Neurodiversity

Drama Queen: One Autistic Woman and a Life of Unhelpful Labels

Drama Queen: One Autistic Woman and a Life of Unhelpful Labels

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  • Create Date：2021-12-25 14:16:39
  • Update Date：2025-09-24
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Sara Gibbs
  • ISBN：1472274369
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Summary

'It has taken me several years of exploration， but I am at a place now where I see autism as neither an affliction nor a superpower。 It's just the blueprint for who I am。 There is no cure， but that's absolutely fine by me。 To cure me of my autism would be to cure me of myself。'

During the first thirty years of her life， comedy script writer Sara Gibbs had been labelled a lot of things - a cry baby， a scaredy cat， a spoiled brat， a weirdo， a show off - but more than anything else， she'd been called a Drama Queen。 No one understood her behaviour， her meltdowns or her intense emotions。 She felt like everyone else knew a social secret that she hadn't been let in on; as if life was a party she hadn't been invited to。 Why was everything so damn hard？ Little did Sara know that， at the age of thirty， she would be given one more label that would change her life's trajectory forever。 That one day， sitting next to her husband in a clinical psychologist's office， she would learn that she had never been a drama queen， or a weirdo， or a cry baby， but she had always been autistic。

Drama Queen is both a tour inside one autistic brain and a declaration that a diagnosis on the spectrum， with the right support， accommodations and understanding， doesn't have to be a barrier to life full of love， laughter and success。 It is the story of one woman trying to fit into a world that has often tried to reject her and， most importantly， it's about a life of labels， and the joy of ripping them off one by one

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Reviews

Bret Mason ，

Wonderful book， very informative and entertaining。 Really made me see many things in a new way。 If memoirs are meant to let you see life from another perspective this one is absolutely a fine German periscope。 Highly recommended。 Reading this really made me understand how little I knew about Autism。

Michelle Satterly ，

Best autism memoir I've ever read。 Best autism memoir I've ever read。 。。。more

Paul Forrest ，

A heartbreaking story told without anger。 Sara Gibb's memoir is a helpful additional to the growing body of autobiography by women with ASD。 Not many laughs， but very helpful if you are a parent or young women looking for answers。 A heartbreaking story told without anger。 Sara Gibb's memoir is a helpful additional to the growing body of autobiography by women with ASD。 Not many laughs， but very helpful if you are a parent or young women looking for answers。 。。。more

Kathryn ，

This book was perfect。 Funny， sad， entertaining and honest。 Definitely worth a read

Brittany ，

Drama Queen， a memoir by comedy writer Sara Gibbs， focuses on growing up with undiagnosed autism。 Gibbs is refreshingly honest， open， funny， and raw。 It was interesting to read about many autistic characteristics and how she managed to deal with these throughout her life。 Gibbs also dispels some stereotypes such as ‘high-functioning autism’。

Hannah Wingfield ，

Slightly mixed feelings on this one。 I enjoyed reading it， and it was long and often detailed， which I appreciated as a book I read earlier this year with a similar premise felt more like a series of short blogs。 But at times this book was contradictory - eg Sara says she can't lie， when she had *just* described a time she lied （about her friend Rob's sexuality）。 I also felt like some things that would have been really interesting to hear more about （like her brief music career） were skimmed ove Slightly mixed feelings on this one。 I enjoyed reading it， and it was long and often detailed， which I appreciated as a book I read earlier this year with a similar premise felt more like a series of short blogs。 But at times this book was contradictory - eg Sara says she can't lie， when she had *just* described a time she lied （about her friend Rob's sexuality）。 I also felt like some things that would have been really interesting to hear more about （like her brief music career） were skimmed over whilst other were covered in great detail （I get that this could be due to her autism， but from a reader's perspective I'd have been happy to have more detail in various places）。 Sara acknowledges her privilege to some extent and points out it is only *her* story， nevertheless （and this isn't her fault） it's a bit frustrating that it always seems to be the stories of those with lots of family support， no apparent financial issues and who had a private education and accessed their diagnoses through private GPs that are told。 Overall however this is one of the best autism memoirs I've read and does a good job of explaining that autism isn't always what people think it is/doesn't always present how people expect it too。 。。。more

Lauren ，

I LOVED this book。 It was one of those books that I picked up every spare minute that I had because I wanted to read more。I'm not sure what I was expecting this book to be like but it exceeded any ideas that I had。 It is subtle in how it tells the story， it reads like a normal autobiography but as the book progresses through Sara's life you begin to see the devastating impact that her （at this point undiagnosed） Autism had on every aspect of her life from friendships， relationships， holding down I LOVED this book。 It was one of those books that I picked up every spare minute that I had because I wanted to read more。I'm not sure what I was expecting this book to be like but it exceeded any ideas that I had。 It is subtle in how it tells the story， it reads like a normal autobiography but as the book progresses through Sara's life you begin to see the devastating impact that her （at this point undiagnosed） Autism had on every aspect of her life from friendships， relationships， holding down jobs， autistic burnout to her dreams of Motherhood。 Sara's writing is beautiful， it is engaging， warm and enjoyable to read。 It's well-edited and there were never parts of the book that dragged， it maintained a fast pace throughout。 I laughed along with Sara and I also sobbed at her story， it is rare for a book to affect me so emotionally。 I liked how she wrote that she doesn't consider Autism an affliction or a super-power it is simply part of who she is。 It's an eye-opening read and it stayed with me long after i'd finished reading。 One criticism I had is that the book only briefly covers Sara's life after she is diagnosed with Autism and begins to come to terms with the diagnosis， I'd have liked a little bit more detail about how the diagnosis has positively （or negatively） affected her life， maybe a second book could be written as I would certainly like to read it。 I was drawn to this book as I wanted to know more about Autism in females and I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to gain further insight in to Autism。 。。。more

Emma Pearson ，

it me

Heather Connolly ，

This is a beautifully written memoir。 It had me laughing out loud on several occasions。 At others I felt a lump in my throat as Sara captures the pain and confusion of being neurodivergent in a world set up for the neurotypical mind。 Sara smashes apart Autistic stereotypes and unpicks the many unhelpful labels that Autistic females may experience across the life span。

Kelcii ，

This is unlikely to be the best review I've written。 I've just finished the last few words and as much as our lives do not mirror one anothers， in the literal carbon copy sense。 I've never felt as seen as I do right now， in an incredibly painful way。 I will be recommending this to my family members， honestly I would recommend this to everyone。 Please don't only read this， if you want to understand Autism but definitely have it be part of the journey。 This is unlikely to be the best review I've written。 I've just finished the last few words and as much as our lives do not mirror one anothers， in the literal carbon copy sense。 I've never felt as seen as I do right now， in an incredibly painful way。 I will be recommending this to my family members， honestly I would recommend this to everyone。 Please don't only read this， if you want to understand Autism but definitely have it be part of the journey。 。。。more

Diella ，

An absolutely phenomenal read。 I devoured this book in under 12 hours。 I laughed and I cried。 So very relatable！ I would recommend this to anyone who discovers their autism as an adult， and to anyone who has an autistic person in their life。

Katherine George ，

More a long running complaint than a biography， the autism part came in after about chapter 15 from memory。

Mel ，

“I had always thought I was so unique that it would be impossible for anyone else to understand me， but there I was - I had been the exact hyper-empathetic， highly intuitive， obsessively interested， intensely anxious and phobic， poorly coordinated， easily nauseated， sleep-disturbed little girl the list described。”Through no fault of the author’s， this book took me slightly longer to read than I expected - I’m not proud of this， but as an autistic woman who struggles quite a bit with loneliness a “I had always thought I was so unique that it would be impossible for anyone else to understand me， but there I was - I had been the exact hyper-empathetic， highly intuitive， obsessively interested， intensely anxious and phobic， poorly coordinated， easily nauseated， sleep-disturbed little girl the list described。”Through no fault of the author’s， this book took me slightly longer to read than I expected - I’m not proud of this， but as an autistic woman who struggles quite a bit with loneliness and has somehow managed to make it to her mid-twenties without ever making an actual friend， I found myself initially grappling with envy at the relative ease with which the author found willing parties for friendships and relationships as a teen and adult， even if there were mishaps along the way。 Now， however， the author’s accounts of the strong support system she has in her friends， mother and husband has given me hope that this might also happen for me someday if I stay true to myself and remain patient。 Aspects of the author’s experiences were very relatable and the last few chapters in particular were quite interesting as she processed her adult diagnosis and went on an emotional journey from grief for years lost to unfair labels to acceptance of her autistic identity as “neither an affliction nor a superpower”。 I’m glad to see the body of literature in autistic memoirs growing in recent years and hope that the more experiential accounts people have access to， the closer we’ll get to a day where autistic women in particular will no longer， as was unfortunately the case for the author， have to defend their diagnosis to people with a very fixed image of what is a broad， varied and ultimately beautiful spectrum。 。。。more

T。O。 Munro ，

I bought this book on Saturday afternoon and finished it in the small hours of Monday morning， mainly because I wanted to finish it AND hand it on quickly to my daughter who， at the age of 20， had been given an diagnosis of autism in the course of a counselling session over the difficulties she had been having at university and in life in general。As with Gibbs a basket of seemingly independent behaviours and conditions suddenly made coherent sense under an overarching diagnosis。 While my daughte I bought this book on Saturday afternoon and finished it in the small hours of Monday morning， mainly because I wanted to finish it AND hand it on quickly to my daughter who， at the age of 20， had been given an diagnosis of autism in the course of a counselling session over the difficulties she had been having at university and in life in general。As with Gibbs a basket of seemingly independent behaviours and conditions suddenly made coherent sense under an overarching diagnosis。 While my daughter did not have to wait as long as Gibbs for this epiphany， there are so many res0nances in her experience and my experience of parenting her。 I even sent my daughter a few screen shots of pages in the last chapter only to get excited Caps locked messages back along the lines of I DO THAT， and I LOVED WRITING。Autism is underdiagnosed in women and girls， largely due to the efforts they make to mask their symptoms and manage their interactions with people。 Notwithstanding the parallels my daughter and I saw with Gibbs's experience - in her introduction， Gibbs makes clear that this is very much her own experience - not a manual of how autism does or should present itself in anyone else。The structure of the book is particularly apposite， divided into chapters each under a heading of one of the many unhelpful labels that were applied to her behaviour in childhood， adolescence and early adulthood。 For example Spoiled-Brat， Kissy-Girl etc - all building up to the final chapter - Autistic。 When reading a book in a hurry， it helps that it is written in a lively and entertaining style with plenty of laugh out loud moments， along with some moments of intense sadness sharp enough to move you to tears。 In a meeting long ago I remember generating a laugh about some contentious point and then， while the group were still laughing， coming in with my serious point about how and why the situation disadvantaged my department。 As the gathering nodded in agreement it struck me how more receptive people seemed to be to new or challenging ideas in the wake of a good laugh。 Gibbs' book effectively pursues a similar strategy of making you laugh to make you listen。 。。。more

Lizzie Huxley-Jones ，

One of the most wonderful things of the last few years has been meeting and speaking to other autistic people。 Post-diagnosis， I realised how much I had in common with other autistic people， that I was simply a very normal autistic person， not a very bad neurotypical。⁠⁠Reading memoirs by other autistic people， particularly late diagnosed people， has been instrumental in this。 The latest I've enjoyed has been Drama Queen by Sara Gibbs。 Extremely funny and autistically-frank， Drama Queen follows S One of the most wonderful things of the last few years has been meeting and speaking to other autistic people。 Post-diagnosis， I realised how much I had in common with other autistic people， that I was simply a very normal autistic person， not a very bad neurotypical。⁠⁠Reading memoirs by other autistic people， particularly late diagnosed people， has been instrumental in this。 The latest I've enjoyed has been Drama Queen by Sara Gibbs。 Extremely funny and autistically-frank， Drama Queen follows Sara quite literally from birth through her life， taking us through relationships， grief and her career as a comedy writer。 Drama Queen is a story of extrovert autistics， those of us who demanded attention and stood up performing in front of others， but inside were struggling far more than we could explain。 I listened to most of this in audiobook which Sara reads herself。 ⁠My copy is just a proof which I’ll be upgrading to a finished copy shortly — it’s currently out in Hardback， ebook and audio。⁠Definitely one I recommend for those late-diagnosed autistics looking for themselves in pages， though I suspect all autistics will find comfort， joy and understanding in these pages。⁠⁠Sara also kindly invited me onto the first season of her podcast Aut-Hour to talk about Stim， what it's like working with and within publishing as an autistic， and allude to what's coming next for me and her。⁠ 。。。more

Daisy H ，

The greatest final paragraph of a book。 A brilliant read。

Kathrin Passig ，

Vor der Lektüre wusste ich nicht nur nichts über Autismus bei Frauen und im Erwachsenenalter， ich hatte außerdem auch noch keine Ahnung， dass ich darüber gar nichts weiß。 （Ok， lag nicht ausschließlich an mir， offenbar gab es auch einfach neue Erkenntnisse in den letzten Jahren， die ich verpasst habe。） Jetzt weiß ich wenigstens das Allernötigste。 Angenehm zu lesen war es auch， also nicht in so einem "wie ich meine Probleme überwand und zu Gott fand"-Stil， sondern schlau und stellenweise moderat l Vor der Lektüre wusste ich nicht nur nichts über Autismus bei Frauen und im Erwachsenenalter， ich hatte außerdem auch noch keine Ahnung， dass ich darüber gar nichts weiß。 （Ok， lag nicht ausschließlich an mir， offenbar gab es auch einfach neue Erkenntnisse in den letzten Jahren， die ich verpasst habe。） Jetzt weiß ich wenigstens das Allernötigste。 Angenehm zu lesen war es auch， also nicht in so einem "wie ich meine Probleme überwand und zu Gott fand"-Stil， sondern schlau und stellenweise moderat lustig。 Bonustrack ausführliche， missmutige Auseinandersetzung mit Spiritualität und Waldorfschulen。 。。。more

Gunther Martens ，

Must-read about "the disorienting experience of growing up with undiagnosed autism" and how it presents differently in women and grown-ups。 The book is both hilarious and heart-wrenching。 Can be read in tandem with Hannah Gadsby's show Nanette， as Gibbs is also in the comedy industry。 Despite her rivaling the outrageous （sexual） comedy of errors sketched by Ulli Lust's How I Tried to Be a Good Person， there are also a lot of tears （a student recently taught me the expression "nah am Wasser gebau Must-read about "the disorienting experience of growing up with undiagnosed autism" and how it presents differently in women and grown-ups。 The book is both hilarious and heart-wrenching。 Can be read in tandem with Hannah Gadsby's show Nanette， as Gibbs is also in the comedy industry。 Despite her rivaling the outrageous （sexual） comedy of errors sketched by Ulli Lust's How I Tried to Be a Good Person， there are also a lot of tears （a student recently taught me the expression "nah am Wasser gebaut"） and unflinching accounts of living with depression。 The final chapter is a warm plea to minimally accommodate those living with extreme sensory sensitivity （e。g。 misophonia）， food aversions， and executive dysfunctions， a chapter that should be required reading for teachers and parents all over the world。 "I could wish anything for future generations of autistic people， it would be that we live in a world where saying ‘I’m autistic’ answers more questions than it raises， and what that means in different situations。 Where we see someone wearing sunglasses or headphones indoors and think nothing of it， rather than staring or commenting。 I wish for autistic people to be believed – both before and after diagnosis – when they say something is harder for them than it is for other people。 I wish for autism to be more readily recognised in people of colour， in women and in any marginalised group that doesn’t fit the stereotypical understanding of what autism looks like。 I wish for shorter waiting times for official diagnosis and for GPs who don’t assume someone ‘can’t be autistic’ if they can make eye contact or hold a conversation。 I wish for more parents to love and accept their autistic child as they are， rather than mourning the child they wish they’d had instead。 I wish for damaging and traumatic ‘cures’ to be banished to the dark ages， from emotionally scarring behavioural therapies designed to make a person appear less autistic to potentially life-threatening quackery like bleach enemas。 I wish everybody knew that vaccines don’t cause autism – and that even if they did （they don’t）， I wish people saw that having an autistic child is infinitely better than losing a child to a preventable illness。 I wish for loved ones of autistic people to understand that reasonably small environmental adjustments can completely change an autistic person’s life for the better。 I wish that there will never be another autistic person who feels like a burden or an inconvenience for asking for things they need at the expense of things other people want。 I wish for autistic communication to be seen as valid and valuable， for neurotypical people to recognise the enormous effort autistic people make to live in their world and to， at the very least， meet us halfway。 It is my deepest wish that finding out you’re autistic is no more traumatic than finding out you’re left-handed。" 。。。more

Sara Rocha ，

As an autistic woman I absolutely loved this book。 I saw myself in it so many times and felt validated and not alone。 Sara is funny and relatable。 And I will now follow her work because i definitely became a fan。

Heather Browning ，

This was so much fun。 Sara Gibbs is warm， real， and funny， honestly chronicling her life as an （undiagnosed） autistic girl and woman。 She makes it clear that she is not speaking for the experiences of all autistic people， but so much here is familiar， and it's hard not to empathise with the relief of having a diagnosis that can explain all the apparently unusual and frustrating traits and experiences she had lived with。 This was so much fun。 Sara Gibbs is warm， real， and funny， honestly chronicling her life as an （undiagnosed） autistic girl and woman。 She makes it clear that she is not speaking for the experiences of all autistic people， but so much here is familiar， and it's hard not to empathise with the relief of having a diagnosis that can explain all the apparently unusual and frustrating traits and experiences she had lived with。 。。。more

Amber Poppitt ，

Absolutely superb。 Witty， honest， and at times， painfully heartbreaking。 Sara Gibbs delivers a coherent， beautiful and candid account of what it's like to grow up in the world while being unaware of her own neurodiversity。 As someone currently reexamining their own life after receiving an autism diagnosis in later life， so much of the pain， confusion and cruelty experienced by Sara growing hits very close to home。 This is by far one of my favourite reads of the year to date。 Regardless of whethe Absolutely superb。 Witty， honest， and at times， painfully heartbreaking。 Sara Gibbs delivers a coherent， beautiful and candid account of what it's like to grow up in the world while being unaware of her own neurodiversity。 As someone currently reexamining their own life after receiving an autism diagnosis in later life， so much of the pain， confusion and cruelty experienced by Sara growing hits very close to home。 This is by far one of my favourite reads of the year to date。 Regardless of whether you're neurodiverse or neurotypical， I highly recommend checking this one out。 Beautifully written by an exceptionally likable and hilarious author。 。。。more

Jenny ，

‘If I could wish for anything for future generations of autistic people， it would be that we live in a world where saying ‘I’m autistic’ answers more questions than it raises。 Imagine saying ‘I’m autistic and people actually knowing what that means in different situations’My son was diagnosed as autistic last year and having access to shared experiences from people who are actually autistic is invaluable。 I loved this book， it was funny， honest and well written。 Whilst people’s perspectives of a ‘If I could wish for anything for future generations of autistic people， it would be that we live in a world where saying ‘I’m autistic’ answers more questions than it raises。 Imagine saying ‘I’m autistic and people actually knowing what that means in different situations’My son was diagnosed as autistic last year and having access to shared experiences from people who are actually autistic is invaluable。 I loved this book， it was funny， honest and well written。 Whilst people’s perspectives of autism are gradually changing， there is still a long way to go and insights like this are so incredibly important when it comes to developing understanding of autism， increasing acceptance and promoting inclusion。 Reading this book is an easy and enjoyable way for people to start to learn more about autism and I would encourage everyone to do so ❤️ 。。。more

Jennifer ，

I heard her interviewed on BBC radio and thought I was listening to a description of my own life， especially junior high/high school。 I felt the same throughout the book。 All the ways in which I was just oddly wrong growing up （and had to learn how to hide or change over time）， have an explanation！ While she is tremendously funny and I definitely laughed out loud a lot， there were many sections that were sad for me as they were so relatable。 All the times I was told to "just be myself" and which I heard her interviewed on BBC radio and thought I was listening to a description of my own life， especially junior high/high school。 I felt the same throughout the book。 All the ways in which I was just oddly wrong growing up （and had to learn how to hide or change over time）， have an explanation！ While she is tremendously funny and I definitely laughed out loud a lot， there were many sections that were sad for me as they were so relatable。 All the times I was told to "just be myself" and which turned out horribly and so I learned to just NOT be myself were revealed here too。 Fascinating story and a great read overall。 I would have given it 5 stars if she would've provided more guidance for what is next。 I hope her next book includes more tips and techniques for women diagnosed later in life （or not able to be diagnosed due to expense， hassle， etc。） so that we have a resources for next steps。 For me it's like， okay， great， this explained a lot， now what do I do？ 。。。more

skippity_doo ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 As heartbreaking as it is hilarious， this book （particularly the final chapter） should be required reading for anyone working with young people to really understand autism in women/AFAB young people。 I will be adding my copy to our staff bookshelf and recommending to everyone！ The storytelling is sharp， honest and self-reflective and each chapter takes the reader on a new adventure that will make you cringe/laugh/weep along with her。 （Also， I spent the first 2/3 of the book diagnosing the author As heartbreaking as it is hilarious， this book （particularly the final chapter） should be required reading for anyone working with young people to really understand autism in women/AFAB young people。 I will be adding my copy to our staff bookshelf and recommending to everyone！ The storytelling is sharp， honest and self-reflective and each chapter takes the reader on a new adventure that will make you cringe/laugh/weep along with her。 （Also， I spent the first 2/3 of the book diagnosing the author’s late dad with every single story， so felt extremely vindicated when clinical psychologist finally said the same thing。） Congratulations， Sara， on finally getting the answer and thank you for this wonderful book。 。。。more

Hazel ，

Was this book written by my british twin？？？？ Wait， not possible。。 I am not that funny。 Jokes aside， this book WAS ABSOLUTELY FRIGGIN AMAZING。 I discovered I was autistic last year at the age of 30 and have had SUCH a similar journey to Sara。。。。 Autism has a female manifestation that is differently from diagnostic criteria。 And more people still need to discover this。 The joy that my autism diagnosis has brought to people like me and Sara is life changing。 Sara has brought comedy to her story and Was this book written by my british twin？？？？ Wait， not possible。。 I am not that funny。 Jokes aside， this book WAS ABSOLUTELY FRIGGIN AMAZING。 I discovered I was autistic last year at the age of 30 and have had SUCH a similar journey to Sara。。。。 Autism has a female manifestation that is differently from diagnostic criteria。 And more people still need to discover this。 The joy that my autism diagnosis has brought to people like me and Sara is life changing。 Sara has brought comedy to her story and has produced an absolutely gut wrenching story of hilarity。 Recommended to all！ 。。。more

Kat Williams ，

Despite having very different upbringing and lives， I’ve never related to a book as much as I did with this one。 I too am late diagnosed， and prior to diagnosis I too had a plethora of labels。 Most of them were found in Sara’s book。 I love Sara’s writing style。 Her honesty is refreshing and her humour kept me wanting more。 I read passages out to my partner as I kept giggling as I sat next to him; a sure sign of a great book。 I’d also consider this a good read for that person you know who really Despite having very different upbringing and lives， I’ve never related to a book as much as I did with this one。 I too am late diagnosed， and prior to diagnosis I too had a plethora of labels。 Most of them were found in Sara’s book。 I love Sara’s writing style。 Her honesty is refreshing and her humour kept me wanting more。 I read passages out to my partner as I kept giggling as I sat next to him; a sure sign of a great book。 I’d also consider this a good read for that person you know who really should learn more about autism/being autistic， but doesn’t really want to。 It’s so relatable and such a pleasure to read they may not realise they’re learning something。 Thank you， Sara， from another autistic woman who has also had to leave traditional office work， and who also spent a lot of the time she was there crying in the toilets。 Or at her desk。 Or the lift。 。。。more

Jennifer ，

Will write a proper review when I can find the words（my autistic brain is not full of words yet） 😶

Emma ，

When my daughter was diagnosed as autistic and I began reading as much as I could about it I had a moment of going “hang on， that’s me they’re describing， that’s my childhood。” Reading this book I had much of those same feelings， literally sections of this book could have a few name and date changes and be directly lifted from my own life。 Gibbs’ writing is so funny， vibrant， and heartbreaking。 It’s wonderful to be able to read the lived experience of autistic people。 Highly recommend。

Rox Nicholl ，

As a late diagnosed autistic person， I found this book interesting， funny， and useful from a research perspective。 （Many of my own struggles are reflected in the pages - but I hadn't always realised that was my autism coming out to play。）If you think you might be autistic， or you're trying to work out what that could all mean， I would recommend this book。 If you love an autistic person， I would recommend this book。 As a late diagnosed autistic person， I found this book interesting， funny， and useful from a research perspective。 （Many of my own struggles are reflected in the pages - but I hadn't always realised that was my autism coming out to play。）If you think you might be autistic， or you're trying to work out what that could all mean， I would recommend this book。 If you love an autistic person， I would recommend this book。 。。。more

Helena33 ，

Some parts of this are hard to read， and I could resonate with a lot of the sadness （particularly the feelings of helplessness in watching your strong dad die of cancer in his fifties， and being totally misunderstood and judged by your immediate family）。 Brilliant explanation of how autism presents in women and girls。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Drama Queen: One Autistic Woman and a Life of Unhelpful Labels

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Drama Queen: One Autistic Woman and a Life of Unhelpful Labels&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Drama Queen: One Autistic Woman and a Life of Unhelpful Labels&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0