If You're a Drag Queen and You Know It

by Lil Miss Hot Mess, Olga de Dios Ruiz (Illustrator)

Strike a pose. Blow a kiss. Mouth the words. A fun, sing-along book with a drag twist that encourage kids to embrace all the playfulness of drag culture written by a founding member of Drag Queen Story Hour.

If you’re a drag queen and you know it, let it show by winking, shaking your bum, laughing real big, twirling around, and more! Join a cast of fabulous drag queens as you sing along to the tune of “If You’re Happy and You Know It” in this playful celebration of expressing your brightest and boldest self. A perfect companion to The Hips on the Drag Queen Go Swish, Swish, Swish written by a board member of Drag Queen Story Hour.

Genres: Picture Books, LGBT, Childrens, Queer, Drag, Fiction, Humor

32 pages, Hardcover

First published May 17, 2022

Reviews

[Feliciana · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Hips on the Drag Queen Go Swish, Swish, Swish has been my daughter’s favorite book all summer, so I decided to surprise her with If You're a Drag Queen and You Know It. It’s a hit!

[Eric Rosswood · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this with our daughter and she loved it! She was dancing, singing, and blowing kisses the whole time. She also asked for it to be read multiple times. It was an instant hit in our house and I'm sure it will be a hit in your house as well.

[Lexi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would totally read this during storytime

[Amanda Brooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I had a preschooler! This book would be so fun to read with a group of littles! It takes the drudgery out of the classic "If You're Happy and You Know it." Let me know when Lil Miss Hot Mess rewrites "Happy Birthday". I feel sorry for anyone who finds a problem with this. This book and the Drag Queen story hour make room for fun in literacy, something we could all use. Please buy this book and donate it to a school or library!

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This simple, fun, interactive picture book set to the popular song is perfect for a drag queen story time or for kids whose parents don't get their knickers in a twist over drag queens or the word "bum."

[Rick Hribko · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved it. Great bright illustrations and drag queen actions to the tune of "If you're happy and you know it..."

[Clementine · Rating 4 out of 5]

begs to be read or sung aloud. a lot of fun with a ton of kid appeal.

[Jess · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well this is just one of the awesomest things to come out of 2022! Absolutely fabulous, beautifully inclusive, super fun, and simply phenomenal. Love love love love love!!!

[Baby Bookworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review was originally written for The Baby Bookworm. Visit us for new picture books reviews daily!

Hello, friends! Sorry we missed our review yesterday, but we’re making it up with a special Saturday review! And in honor of the season, our book today is If You’re a Drag Queen and You Know It, written by Lil Miss Hot Mess and illustrated by Olga de Dios, the sequel to last year’s wonderful The Hips on the Drag Queen Go Swish, Swish, Swish.

The queens of The Hips on the Drag Queen are back with a whole new house of glamorous, fabulous performers. With text based off of the rhythm to “If You’re Happy and You Know It,” readers young and old are invited to strike a pose, blow a kiss, and laugh real big with fierce (fictional) queens like Retta Booke, Kitty Caboodle, and Mini Queenie Miney Mo.

Colorful, inclusive fun. Much like its predecessor, this title takes a well-known action song and puts a drag-themed twist on it, encouraging young audiences to dance and move, or (to JJ’s delight) laugh and shout. The actions in the book are fun and creative, and are sure to engage little ones. The rhythm does occasionally stumble over that extra syllable when reading aloud (especially during the last line of each refrain), but it’s easy to adjust for after a few repetitions. There’s less of a visual “story” here than the previous book, which I was a little disappointed by, but the diverse representation of the queens themselves is another treasure trove that makes up for this, not only of LGBTQ+ culture, but of things like skin color, body type, and ability. The length is perfect for a storytime, and JJ had a fantastic time shaking, winking, and shouting “yes, QUEEN” along with the characters. Overall, a worthy follow-up to one of our favorite books from last year, and we highly recommend it. Baby Bookworm approved!

(Note: A copy of this book was provided to The Baby Bookworm by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)

Be sure to check out The Baby Bookworm for more reviews!

[Harry Palacio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love love love….. girl…. You gotta WORK…. If you’re a drag queen and you know it …. I was community coordinator for LGBTQIA’s pride in Peekskill and as a straight cis male I DO UNDERSTAND WHY children should see worlds foreign to them … have you ever traveled or read a book or watched a film and said… I’m being indoctrinated to change my innate self? To not be who i am? If you’re straight or gay or binary or the other 52 genders NO ONE CAN CHANGE THAT not society or a drag queen reading your child a book… i do believe trans children should wait until they’re 18 to transition as I’ve heard horror stories from actual women and men (trans ) that regret the full or partial physical transition BUT ALAS LIFE IS LIFE se la vie

[Hcareskey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely charming and fun. My kids love to sing and dance along. Definitely “strike a pose” is our favorite.

Love this book-it’s fun, great illustrations and introduces kids to the idea that fun isn’t just for kids. A masterpiece.

Warning: might not be for those who are closed minded, have deeply ingrained toxic masculinity, think that everyone needs to know their opinion at all times-inspite of having absolutely no expertise in a subject, have fragile egos, are allergic to fun and the like.

[Toby · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is awesome! It is such wholesome fun for kids and parents. A fresh take on a classic song is so appreciated. I am a preschool teacher with a degree in early childhood education, and find that this book is enlivening and appropriate for kids ages one and older (for babies younger than that - I would love to see a board book version!!) The colorful illustrations are a delight.

I can see there are some homophobic wackadoodles trying to find something wrong with this book and making up lies. It's weird. Read it for yourself and find out how fun it is!

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I actually didn't realize I had already read Lil Miss Hot Mess' first book, The Hips on the Drag Queen Go Swish, Swish, Swish. These both feature rhymes familiar to kids, with lots of body and gender diversity.

[H · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you read this and you know it, say "RuPaul!"

A fun, energetic book with alternative lyrics to the old classic If You're Happy and You Know It, it had drag queens in all different shapes, colors, and sizes. Sometimes the palette is jarring, but overall, it shows people enjoying life and being happy.

Would have been 4 stars but the illustrations looked like they were staring at me getting ready to eat my soul.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely delightful. Makes me want to be bold, charming, and glamorous, like these ladies... even though I've never been any of those things before. Not that they'd 'convert' much less 'corrupt' me, mind you. I just admire them. And I admire the representation of people with physical disabilities, and of diverse skin colors (and, by implication, cultural backgrounds) in the book, too. It's just too much fun.

[Kirsti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Colorful and fun. I think little kids will love this because it encourages so much action—kiss-blowing, bum-shaking, pose-striking, twirling, and so on. This book also does a good job with representing people who have disabilities. One of the drag queens uses a wheelchair, and another is an above-the-knee amputee.

[Joanna McClintick · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fun one, with the same interactive playful vibe as LMHM's previous book. Having options for classrooms and storytimes is great, and kids really are engaged with the this! I'm here for queering traditional songs and normalizing the art of drag with young people! Thank you LMHM for this gem! And I love the illustrations and the clever drag queen names.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you're a drag queen and you know it, shake your bum, give a wink, strike a pose and shout, YESSS Queen!
Set to the tune of "If you're happy and you know it", enjoy this delightful sing-along story showcasing the wide array of drag queens, identity, expression, laughter, play and fun!

Delightfully vibrant, silly and glittery illustrations by Olga de Dios!

[Aolund · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful “if you’re happy and you know it” re-write full of fabulous queens and fun actions the kids can do along with the song/book.

Themes: Drag queens, pride, have fun
Age range: toddler-kindergarten

[Jimmy Strano · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been fighting for the equal treatment of my community for a very long time and it truly embraces my heart to see and read this beautiful book that teaches Acceptance in all its forms. Jesus would be proud! get it Gurl!

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A new twist on If You're Happy and You Know It. Very original.

[Naomi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Take this one out from the library for the illustrations and the fun takes on the game-song, "if you're happy and you know it."

[Melissa Dominguez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely adore this book! My twins loved the first book! It makes me them happy and they even do little dances while reading. Everyone needs this in their book collection!

[Ashley walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my staple books in my classroom! We read this regularly and we love dancing to it!

[Z · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is nothing short of amazing! I’ve bought multiple copies, and can’t wait to gift them to all the kids in my life. So thankful for Lil Miss Hot Mess, who has written a beauty of a book!

[SJRR · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this book for my friend's daughter and she loves it so much. It's so joyful, full of colour and has a positive message at its heart. I highly recommend.

[Mor Erlich · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love everything about this book. It's fun and interactive. It promotes inclusivity, and the illustrations are absolutely wonderful!
Highly recommended!!!

[Melodie Younce · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is so much fun! my pre-k class love doing the motions along with the song. good, clean fun.

[Eric Wolfinbarger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely amazing! Teaching love, acceptance, inclusivity at a young age!

[Kathleen]

Queer content: drag queens