Watkins, Chris: The Drag Gospel of Queer Jesus

Saturnalia Books, paperback

Publication Date: March 15, 2025

Publisher Marketing: Rescuing biblical language from misuse by those who would persecute queerness and subjugate the natural world, The Drag Gospel of Queer Jesus contemporizes and enlivens Biblical mysteries, exploring queer/trans identities and Florida ecologies through poetic forms (both received and invented) as often as through free verse. Simultaneously playful and serious, like the best drag performances, these poems nod equally and as often to the work of RuPaul or Marsha P. Johnson as to William Shakespeare or the author(s) of Genesis. Meanwhile, as the poems point to the artificial constructions of gender, they also embrace the (queer) natural world.

Chrysanthemum (Chris) Brook Watkins is a trans poet, writer, and environmental activist living in North Florida. They spend as much time as they can on the water and in the swamps, and they are a proud board member of Apalachicola Riverkeeper. Chris received their PhD in Poetry with a focus in Ecopoetics and Environmental Writing, Poetic Forms, and Queer Literature from Florida State University. Chris now works as the Academics and Partnerships Coordinator at FSU's Office of Sustainability (Sustainable Campus) and teaches both writing and sustainability courses.