Diary of a Drag Queen

by Crystal Rasmussen, Tom Rasmussen

Overview

“This book changed my life. Tom Rasmussen’s honesty, vulnerability, and fearlessness jump out of every page and every word. It is the queer bible I’ve always needed.” —Sam Smith, singer and songwriter

"Tom covers the nuance, doubt, and uncertainty of being a drag queen. Crystal covers the transcendence . . . Charisma and quick intelligence—two qualities that have long been prerequisites for drag . . . Diary puts on technicolor display." —Katy Waldman, The New Yorker

In these pages, find glamour and gaffes on and off the stage, clarifying snippets of queer theory, terrifyingly selfish bosses, sex, quick sex, KFC binges, group sex, the kind of honesty that banishes shame, glimmers of hope, blazes of ambition, tender sex, mad dashes in last night's heels plus a full face of make-up, and a rom-com love story for the ages. This is where the unspeakable becomes the celebrated. This is the diary of a drag queen—one dazzling, hilarious, true performance of a real, flawed, extraordinary life.

"I hope people like me will read this and feel seen and loved by it. I hope people who aren't like me will enjoy it, laugh with it, learn from it. And I hope people who don't like me will file lawsuits just so I can wear my brand-new leopard-print skirt suit and bust their asses in court."
—Crystal Rasmussen, in Refinery29

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780374538576
Publisher:	Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Publication date:	04/14/2020
Pages:	432
Sales rank:	492,470
Product dimensions:	4.90(w) x 7.50(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Crystal Rasmussen is a global superstar in her mind and a regular columnist at Refinery29. Look up the term "Global Phenomenon" and you will find a picture of Crystal. Living in overdraft since the Wall Street Crash of 1929, Crystal forms one-fifth of DENIM, the drag supergroup, and is adored for her lazy demeanor and powerful falsetto.

Tom Rasmussen is a journalist and queer performer. When not in drag, they are a regular contributor at The Independent, Dazed, i-D, LOVE, and Refinery29. Their work has also been featured in The Guardian, Vice, Broadly, Tank, and Gay Times, and they were named an LGBT trailblazer by The Dots and one of the voices of now for i-D. Tom also forms half of the radical queer punk band ACM.

Reading Group Guide

Life’s a drag . . . Why not be a queen?

When you peel off the sequins and lashes, wipe away the lipstick and mascara, open your heart and your eyes—what does the life of a drag queen really look like? Crystal (and Tom) Rasmussen tell all in this outrageous, raunchy, moving, naked (in more ways than one) memoir about life on and off the stage.

Born into a loving working-class family in northern England, Tom and Crystal find their way to London, then to a coveted, soul-crushing job in New York fashion, and back again. Searching for good sex, good stories, and “the one,” they shag men of all kinds from all sorts of platforms, sell cider to tourists, and perform with their college drag troupe, Denim. They learn about true love from their mum and fall in love with their best friend. Charting day-to-day adventures over the course of a year, we encounter tucks, twists, and unfiltered sexy bits, heinous overspending, body shame and self-love, and endless nights sprinting from snag to snafu in a full face of make-up.

In these pages the previously unspeakable becomes the everyday and the celebrated, and Crystal and Tom make sure we feel every single thing along the way. A full-hearted, full-throated, full-disclosure portrayal of the queer experience that makes you laugh and cry and wish for understanding, Diary of a Drag Queen is a dazzling, true performance of a real, flawed, extraordinary life.

1. This book is a diary. It’s a book by and about a drag queen. What drew you to the book? In what ways did it surprise you? Did it remind you of other books or films?

2. Diary of a Drag Queen spans a year in the life of Tom and Crystal Rasmussen. It’s written from the perspective of one person—the creator of both of these people—Tom. But how do Tom and Crystal interact? Does Tom listen to Crystal? Does Crystal give Tom qualities and strengths Tom couldn’t muster alone? Does she take anything away from Tom?

3. The book begins in New York, where Tom—fueled by Crystal—is chasing lifelong dreams of a career in fashion. How does Tom’s idea of success change, and how is this reflected in the writing and in the shape Tom’s life takes? Are Crystal and Tom in sync about what success means?

4. What role does the quest for stability play in Tom and Crystal’s life? Is it an aim that feels central to the book, or a by-product of other goals? Does Crystal offer Tom stability, or does she make it harder to find?

5. While the book is a memoir, it’s also an ode to and an ethnographic study of queer life and the queer community. How does the book explore these elements? Can we trust our narrator in speaking for such a far-spanning group? Where does the narrator succeed in representing queer experiences that might be new to readers? Where do they fail?

6. Tom moves back to London in pursuit of love. Do they find the love they’re looking for? What other kinds of love are revealed in the book and how do Tom and Crystal prioritize these types of love? How do you? What kinds of love feel most essential to you?

7. Early in the book, Tom talks about a man they met who told them to run to something—not from it. Are there points in the book where Tom takes this advice, or where they actively reject it? What is Tom running from? What do they eventually run to? And what difference does it make in their life?

8. Why do you think there are such vivid descriptions of sex in the book? Are these scenes primarily intended to shock the reader? What other reasons might Tom have for depicting sex in this way?

9. What do we know about Crystal? Do you like her? Of course she would say she doesn’t care what you think. But do you think she would? Is she insecure? And does her story add up? Can she be trusted? Does that matter? What kind of truth can be found in a fantasy?

10. Crystal is a performer. Is Tom? Why do you think Tom created Crystal?

11. And speaking of performance: Where do you think it starts and ends? In the book there aren’t many vivid descriptions of what it feels like to be on stage, but we learn a lot about the before and the after, about the process. Why do you think this is?

12. Across Diary of a Drag Queen, Tom’s definition of family is reshaped. How does the formation of a queer family change Tom? Does this new understanding allow them to reconfigure their relationship with their biological family? How? What’s the difference between chosen and biological family?

13. What pronouns does Tom inhabit throughout the book? Why do you think Tom uses “she” when speaking of and as Crystal? Did Tom’s writing about being non-binary change the way you engage with or talk about gender? What helped Tom’s mum better understand Tom’s identity? How do you think families and friends can do a better job of approaching this subject and what tools can they use?

14. Did you find the book funny? Were you expecting this? At which part, if any, did you laugh most? Why do you think the author used humor—especially in dark or unexpected moments? Do you think it’s effective?

15. How would you describe Tom’s experience of class? Does it have to do with education, regional affiliation, or something else? Is this different from how class is described and experienced in the United States? Why do you think that is?

16. What about diaries in general? Is Diary of a Drag Queen more than a diary? If so, why did the author choose this format? Did it work? What other famous diaries have you read, and why do we read them? Do you keep a diary? If yes, do you think the aims of your own diary and other diaries are similar?

17. What did you know about drag before you read this book and what further insights did the book give you about drag? What forms of art does drag bring together? Can you think of other art forms that are similar? What are some of the cultural touchstones for drag? Do you have a sense of what makes a performance “drag”? Is all drag performance? And what about the realities, the day-to day aspects of being a drag queen? The process of becoming a drag queen? Were those what you expected? Why or why not?

Editorial Reviews

01/06/2020

Twenty-something British journalist and drag queen Rasmussen, who goes by the stage name Crystal, delivers a cheeky, irreverent debut memoir in diary form. Rasmussen covers such topics as sex, career, and self esteem­—and doesn’t shy away from sharing graphic sex stories with vivid details of their dating app hookups. Rasmussen also discusses writing about queer issues for magazines; being verbally and physically attacked for going out in drag; struggling to make it as a drag performer; and the freedom of being a drag queen (“drag allows you to become the kind of superstar you never thought you were allowed to be”). The memoir nods to Sex and the City (Rasmussen identifies as a Samantha and later as a Carrie) and often reads like a queer Bridget Jones’s Diary (like Bridget, the author is a broke writer, and they’re emotionally entangled with a Mark Darcy figure). Beyond being an entertaining romp, this memoir serves as an education for those living outside queer and drag circles. This exuberant, irreverent confessional is loud and proud with its message of acceptance and inclusion. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

"Tom covers the nuance, doubt, and uncertainty of being a drag queen. Crystal covers the transcendence . . . This balancing act requires charisma and quick intelligence—two qualities that have long been prerequisites for drag, but that Diary puts on technicolor display . . . Queering the rom-com, or at least seeming to do so, actually spotlights the genre’s persistent debts to queerness, from the gender antics of Twelfth Night to Oscar Wilde’s silky social critiques."
—Katy Waldman, The New Yorker

“This book changed my life. Tom Rasmussen’s honesty, vulnerability, and fearlessness jump out of every page and every word. It is the queer bible I’ve always needed.”
—Sam Smith, singer and songwriter

"This hilarious memoir follows [Rasmussen] through a year of adventures, from being onstage to being in bed to realizing the fashion world is even more cutthroat than pop culture portrays it. Diary of a Drag Queen is equal parts inspiring and funny as hell."
—Evette Dionne, BitchMedia, "17 Memoirs Feminists Should Read in 2020"

“A must-read. Sexy and fun, Diary of a Drag Queen is about bodies and belonging, about self and transformation, and an attempt to understand our complicated minds. Full of laughs and tears, this book is a compelling look at what it means to be queer.”
—Kristen Arnett, author of Mostly Dead Things

"An extraordinarily deft account of just how complicated the life of a drag queen can be . . . Tom takes us beneath the surface, and into the day-to-day triumphs and tragedies of being a struggling drag queen in unforgiving cities. There are moments where I laughed so hard I peed; and there are moments where I cried so hard I basically choked. Some of the most beautiful passages are when Tom confesses how their drag alter-ego—Bolshevik-turned-Capitalist-Tycoon, Crystal—has been a way for them to celebrate the working-class women who raised them . . . If you’re looking for a book about the intersection of drag and class, and which is full of light, love and laughter, look no further."
—Amrou Al-Kadhi, Lit Hub

"Soul-baring, shamelessly explicit, and wickedly funny, Rasmussen's relentlessly entertaining book gets beneath the glitter and drama of drag to reveal how a practice often dismissed as misogynistic can serve as a kind of salvation for many nonbinary people . . . A sharp-eyed and hilarious memoir."
—Kirkus

"A cheeky, irreverent debut . . . Reads like a queer Bridget Jones’s Diary . . . Beyond being an entertaining romp, this memoir serves as an education for those living outside queer and drag circles. This exuberant, irreverent confessional is loud and proud with its message of acceptance and inclusion."
—Publishers Weekly

“A heartfelt memoir of queerness and non-conformity . . . [A] joyful and painful account of a queer life well lived . . . It is a case for intersectionality told in reality, not just in theory—and so, much needed.”
—Amelia Abraham, Vogue UK

“The book on everyone's desk at Glamour HQ right now . . . Hilarious.”
—Glamour UK

“A riotous portrayal of the contemporary queer experience.”
—Saima Haidrani, Dazed

“Hilarious and candid . . . A must read for anyone interested in drag. Or anyone with a sense of humour. Or just anyone at all.”
—Connor Young, Gay Times

“Truthful, revealing and obscenely hilarious . . . Strident and unapologetic but really sweet, too.”
—Attitude

“Accessible and hilarious . . . If you want a true depiction of what it's like to balance a drag queen persona with an everyday self, look no further.”
—Lauren Sharkey, Bustle

“A proud voice for the non-binary community.”
—Amrou Al-Kadhi, Gay Times

“Outrageously scatological, bacchanalian, and foul-mouthed . . . And yet—amazingly—it is precisely this radical honesty that means the book is never disgusting, or repulsive; far from it . . . Rasmussen’s voice as a writer is poetic, idiosyncratic, and unbelievably funny . . . [A] fierce debut.”
—The Prickle

From the Publisher

2020-01-26
A British queer performer’s account of the tumultuous year that became their defining moment.

In this gloriously outrageous memoir, Rasmussen, who speaks both as “Tom” and their performance alter ego “Crystal,” tells stories about the tribulations and triumphs of life as a drag queen. Born to a working-class family in Lancaster, Rasmussen went to Cambridge to study veterinary medicine. When the book opens, the author has graduated and is working in the New York fashion industry: “It’s a fairly usual First Job in Fashion: latte runs, bollockings for eating too much at breakfast, being reminded I’ll never make it in this business.” On the side, Rasmussen dragged, worked as a journalist, and had copious sex while pining for their best friend/love of their life, Ace. Rasmussen returned to England to make their career in London and be close to family and friends. At first, the obstacles seemed overwhelming. Ace was in love with a man, steady dragging work was nowhere to be found, and Rasmussen was forever overdrawn at the bank. Then the author slept with a “handsome brunette bear” writer and editor who helped them begin making connections in the world of journalism. They accepted a job as an intern at an influential London fashion magazine only to be “gently dismissed” shortly afterward for telling magazine editors their work was racist. While Rasmussen’s journalistic career, which would eventually blossom, temporarily stalled, their performing career and personal life began to take off. Their queer performance group played Glastonbury, where, high on ecstasy, Rasmussen and Ace began the journey toward a committed relationship after their “first sexual experience together,” in a Portaloo. Soul-baring, shamelessly explicit, and wickedly funny, Rasmussen’s relentlessly entertaining book gets beneath the glitter and drama of drag to reveal how a practice often dismissed as misogynistic can serve as a kind of salvation for many nonbinary people. Ultimately, it is a revolutionary “kind of self-care that makes you totally healed, a complete person, even if just for a night.”

A sharp-eyed and hilarious memoir.

Kirkus Reviews