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''This is a book about how being a woman gets in the way of people''s expectation of what autism should look like and, equally, how being autistic gets in the way of people''s expectations of what a woman should look like.'' Strong Female Character is a game-changing memoir on sexism and neurodiversity. Fern Brady will use her voice as a neurodivergent, working-class woman from Scotland to bring issues such as sex work, abusive relationships and her time spent in teenage mental health units to the page. It will take a sledgehammer to the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope which is mistakenly applied to neurodiverse women. It will also look at how her lack of regard for social expectations ultimately meant she surpassed any limitations of what a Scottish working-class woman can do.
About the author
Fern Brady
Summary
WINNER, NON FICTION BOOK 2023, BOOKS ARE MY BAG AWARDS
SHORTLIST, NERO BOOK AWARDS
SHORTLIST, BOOKSHOP.ORG INDIE CHAMPIONS
SHORTLIST, AMAZON NON-FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR
SHORTLIST, GOODREADS CHOICE BOOK OF THE YEAR
Audible Books of the Year 2023
The Times Book of the Year 2023
THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
'An absolute riot. I'm literally going to read it again once I've finished, and I'm a miserable bastard...it's a belter' - FRANKIE BOYLE
'A set text for all of us in 2023' - DEBORAH FRANCES-WHITE
A summary of my book:
1. I'm diagnosed with autism 20 years after telling a doctor I had it.
2. My terrible Catholic childhood: I hate my parents etc.
3. My friendship with an elderly man who runs the corner shop and is definitely not trying to groom me. I get groomed.
4. Homelessness.
5. Stripping.
6. More stripping but with more nervous breakdowns.
7. I hate everyone at uni and live with a psycho etc.
8. REDACTED as too spicy.
9. After everyone tells me I don't look autistic, I try to cure my autism and get addicted to Xanax.
10. REDACTED as too embarrassing.
'Fern's book, like everything she does, is awesome. Incredibly funny, and so unapologetically frank that I feel genuinely sorry for her lawyers.' - PHIL WANG
'Of course it's funny - it's Fern Brady - but this book is also deeply moving and eye-opening'
- ADAM KAY
'It made me laugh out loud and broke my heart and made me weep...I hope absolutely everyone reads this, and it makes them kinder and more curious about the way we all live' - DAISY BUCHANAN
'Glorious. Frank but nuanced, a memoir that doesn't sacrifice voice or self-awareness. And it has brilliant things to say about being autistic and being funny' - ELLE MCNICOLL
'Strong Female Character is a testament to the importance of self-knowledge.' - Rachael Healy, The Guardian
'Fern is a brilliant, beautiful writer with a unique voice and even more unique story. Astute, honest and very, very funny.' - LOU SANDERS
'So funny and brilliant' - HOLLY SMALE
'Witty, dry, and gimlet-eyed, Strong Female Character is a necessary corrective. Brady offers a compelling, messy, highly resonant portrait of what masked Autism feels like.' - Devon Price, author of Unmasking Autism
