Title: The Black Flamingo
Author: Dean Atta
Publisher: Hodder’s Children’s Books
ISBN: 978-1444948608
Genre: 368
Pages: Young Adult, LGBT Reads
Source: Publisher
Rating: 4/5
I got to know of this book as it was long-listed for the Jhalak Prize (which is a prize given to the book of the year by a writer of colour), for the year 2020. Luckily, I received a review copy from the good folks at Hachette India and I finished this book in one sitting. I think a lot had to do with the fact that the book is written by a queer person, so it became so relatable, and I often found myself either crying or smiling.
The Black Flamingo is the story of Michael – half-Jamaican, half-Greek -Cyprian boy trying to blend in with his identities and understand where does he truly belong. He is growing up in the UK and from an early age he is more interested in Barbies and singing than the conditioning of how boys should be in a patriarchal society. His mother supports him gently and with a lot of love when he comes out to her (while he is still at school). In all of this, there is his half-sister Anna, his best friend Daisy, and the bullies at school who make him realise who he truly is.
Once Michael goes to university, that he truly realises that he wants to perform in drag. He wants to do this with no labels, and with all fierceness. All he wants is to be The Black Flamingo, in a world of pink ones. This is the story of Michael. Of finding himself through the heartaches, the boys, the crushes, and finding the confidence to live in this world that has a long way to come around.
I think I related to this book at the core – of course by the virtue of being gay but also because it made me understand that sometimes you do not need any labels. You just need to be yourself. I loved the book references in it. I absolutely enjoyed the poetry-prose combination, and Michael’s poems in his notebook. I cried with joy when I saw people around him empathise. I cheered for him as he took stage. I dreamed of being in drag one day – in a red dress, with my fake boa, and in heels so high, I could perhaps touch the sky.
Of Books and Reading 