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A review by leelsrivers
Drag: The Complete Story (a Look at the History and Culture of Drag) by Simon Doonan
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.