King of Hearts: Drag Kings in the American South

by Baker A. Rogers

While drag subcultures have gained mainstream media attention in recent years, the main focus has been on female impersonators. Equally lively, however, is the community of drag cis women, trans men, and non-binary people who perform exaggerated masculine personas onstage under such names as Adonis Black, Papi Chulo, and Oliver Clothesoff.  
 
King of Hearts  shows how drag king performers are thriving in an unlikely Southern Bible Belt states like Tennessee, Georgia, and South Carolina. Based on observations and interviews with sixty Southern drag kings, this study reveals how they are challenging the region’s gender norms while creating a unique community with its own distinctive Southern flair. Reflecting the region’s racial diversity, it profiles not only white drag kings, but also those who are African American, multiracial, and Hispanic. 
 
Queer scholar Baker A. Rogers—who has also performed as drag king Macon Love—takes you on an insider’s tour of Southern drag king culture, exploring its history, the communal bonds that unite it, and the controversies that have divided it.  King of Hearts  offers a groundbreaking look at a subculture that presents a subversion of gender norms while also providing a vital lifeline for non-gender-conforming Southerners.

Genres: LGBT, Nonfiction

184 pages, Hardcover

Published October 15, 2021

Reviews

[macintosh2000 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciate the book for shining light on a community that I have seen nothing of and heard nothing from in media (drag kings). What brought this book down for me was that I think in part, I was both the target audience and also not the target audience. Baker Rogers wants to educate people like me, who know nothing, about drag kings. However, I did not need all the theory background that they provided because I am already educated on these topics, so a decent part of the (already short) book ended up not being relevant to me.

I think in part reading the blurb describe the book as being in part a collection of interviews led me to think that I would be hearing more from the drag kings themselves, and instead it felt more like a couple snippets here and there, and I didn't end up connecting with any of the drag kings personally like I had hoped I would.

Grade: B
Recommended for: People who want to know about drag kings in the south

[Jessica Chapman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was great. A little repetitive. Especially liked the "trans communities are not a monolith" message.