Freak Show by James St. James

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Billy Bloom is being sent to live with his father in Florida during his senior year of high school to attend a private school because his mother can no longer deal with him. Billy wants to fit in at his new school, but he has a penchant for being fabulous that makes it nearly impossible. Billy shows up to school in his most manly pirate outfit, but soon notices everyone at school is very conservative, straight, and mostly white. Billy is picked on, and matters get worse when the teacher steps out of the classroom and Billy is beaten so badly that he is hospitalized. Billy's crush Flip is a hunky football player, and he begins to visit Billy in the hospital. Billy realizes that the kids at school do not like people that are different, and decides the only way to change things is to nominate himself and run for Homecoming Queen. Billy is so outrageous in his campaign to become Homecoming Queen, that he makes the news and starts to win over some of his fellow students with his antics. In the end he does not get enough votes to win, but despite this, the gender-fluid teen has made his mark at his new school by accepting who he is and moving bravely forward. 

For grades 9 and up.


St. James, J. (2007). Freak show. New York: Dutton.