Strong Female Character

By: Fern Brady

Narrated by: Fern Brady

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • “Witty, dry, and gimlet-eyed, this is a necessary corrective in a world where Autistic women are all either written off as quiet and docile, or erased entirely.”—Devon Price, Ph.D., author of Unmasking Autism

Scottish comedian Fern Brady was told she couldn't be autistic because she'd had loads of boyfriends and is good at eye contact. In this frank and surreal memoir, she delivers a sharp and often hilarious portrait of neurodivergence and living unmasked.

Finalist for the Porchlight Business Book Award • A Harper’s Bazaar Best Book of the Year

After reading about autism in her teens, Fern Brady knew instinctively that she had it—autism explained her sensory issues, her meltdowns, her inability to pick up on social cues—and she told her doctor as much. But it took until she was thirty-four for her to get diagnosed.

Strong Female Character is about the years in between, and the unique combination of sexism and ableism that so often prevents autistic women from getting diagnosed until adulthood. Coming from a working-class Scottish Catholic family, Fern wasn’t exactly poised to receive an open-minded acceptance of her neurodivergence. With the piercing clarity and wit that has put her at the top of the British comedy scene, she now reflects on the ways her undiagnosed autism influenced her youth, from the tree that functioned as her childhood best friend to the psychiatric facility where she ended up when neither her parents nor school knew what to do with her.

In a memoir as hilarious as it is heartbreaking, Fern leaves no stone unturned while detailing her futile attempts at employment, her increasingly destructive coping mechanisms, and the meltdowns that left her mind (and apartment) in ruins. Her chaotic, nonlinear journey—from stripping to getting arrested to finding a lifeline in comedy to her breakout appearance on the Taskmaster TV show as her full, unmasked self—is both a remarkable coming-of-age tale and a dark but poignant tribute to life at the intersection of womanhood and neurodiversity.

Strong Female Character is a story of how being female can get in the way of being autistic and how being autistic gets in the way of being the 'right kind' of woman.

©2023 Fern Brady (P)2023 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Strong Female Character is a testament to Brady’s quality of said character, her tenacity in the face of a world not yet ready to grapple with all she brings to it."―New York Times

"Brady is very funny. But she responsibly and powerfully intends more than just a sad-but-humorous recounting of her experience.... Though Brady is annoyed that we’re this far into the 21st century and she still has to explain all this, any reader of Strong Female Character will be glad she did."―Washington Post

"Strong Female Character is a testament to the importance of self-knowledge. Fern Brady is a natural and engaging writer, weaving bleak episodes with moments of pure comedy as she reappraises crucial moments in her life through the lens of her autism diagnosis. Brutal honesty and a talent for storytelling combine to make an insightful memoir that’s not only very funny, but will no doubt provide invaluable moments of recognition for many readers."―Rachel Healy, The Guardian

Autism, at least Fern’s, radically revealed

As an autistic adult I found this book to be enlightening, engaging, and educational. While autism expresses somewhat differently for me, and we grew up in very different circumstances, I feel much in common with Fern about the difficulties in navigating the social norms.
Highly recommended for autistics and their loved ones.

You have to listen to this

In chapter six, 25 minutes in, Fern says “getting people to like you is an impossibility I would never master”

This book proves her wrong. An incredibly honest portrayal of a real life, normally hidden behind adult humor or silence, told in Ferns unique and strangely refreshing way.

So well written and even better preformed

So well written and even better preformed by Fern Brady. Far too many audio books are poor sound quality or the reader is so monotone and dull. Fern couldn't be further from that, she does a fantastic job of reading the story like she is actually telling it to you not reading it. The quality is excellent and the story itself is so insightful, educational and of course she add humor throughout.

important read for anyone and everyone

absolutely outstanding story telling with important insights perfectly crafted to make the unknown approachable and understandable. Simultaneously heart warming and heart breaking.

Unexpected Page-Turner

I stayed up hours past my usual bedtime to listen to this. It was highly entertaining but more than that, highly illuminating in regards to autism. Several moments made me cry. The writing is so good, I never thought about it. A memoir without ego. Very impressive. As a woman who suspects I may have autism, this read is completely life-changing, compassionate, heartbreaking, and hopeful. Thank you, Fern.

powerful insight to autism in women

Fern does a great job telling her story and the story is a reliving look at what it's like as a woman growing up with undiagnosed autism.

Wonderful

You should read/listen to this book. It’s really worth your time. Don’t procrastinate press Purchase!

Relatable to tears

This was such a brilliantly told account of Fern’s lived experience as an autistic female that i A) related to so many of her stories and insights that i was moved to tears & B) am super thankful to have another perspective to share with my people to help them understand me and other unmasking women much better. Fern put so many things I’ve not been able to articulate into skillfully strung words. Not to mention that she is HILARIOUS. I love an Autistic who is amazing at making light of the absurdity of ourselves and the world at large.

A story everyone should read

I bought this book after hearing Fern on a podcast. She never mentioned her autism, but looking back it would have been odd to bring up. I really liked her interview, and at the end she plugged her new book, I immediately got it without reading what it was about. WOW. I feel as if I’ve learned so much, and her voice and insight to what so many are silently going through is very eye opening. I hope to use this knowledge in future interactions. Thank you for teaching me something I didn’t know I needed to learn.

I loved this audiobook!

I loved this audiobook and listened to it very quickly because it was so good! The narration of this audiobook is the best that I have ever heard. The author's voice, accent and delivery of the words were beautiful to hear. I used to live in Edinburgh, so it was really great to hear a familiar accent. The story is very heavy at times because some traumatic life experiences are shared, but it contains incredibly valuable information about the experiences of a late-diagnosed Autistic woman. The book is very, very insightful.