This Wretched Beauty: A Dorian Gray Remix

Gr 8 Up–The moment Dorian Gray is introduced to the artist Basil, Dorian’s sheltered life of nobility begins to shatter in slow motion. When Basil is painting Dorian’s portrait, Dorian is introduced to Henry, who in turn introduces them to the world of Victorian molly houses and female impersonators. As Dorian is sucked into Henry’s toxic orbit, they are also challenged by changes in the portrait that Basil gifted them, which echo the changes that Dorian perceives in their own character and self-image. While the roots of The Picture of Dorian Gray shine through in this remix, the focus is less on the effects of Dorian’s hedonism and more on the discomfort born of discovering the mutability of their own gender. Dorian is never explicitly named as transgender or genderfluid, but they clearly experience both gender dysphoria with their male form and gender euphoria during experimentations with feminine gender expression. The challenges of living with queer identity in Victorian England are also realistically depicted in the experiences of Basil, who is transmasculine, and Henry, known for engaging in Achillean love ­affairs. The slow pace and Gothic novel–style writing of ­Grenier’s debut might be a better fit for more confident readers familiar with the genre.