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Jackson Bright in the Spotlight
From drag superstar Eureka O’Hara and bestselling author Dan Poblocki comes a beautiful, buoyant middle-grade novel about a boy who enters a local pageant—as a drag queen!
When Jackson Bright wears a dress to the last day of school, he expects to be complimented on the cute polka-dot design. Instead, he gets sent to the principal’s office. Jackson doesn’t know why people are saying that he needs to “dress like a boy.” And with all the discussions of “dressing like a boy” and “dressing like a girl,” he wonders where people like his best friend Eva, who’s nonbinary, fit into all of this. Or why he felt so confident and happy while wearing that dress.
So when Jackson sees a flyer for the town’s beloved Little Miss pageant, he comes up with a plan: dress in drag in order to compete and show the town just how fabulous he can be! More than anything, though, he wants to push the boundaries of gender and learn how to better support Eva and other nonbinary kids like them, which is harder than he realizes.
Before he knows it, he’s thrust into a world of rhinestone gowns and fiercely applied makeup. With the help of Eva and Uncle Aaron, Jackson scrambles to come up with an array of dazzling costumes, a crowd-winning speech, and a killer talent act.
As he navigates the ups and downs of the competition—all while keeping his real identity a secret and hiding a growing crush on his rival’s brother—Jackson will have to figure out how to stand beside his friend and show his small town that #nonbinaryteaisvalid, unpack questions about his family and identity that he’s been hiding from, and learn how to stay true to himself and hold his head high no matter what!
When Jackson Bright wears a dress to the last day of school, he expects to be complimented on the cute polka-dot design. Instead, he gets sent to the principal’s office. Jackson doesn’t know why people are saying that he needs to “dress like a boy.” And with all the discussions of “dressing like a boy” and “dressing like a girl,” he wonders where people like his best friend Eva, who’s nonbinary, fit into all of this. Or why he felt so confident and happy while wearing that dress.
So when Jackson sees a flyer for the town’s beloved Little Miss pageant, he comes up with a plan: dress in drag in order to compete and show the town just how fabulous he can be! More than anything, though, he wants to push the boundaries of gender and learn how to better support Eva and other nonbinary kids like them, which is harder than he realizes.
Before he knows it, he’s thrust into a world of rhinestone gowns and fiercely applied makeup. With the help of Eva and Uncle Aaron, Jackson scrambles to come up with an array of dazzling costumes, a crowd-winning speech, and a killer talent act.
As he navigates the ups and downs of the competition—all while keeping his real identity a secret and hiding a growing crush on his rival’s brother—Jackson will have to figure out how to stand beside his friend and show his small town that #nonbinaryteaisvalid, unpack questions about his family and identity that he’s been hiding from, and learn how to stay true to himself and hold his head high no matter what!
288 pages, Hardcover
First published October 21, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 23, 2025
3.5* rounded up.
Okay, confession: I enjoyed this book's message, and had a good time with it. That said, I live under a rock, and all I knew about the author was that she had been on Drag Race, and that she had at some point detransitioned and then retransitioned, and that some people have feelings about that, though I am not one of them. In reading Jackson Bright, I had a good time overall, but I was uncomfortable with how often this predominantly white cast, with one Filipino character (they're nonbinary and I don't know if there's an appropriately gender-neutral form of that word), uses language that originates in the Black community.
Now, I do understand that a lot of this language as bled into the drag scene overall, and that much could be said about it that goes beyond the scope of a random book review. However, when I sat down to write this, I decided to look into a little more about the author. If you're not familiar with the Eureka O'Hara, she... seems to have a lot going on her life. I'm honestly not going to try to recap, but what I will say is that I continue to feel uncomfortable with the extent to which this book's majority-white cast uses language from ballroom culture.
Otherwise, I liked the messages in Jackson's story. I appreciated that there's a clear distinction between Jackson's crossdressing DUMPLIN'-adjacent journey and trans identity, which comes up a couple of times in different ways. This was a solid middle grade story about gender expectations, with a larger MC, who just wants to wear colorful clothes and experiment with who he is vs. who other people tell him he should be. There was some pretty serious stuff going on with his family, most of which is off-page but which added some additional complexity to the book. I'm sure a jillion people will try to ban this, despite the fact that it challenges so few societal norms beyond the more basic structures of the gender binary.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book.
Okay, confession: I enjoyed this book's message, and had a good time with it. That said, I live under a rock, and all I knew about the author was that she had been on Drag Race, and that she had at some point detransitioned and then retransitioned, and that some people have feelings about that, though I am not one of them. In reading Jackson Bright, I had a good time overall, but I was uncomfortable with how often this predominantly white cast, with one Filipino character (they're nonbinary and I don't know if there's an appropriately gender-neutral form of that word), uses language that originates in the Black community.
Now, I do understand that a lot of this language as bled into the drag scene overall, and that much could be said about it that goes beyond the scope of a random book review. However, when I sat down to write this, I decided to look into a little more about the author. If you're not familiar with the Eureka O'Hara, she... seems to have a lot going on her life. I'm honestly not going to try to recap, but what I will say is that I continue to feel uncomfortable with the extent to which this book's majority-white cast uses language from ballroom culture.
Otherwise, I liked the messages in Jackson's story. I appreciated that there's a clear distinction between Jackson's crossdressing DUMPLIN'-adjacent journey and trans identity, which comes up a couple of times in different ways. This was a solid middle grade story about gender expectations, with a larger MC, who just wants to wear colorful clothes and experiment with who he is vs. who other people tell him he should be. There was some pretty serious stuff going on with his family, most of which is off-page but which added some additional complexity to the book. I'm sure a jillion people will try to ban this, despite the fact that it challenges so few societal norms beyond the more basic structures of the gender binary.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book.
July 27, 2025
E ARC provided by Netgalley
Jackson is an exuberant middle schooler who causes an inadvertent ruckus on the last day of school when he spills juice on his outfit and borrows a polka dot dress from his best friend Eva's older sister. He's given a hard time by bullies, and one particularly nasty teacher, Miss Helton, takes him to the principal. His mother is called, and she is NOT happy... with the school. She supports Jackson, and is angry that she had to step away from work. Jackson's father has lost his job and is depressed, so the family needs to money. Eva, who is nonbinary and uses they/them pronous, supports Jackson as well. When the two friends are shopping at a thrift store, they see an advertisement for a beauty pageant, and Jackson decides that he will enter in disguise. He and Eva come up with a name, Sissy St. James, and when Jackson's uncle Aaron visits, he signs the permission slip and helps Jackson with his makeup and costuming. The talent portion of the program is hard, but Jackson works to improve his performance. There are plenty of problems along the way, but Aaron and Eva are always supportive. Jackson has a crush on a boy, Lucas, whose sister is competing in the pageant, which complicates things a little. Jackson is eventually found out, but there are no rules that say that boys can't compete. What will his parents think when they find out?
Strengths: Poblocki is best known for his horror titles, so this is an interesting change for him. Jackson and Eva are fast friends who come up with a plan and implement it, even though there are some problems along the way. There's even some very realistic friend drama. Jackson's parents and uncle are supportive, even if there are some pretty pressing problems that are worrying everyone. It was good to see that the principal was reasonable, even if Miss Helton (who had also taught Aaron) was rather evil. Readers who find pageants interesting will find plenty to love here, as will students who find drag performing intriguing.
Weaknesses: Since I have never had a student participate in a pageant (I'm not even sure if there are any in our area), the appeal of this might be limited at my school.
What I really think: This was very similar to Chu's Queen Bees of Tybee County and joins the list of middle grade novels involving drag performance like Leahy's Mallory in Full Color, Howard's Middle School's a Drag, You Better Werk, and Zaczek's Martin McLean, Middle School Queen.
Jackson is an exuberant middle schooler who causes an inadvertent ruckus on the last day of school when he spills juice on his outfit and borrows a polka dot dress from his best friend Eva's older sister. He's given a hard time by bullies, and one particularly nasty teacher, Miss Helton, takes him to the principal. His mother is called, and she is NOT happy... with the school. She supports Jackson, and is angry that she had to step away from work. Jackson's father has lost his job and is depressed, so the family needs to money. Eva, who is nonbinary and uses they/them pronous, supports Jackson as well. When the two friends are shopping at a thrift store, they see an advertisement for a beauty pageant, and Jackson decides that he will enter in disguise. He and Eva come up with a name, Sissy St. James, and when Jackson's uncle Aaron visits, he signs the permission slip and helps Jackson with his makeup and costuming. The talent portion of the program is hard, but Jackson works to improve his performance. There are plenty of problems along the way, but Aaron and Eva are always supportive. Jackson has a crush on a boy, Lucas, whose sister is competing in the pageant, which complicates things a little. Jackson is eventually found out, but there are no rules that say that boys can't compete. What will his parents think when they find out?
Strengths: Poblocki is best known for his horror titles, so this is an interesting change for him. Jackson and Eva are fast friends who come up with a plan and implement it, even though there are some problems along the way. There's even some very realistic friend drama. Jackson's parents and uncle are supportive, even if there are some pretty pressing problems that are worrying everyone. It was good to see that the principal was reasonable, even if Miss Helton (who had also taught Aaron) was rather evil. Readers who find pageants interesting will find plenty to love here, as will students who find drag performing intriguing.
Weaknesses: Since I have never had a student participate in a pageant (I'm not even sure if there are any in our area), the appeal of this might be limited at my school.
What I really think: This was very similar to Chu's Queen Bees of Tybee County and joins the list of middle grade novels involving drag performance like Leahy's Mallory in Full Color, Howard's Middle School's a Drag, You Better Werk, and Zaczek's Martin McLean, Middle School Queen.
January 19, 2026
"Would you ever hide a part of yourself to fit in with your peers? Why or why not?"
When a pageant interviewer poses this question to protagonist Jackson Bright in his pageant alias of Sissy, I think that Jackson's answer forms the heart of this book. The message is also incredibly relevant and timely, given the brutal oppression that's being directed against transgender and non-binary individuals.
"I would absolutely hide part of myself to fit in ... We live in a world where people can be ... incredibly cruel. When so many of us kids don't even know who we are yet, but we're constantly testing what feels right and what feels true. And for some of us, what is right and what is true isn't necessarily what is safe. ...
"If there were a part of me that I worried might make my friends and peers look at me differently, I'd probably hide it, dress it up to try to fit in better. But ...
"But that doesn't make it right. That doesn't make any of it right. Not the cruelty of certain people. Not hiding myself ... Which is why I ... I wish for a future where hiding is not necessary. ...
"Whatever I choose for my life, I hope it pushes me toward the future I wish for. I want to do whatever it takes so that no one has to hide in fear about being their true self."
"Not kids like us. ... And, especially not the kids sitting out there, in the dark. The ones watching. Supporting us. Loving us and friends. As family. ... So yes, Mr. Jones, I do hide. I will hide. I currently am hiding. But I hope someday that will change. We've got work to do. And I know it will be hard, but I believe we can do it together."
When a pageant interviewer poses this question to protagonist Jackson Bright in his pageant alias of Sissy, I think that Jackson's answer forms the heart of this book. The message is also incredibly relevant and timely, given the brutal oppression that's being directed against transgender and non-binary individuals.
"I would absolutely hide part of myself to fit in ... We live in a world where people can be ... incredibly cruel. When so many of us kids don't even know who we are yet, but we're constantly testing what feels right and what feels true. And for some of us, what is right and what is true isn't necessarily what is safe. ...
"If there were a part of me that I worried might make my friends and peers look at me differently, I'd probably hide it, dress it up to try to fit in better. But ...
"But that doesn't make it right. That doesn't make any of it right. Not the cruelty of certain people. Not hiding myself ... Which is why I ... I wish for a future where hiding is not necessary. ...
"Whatever I choose for my life, I hope it pushes me toward the future I wish for. I want to do whatever it takes so that no one has to hide in fear about being their true self."
"Not kids like us. ... And, especially not the kids sitting out there, in the dark. The ones watching. Supporting us. Loving us and friends. As family. ... So yes, Mr. Jones, I do hide. I will hide. I currently am hiding. But I hope someday that will change. We've got work to do. And I know it will be hard, but I believe we can do it together."
November 1, 2025
Gender identification is the central theme of this Middle School geared novel. Jackson Bright gets picked on to some degree because he is far from macho. When a classmate calls him a sissy it happens at the same time there is a Little Miss pageant about to start. He loves attention and flashy clothes and decides to embrace his image, dress like a girl and compete. His best friend is non binary and he has a cross dressing uncle who help him in the competition. This novel is geared for young people who have issues with their birth gender.
October 27, 2025
LOVE Eureka!!!
November 10, 2025
A fun and entertaining LGBTQIA+ book.
December 3, 2025
DNF for Jackson Bright in the Spotlight--the writing style just wasn't quite working for me.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews