalization equating to cultural cachet stuck out to me specifically - but I was glad to see Doonan doing the work to use accurate pronouns and be respectful of individual’s self-actualization, identity, and wishes.
timbooksin's review against another edition
2.0
(Looks like I'm the unpopular opinion here...) This is a coffee table book, not, as the subtitle suggests, a complete story of drag and its herstory. There were some good little learning nuggets in here but I take issue with how forms of drag were classified and discussed, especially black drag. To go beyond serving a vanity purpose, this book would need to be completely reorganized and include thorough references. Not that I don't love a good picture book of drag queens and other gender performers! And I love that the author is so celebratory. But I can't help but feel that this story is anything but complete.
emilysbookblog's review against another edition
3.0
Drag: The Complete Story (A Look at the History and Culture of Drag) by Simon Doonan (3.5 stars) is a beautiful coffee table book with a brief history of drag.
Drag is expression, it's transformation, it's a way of communicating like nothing else. The book details some of the world of drag from the twentieth century to today and spanning sophisticated drag to bizarre expressions. The beautiful photos are really what bring Drag: The Complete Story to life. I enjoyed that Doonan did include a brief introduction to Drag Kings and the information about the transgender community.
I am by no means a Drag Queen history expert but, I can say that Iearned very little this "complete story" about drag. I enjoyed the historical references and old photos. But with the current queens, I feel like so much was skimmed off the surface. A lot of opportunities were missed. Often there was just name dropping when I think a small interview or quote would have made the section so much more impactful.
Though Doonan apologizes for this in the beginning of the book, I had issues with some of the wording in the book. I feel like more research could have been done to avoid the usage of incorrect pronouns for the performers. Also, so many of these amazing queens fall into more than one category of drag so it made the whole book feel like a bit of a sloppy mess. A fellow reviewer reported that Legendary Children is so much of what I hoped this book would be, so I can't wait to read that one.
Anyways, Drag: The Complete Story serves as a good introduction to the wild world of drag; it's good for someone just wanting to dip their toes in.
Drag is expression, it's transformation, it's a way of communicating like nothing else. The book details some of the world of drag from the twentieth century to today and spanning sophisticated drag to bizarre expressions. The beautiful photos are really what bring Drag: The Complete Story to life. I enjoyed that Doonan did include a brief introduction to Drag Kings and the information about the transgender community.
I am by no means a Drag Queen history expert but, I can say that Iearned very little this "complete story" about drag. I enjoyed the historical references and old photos. But with the current queens, I feel like so much was skimmed off the surface. A lot of opportunities were missed. Often there was just name dropping when I think a small interview or quote would have made the section so much more impactful.
Though Doonan apologizes for this in the beginning of the book, I had issues with some of the wording in the book. I feel like more research could have been done to avoid the usage of incorrect pronouns for the performers. Also, so many of these amazing queens fall into more than one category of drag so it made the whole book feel like a bit of a sloppy mess. A fellow reviewer reported that Legendary Children is so much of what I hoped this book would be, so I can't wait to read that one.
Anyways, Drag: The Complete Story serves as a good introduction to the wild world of drag; it's good for someone just wanting to dip their toes in.