Miss Meteor

by Tehlor Kay Mejia, Anna-Marie McLemore

Overview

A gorgeous and magical collaboration between two critically acclaimed, powerhouse YA authors offers a richly imagined underdog story perfect for fans of Dumplin’ and Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe.

There hasn’t been a winner of the Miss Meteor beauty pageant who looks like Lita Perez or Chicky Quintanilla in all its history.

But that’s not the only reason Lita wants to enter the contest, or her ex-best friend Chicky wants to help her. The road to becoming Miss Meteor isn’t about being perfect; it’s about sharing who you are with the world—and loving the parts of yourself no one else understands.

So to pull off the unlikeliest underdog story in pageant history, Lita and Chicky are going to have to forget the past and imagine a future where girls like them are more than enough—they are everything.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062869920
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	10/19/2021
Pages:	400
Sales rank:	362,649
Product dimensions:	5.31(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Tehlor Kat Mejia is a bestselling and award winning author of young adult and middle grade fiction.

Their debut young adult novel, We Set the Dark on Fire, received six starred reviews, as well as the Oregon Spirit Book Award for debut fiction, and the Neukom Institute Literary Arts Award runner up honor for debut speculative fiction. It has been featured on Seventeen, Cosmopolitan, and O by Oprah Magazine’s best books lists, and was a 2019 book of the year selection by Kirkus and School Library Journal. Its sequel, We Unleash the Merciless Storm, followed to continuing acclaim, while Miss Meteor (co-written with National Book Award Nominee Anna-Marie McLemore) was named to the American Library Association’s 2021 Rainbow List, honoring outstanding contributions in LGBTQIA teen fiction.

Tehlor’s debut middle grade novel, Paola Santiago and the River of Tears, was published by the Rick Riordan Presents imprint at Disney/Hyperion. It received four starred reviews, and was named Amazon’s best book of 2020 in the 9-12 age range. It is currently in development at Disney as a television series to be produced by Eva Longoria.

Tehlor lives with their daughter, partner, and two small dogs in Oregon, where they grow heirloom corn and continue their quest to perfect the vegan tamale.

Anna-Marie McLemore (they/them) was born in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains and taught by their family to hear la llorona in the Santa Ana winds. Anna-Marie is the author of The Weight of Feathers, a finalist for the 2016 William C. Morris Debut Award; 2017 Stonewall Honor Book When the Moon Was Ours, which was longlisted for the National Book Award in Young People’s Literature and winner of the James Tiptree Jr. Award; Wild Beauty, a Kirkus Best Book of 2017; and Blanca & Roja, a New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice. Dark and Deepest Red, a reimagining of “The Red Shoes” based on true medieval events, will be released in January 2020

Editorial Reviews

A hilarious and heartfelt love letter in sparkling stardust prose to the outcasts who feel like they're from another planet.” 

Lily Anderson

"McLemore and Mejia tell a warmly inclusive story rooted in the bonds of family and in female friendship. For anyone who's ever felt like an outsider, this joyful #OwnVoices tale will fill a void."

Booklist

Some books you read with your heart—and this is one of them. Written with compassion, honesty, and humor, Miss Meteor is magical.

Shaun David Hutchinson

"McLemore and Mejia tell a warmly inclusive story rooted in the bonds of family and in female friendship. For anyone who's ever felt like an outsider, this joyful #OwnVoices tale will fill a void."

Booklist

"This complex tale packs a lot into its space, and while the novel is sure to resonate with any kid who feels like an outcast and any reader who loved Murphy’s Dumplin’, it’s especially salient for those in the Latinx, queer, and economically disadvantaged communities."

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

"This complex tale packs a lot into its space, and while the novel is sure to resonate with any kid who feels like an outcast and any reader who loved Murphy’s Dumplin’, it’s especially salient for those in the Latinx, queer, and economically disadvantaged communities."

Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

09/07/2020

Meteor Central High sophomores Estrellita “Lita” Perez and Chiquita “Chicky” Quintanilla are ex-best friends unexpectedly reunited for the same goal: winning the annual Miss Meteor beauty pageant in Meteor, N.Mex. Lita, the free-spirited daughter of town witch Bruja Lupe, has always dreamed of becoming Miss Meteor; after all, she’s from the meteor whose crash-landing gave the town its name. But she’s beginning to turn into stardust, and a traumatic, racist bullying incident diverted her pursuit of her dream—until now. Nonconformist Chicky also has a secret, which tore a past friendship apart and currently affects her relationship with artistic Junior Cortes. Fed up with feeling small, however, she comes up with a plan: help Lita steal the crown from beauty pageant royalty and mean girl Kendra Kendall. With the help of Chicky’s runner-up older sisters and Kendra’s brother, kind-hearted Cole, Lita takes on the thin, white blondes who always win. A dual perspective brings both girls to life, and casual, genuine pansexual and trans representation, along with a racially diverse cast, adds nuance. An inclusive story brimming with tenderness for its characters while championing love and self-acceptance. Ages 14–up. Agents: (for Mejia) Taylor Martindale, Full Circle Literary Agency; (for McLemore) Jim McCarthy, Dystel, Goderich & Bourret. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

Teaming these two YA powerhouse writers up on a super-fun, super-queer underdog story is brilliant! Readers will be rooting for the protagonists to win the Miss Meteor pageant the whole way through.” — Ms. magazine

"A love letter to the misfits who have been scared to let their stardust shine." — Kirkus Reviews

"McLemore and Mejia tell a warmly inclusive story rooted in the bonds of family and in female friendship. For anyone who's ever felt like an outsider, this joyful #OwnVoices tale will fill a void." — Booklist

"This complex tale packs a lot into its space, and while the novel is sure to resonate with any kid who feels like an outcast and any reader who loved Murphy’s Dumplin’, it’s especially salient for those in the Latinx, queer, and economically disadvantaged communities." — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

"A genre-bending friendship story complete with aliens and beauty pageants...filled with humor and fresh dialogue." — Shelf Awareness

“...Readers will be drawn into this story of an unlikely beauty queen." — The Horn Book

“A unique and beautifully penned story, Miss Meteor belongs to the dreamers and the outsiders in this world who will find that they will always have a safe haven with the right people and that they can change the world, one beauty pageant at a time.”  — The Nerd Daily

"A luminous romp of a book that is both hilarious and tender. Mejia and McLemore have gifted us with a story that celebrates the eternal power of friendship." — Abdi Nazemian, author of the Stonewall Honor-winning Like a Love Story

“A hilarious and heartfelt love letter in sparkling stardust prose to the outcasts who feel like they're from another planet.”  — Lily Anderson, author of Undead Girl Gang

“Some books you read with your heart—and this is one of them. Written with compassion, honesty, and humor, Miss Meteor is magical.” — Shaun David Hutchinson, award-winning author of We Are the Ants, The State of Us, and Brave Face: A Memoir

From the Publisher

A unique and beautifully penned story, Miss Meteor belongs to the dreamers and the outsiders in this world who will find that they will always have a safe haven with the right people and that they can change the world, one beauty pageant at a time.” 

The Nerd Daily

...Readers will be drawn into this story of an unlikely beauty queen."

The Horn Book

"This complex tale packs a lot into its space, and while the novel is sure to resonate with any kid who feels like an outcast and any reader who loved Murphy’s Dumplin’, it’s especially salient for those in the Latinx, queer, and economically disadvantaged communities."

Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

Teaming these two YA powerhouse writers up on a super-fun, super-queer underdog story is brilliant! Readers will be rooting for the protagonists to win the Miss Meteor pageant the whole way through.

Ms. magazine

"A genre-bending friendship story complete with aliens and beauty pageants...filled with humor and fresh dialogue."

Shelf Awareness

"A luminous romp of a book that is both hilarious and tender. Mejia and McLemore have gifted us with a story that celebrates the eternal power of friendship."

Abdi Nazemian

10/09/2020

Gr 9 Up—Fifty years ago, a meteor crashed in New Mexico. The town of Meteor was subsequently founded nearby, and today it attracts tourists to its annual Miss Meteor beauty pageant and cornhole tournament. Lita, one of the two protagonists in this dual narrative, is made of stardust formed by the meteor into a human body. Her brown skin gives way to patches of stardust, and she is convinced that the only thing that will keep her from reverting to star form is to win Miss Meteor, a title that has only ever been won by white girls. Chicky Quintanilla, Lita's ex—best friend, agrees to help Lita compete for Miss Meteor, along with her fruit-named sisters who feel straight out of a fairy tale: Cereza, Uva, and Fresa. Chicky's family runs a restaurant named Selena's in honor of the singer Selena Quintanilla, even though they aren't related. Through spending time together, Lita and Chicky come to terms with past traumas and learn to confront their bullies. Characters are predominantly Latinx; one major character is a trans boy and another is pansexual. LGBT readers will revel in a coming out scene, which is loud and proud as hell. VERDICT With funny details like its contentious name—Meteor is also known by a second official name, Meteorite—and its local museum dedicated to the fallen star, the town itself becomes a character in this charming magical realist story. Recommended for all libraries serving teens.—Shira Pilarski, Farmington Community Lib., MI

School Library Journal

Narrators Kyla Garcia and Almarie Guerra have dynamic expressive voices, making them the perfect duo to portray estranged best friends. Lita and Chicky find their way back to each other when Chicky decides to help Lita enter their small-town beauty pageant. Garcia brings a lot of gumption and perseverance to Chicky as she begins to open up about her identity and rebuild relationships while turning the eccentric Lita into a beauty queen. Guerra’s youthful, bubbly voice highlights Lita’s quirks. Both narrators bring a well of energy to the humorous shenanigans the teens get into and provide an array of voices for Chicky’s bickering sisters. A vibrant and wonderfully executed audiobook for teen listeners. J.E.C. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

OCTOBER 2020 - AudioFile

Narrators Kyla Garcia and Almarie Guerra have dynamic expressive voices, making them the perfect duo to portray estranged best friends. Lita and Chicky find their way back to each other when Chicky decides to help Lita enter their small-town beauty pageant. Garcia brings a lot of gumption and perseverance to Chicky as she begins to open up about her identity and rebuild relationships while turning the eccentric Lita into a beauty queen. Guerra’s youthful, bubbly voice highlights Lita’s quirks. Both narrators bring a well of energy to the humorous shenanigans the teens get into and provide an array of voices for Chicky’s bickering sisters. A vibrant and wonderfully executed audiobook for teen listeners. J.E.C. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

OCTOBER 2020 - AudioFile

2020-07-08
Can a small town embrace the wholeness of four teens: a self-proclaimed tomboy, a transgender athlete, a brilliant artist, and a girl born from stardust?

In Meteor, New Mexico, the annual Meteor Regional Pageant and Talent Competition Showcase is a major attraction for Miss Meteor contestants and the local businesses that depend on tourism to survive. The Quintanilla family runs a diner with their four daughters. Chicky, the youngest, could not care less about the pageant while her ex–best friend, Lita, has always dreamed of such an honor—even though thin, blond, White girls always seem to win. The estranged friends team up and, with help from their friends Junior and Cole and the Quintanilla sisters, hatch a plan to upset the town’s social hierarchy by helping Lita compete in the pageant. Drama ensues that characterizes the best telenovelas: unrequited love, bullies and popular mean girls, town gossips, and, of course, a curandera. Underneath there lies a heartfelt response to White supremacy, especially as it relates to brown bodies. Extended metaphors of stardust and space magic could grow tired in less capable hands, but they work powerfully in Mejia and McLemore’s descriptions of teenage emotional urgency when courage can be as a fleeting as a shooting star. Most main characters are Latinx; Cole is White.

A love letter to misfits who have been scared to let their stardust shine. (Magical realism. 12-18)

Kirkus Reviews