The plot of this book is surreal: An airplane crashes in a ~~desert island and the only survivors are a dozen of Miss Teen Dream Pageant contestants. At first, convinced they will be rescued, their only worry is their appearance and to keep up on their pageant routine, but after some days, they start realising not only that they need to learn to survive--catching fish, producing drinking water--but that there's something really messed up going on. The book gets to dystopian proportions (the summit of American capitalism) and these girls (without never ceasing to be the same superficial characters, just showing that they have more than one side) become the Resistance. Of some sort. 
 To me, this book was fundamentally funny. The characters form a completely heterogeneous ensemble--I mean, they are all American pretty girls in their late teens, and YET, you'd be surprised--that recreate a myriad of silly smart situations. Plus, the story is mixed with strident Commercial breaks that point at the hypocrisies of Western society (particularly USA) and its misogyny that are also quite funny. 
 I thought this book could, however, be really really important to teenager girls around the world (thought particularly USA, because there's misogyny everywhere, but the sense of false-freedom and blatant hypocrisy is essentially American, I think). It teaches some VERY important lessons: that there's nothing wrong with you. Some examples (without saying names so it's not spoilery): the book deals with internalised and externalised racism, gender roles, female sexuality, transexuality, the idea that it's ok if you want to be a DJ and it's ok if you want to be the President and it's ok if you want to be a soccer mom. JUST BE HAPPY. 
 Beauty Queens aimed at Girl Power, and succeeded amazingly. I am not a teenager anymore (haven't been for some years ahem) and those messages did not change my life or make me think differently of myself, but I think they could do exactly that to some younger girls, whilst making them laugh and think. 
 If you have read the book, you have to tell me which ones were your favourites. I fell in love with Shanti and Mary Lou <3