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Books

Top 5 books by autistic authors

Sara Gibbs is a comedy script writer who, for the first 30 years of her life, had no idea she was autistic. She tells The Big Issue which other books by autistic authors we should be diving into.

Sara Gibbs is a comedy script writer who, for the first thirty years of her life, had no idea she was autistic.

Her book about the subject, Drama Queen, has received rave reviews as a “hilarious, witty and compelling memoir”. She tells The Big Issue which other books by autistic authors we should be diving into.

Diary of a Young Naturalist by Dara McAnulty

The Wainwright Prize-winning book by talented teenager McAnulty is a poetic love letter to the natural world and a shining example of an autistic person being their best autistic self.

Letters to my Weird Sisters by Joanne Limburg (out July 1)

A series of beautiful missives to the weird women of history whose weirdness Limburg can relate to as an autistic woman. Weaving between correspondence and memoir, Limburg expertly lays out the experience of feeling othered by society.

Odd Girl Out by Laura James

A wistful, witty and wonderful memoir about journalist James’ life in light of her autism diagnosis. My own memoir, along with so many others, stands on James’ shoulders.

Geek Girl by Holly Smale

When multi-million selling young-adult author Smale discovered she was autistic, she realised her iconic heroine, Harriet, was too! Harriet is a fantastic role model for autistic teens and a prime example of how one can be autistic without even knowing it.

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We’re Not Broken by Eric Garcia (out August 3)

American journalist Garcia gives a sensitive historical exploration of autism, particularly in relation to policy in the US and the many quack cures and attempts to fix autistic people who were never broken in the first place.

Drama Queen: One Autistic Woman and a Life of Unhelpful Labels by Sara Gibbs is out now (Headline, £16.99)

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