*A SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER*
‘Moving and powerful. Should be essential reading for mental health professionals and anyone with autism in their lives.’ – FERN BRADY, author of Strong Female Character
‘This book will bring so many readers self-recognition and comfort.’ – DEVON PRICE, author of Unmasking Autism
‘Vulnerable, affecting and deeply personal.’ – Elle McNicoll, bestselling author
‘A brilliant, thorough exploration of autistic experience, delivered with humanity, compassion and vivid clarity.’ – Pete Wharmby, author of Untypical
To the outside world, Emily looks like a typical girl, with a normal family, living an ordinary life. But inside, Emily does not feel typical, and the older she gets, the more she realises that she is different.
As she finally discovers when she is 16, Emily is autistic. Girl Unmasked is the extraordinary story of how she got there – and how she very nearly didn’t.
Still only 21, Emily writes with startling candour about the years leading up to her diagnosis. How books and imagination became her refuge as she sought to escape the increasing anxiety and unbearable stresses of school life; how her OCD almost destroyed her; how a system which did not understand autism let her down; and how she came so close to the edge that she and her family thought she would never survive.
In this simple but powerful memoir, we see how family and friends became her lifeline and how, post-diagnosis, Emily came to understand her authentic self and begin to turn her life around, eventually becoming a mental health nurse with a desire to help others where she herself had once been failed.
Ultimately uplifting, Girl Unmasked is a remarkable insight into what it can be like to be autistic – and shows us that through understanding and embracing difference we can all find ways to thrive.
Sunday Times bestseller in week of 08/04/2024.
‘Moving and powerful. Should be essential reading for mental health professionals and anyone with autism in their lives.’ – FERN BRADY, author of Strong Female Character
‘This book will bring so many readers self-recognition and comfort.’ – DEVON PRICE, author of Unmasking Autism
‘Vulnerable, affecting and deeply personal.’ – Elle McNicoll, bestselling author
‘A brilliant, thorough exploration of autistic experience, delivered with humanity, compassion and vivid clarity.’ – Pete Wharmby, author of Untypical
To the outside world, Emily looks like a typical girl, with a normal family, living an ordinary life. But inside, Emily does not feel typical, and the older she gets, the more she realises that she is different.
As she finally discovers when she is 16, Emily is autistic. Girl Unmasked is the extraordinary story of how she got there – and how she very nearly didn’t.
Still only 21, Emily writes with startling candour about the years leading up to her diagnosis. How books and imagination became her refuge as she sought to escape the increasing anxiety and unbearable stresses of school life; how her OCD almost destroyed her; how a system which did not understand autism let her down; and how she came so close to the edge that she and her family thought she would never survive.
In this simple but powerful memoir, we see how family and friends became her lifeline and how, post-diagnosis, Emily came to understand her authentic self and begin to turn her life around, eventually becoming a mental health nurse with a desire to help others where she herself had once been failed.
Ultimately uplifting, Girl Unmasked is a remarkable insight into what it can be like to be autistic – and shows us that through understanding and embracing difference we can all find ways to thrive.
Sunday Times bestseller in week of 08/04/2024.
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Reviews
Emily's Girl Unmasked is a welcome addition to the literature on Autistic masking and unmasking that I'm sure will bring so many readers self-recognition and comfort. For far too long, Autistic gender minorities, women, and other marginalized groups have had to hide our differences -- by celebrating hers and baring her story, Emily helps empower a growing movement of unmasked Autistics to better accept themselves
Emily's moving book is a powerful testimony that shines a light on the continued failure of health services to provide any kind of meaningful improvement for autistic people. Should be essential reading for mental health professionals and anyone with autism in their lives.
Vulnerable, affecting and deeply personal, this book will go from a message in a bottle to a rallying cry for many autistic women, girls and young people. We are not alone. We have never been alone. A beautiful testament from one of our most amazing young advocates.
Emily has produced a magnificent read which manages to be informative, engaging, sad and uplifting all at the same time. Whether you're discovering that you're autistic yourself or you simply want to understand autistic people better, this is a must-read. Emily's story shows both the potential tragedy of being unrecognised as autistic in a world that's not designed for us and the revelation that understanding you're autistic can be, and she has been brave enough to talk about her experiences to help others.
A brilliant, thorough exploration of autistic experience, delivered with humanity, compassion and vivid clarity.
The book I wish I'd been able to read when I was younger