The Beauty Queen
by Patricia Nell Warren
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A riveting chronicle of politics, religion and gay rights in the 70's. Ex-beauty queen Jeannie Colter is a born-again politician who hates homosexuals, and wants to crush them. William Laird is her father-a wealthy financier who has kept a secret all his life. He is gay. When his fervent daughter runs for Governor of New York, and he has the money to get her elected, Bill Laird is trapped between family and fantacism.Tags
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Ripped from the headlines, a born-again former beauty queen turned politico decides to use an anti-gay platform to promote her run for governor. She expects her very wealthy father to support her campaign financially, but he's dubious. He's also in the closet, sneaking off for nooners with his long-time lover. The characterizations here are really loaded. Dad is a real estate developer, but not a nasty Trump-type. Oh, no. Rather than tear down beautiful buildings, he renovates and repurposes them. Daughter is not only virulently homophobic, she is also a pill-popping, mentally unstable mother who physically abuses her kids.
Warren's novel following the success of The Front Runner. Beauty Queen falls short of the previous work's stength. It is neither compelling nor beautifully crafted.
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179 works; 11 members
Author Information
16+ Works 2,073 Members
Patricia Nell Warren was born in Helena, Montana on June 15, 1936. She attended Manhattanville College. She worked first as a copy editor and then a book editor at Reader's Digest from 1959-1980. She wrote several books including The Last Centennial, The Front Runner, Harlan's Race, The Wild Man, The Fancy Dancer, and The Lavender Locker Room. show more Billy's Boy won the Lambda Literary Award in 1998. She also wrote four books of Ukranian poetry. She was a LGBTQ rights advocate. She died from lung cancer on February 9, 2019 at the age of 82. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1978
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- Members
- 171
- Popularity
- 191,167
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (3.54)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 4
- ASINs
- 3
