Drag Queen Nina West is Spreading Kindness in Her New Childrens Book Celeb Secrets
Nina West is a literature queen, y’all.
In just a few short months, the RuPaul’s Drag Race contestant will be releasing her first book, The You Kind of Kind. It’s a sweet and colorful novel all about, you guessed it, spreading kindness.
“I’m really excited especially now in these times where things feel really divided,” West told Celeb Secrets reporter Blakely McHugh at Entertainment Weekly’s Comic-Con Bash in San Diego last month. “I’m really excited to bring a message of hope to the world that we really need.”
West, whose real name is Andrew Levitt, appeared on season 11 of RuPaul’s Drag Race where fans voted her Miss Congeniality. That award is given to the queens who are considered the kindest and most helpful on their seasons.
When she left the show, West ended with the saying, “Go Big. Be Kind. Go West,” so it’s only natural that her slogan for the kids book is, “Go Big! Be Kind! Be you!”
“I think drag is kind of a great common denominator where it allows me to break down walls and be able to talk to people directly about things that are really important,” West shared.
The bright and vibrant 32-page book is set to be released on Oct. 25 by Princeton Architectural Press.
In the book, Nina is the children’s guide to kindness – how to find it, identify it, appreciate it, and ultimately, embody it. She writes, “even a simple ‘hello’ can be ‘your kind of Kind.’”
“In this heartfelt and joyous story, little Nina embarks on a boisterous day of exploration, a colorful day where she sets out to find, well, Kind. With a backpack full of her favorite things, Nina guides readers through the neighborhood to identify kindness in the wild,” the description reads.
It continues, “Along the way she shines a light on the importance of loving yourself as well as others, revealing that sharing your unique form of kindness—the you kind of Kind—is the most wonderful gift of all.”
The novel is not outrightly meant for the LGBTQ+ community, rather it’s a representation of inclusion on all fronts. Readers will see a kid in a wheelchair, interracial couples and friendships, men and women breaking societal norms on what they should or shouldn’t wear, and the list goes on.
West praises her illustrator, Hayden Evans, for providing “easter eggs” in the artwork throughout the story. You’ll notice rainbows, which are representations of the Pride flag, as well as hearts representing love and so much more.
“I’m a person that speaks from the heart and who loves really truly to celebrate and uplift others and I’m just excited.”
You can preorder “The You Kind of Kind” right now by clicking here and read more of our coverage from Comic-Con here.
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