LoveReading4Kids Says
LoveReading4Kids Says
August 2023 Book of the Month
Phoebe is in Year 11, Phoebe is still grieving for her mum, and Phoebe is autistic. Phoebe struggles at school - not with the academics, she’s far too clever and organised to struggle with those - but with the social side. Thankfully best friend, Bethany, is there to help, because whilst Phoebe might be a stickler for rules, the unwritten social rules of secondary school are a lesson too far. But when the rules of the social game start changing, Phoebe is not sure if she can keep up.
When new boy Will starts taking all of Bethany’s attention, Phoebe determines to widen her world by setting herself challenges to step outside her comfort zone. For some people wearing a denim jacket, joining the school chess team and a day out in Edinburgh might seem small, for Phoebe they are big steps towards the rest of her life. It’s only when Bethany experiences her own crisis that Phoebe starts to realise that maybe she’s okay as she is after all.
Phoebe is a fantastic, believable character, the novel has been written for the author’s own autistic daughter and genuine fondness leaps from the page. It is written in the first person, so we are able to understand exactly how Phoebe sees the world and attempts to navigate it. Small details, such as the security a hidden disabilities lanyard brings or how it feels to have a meltdown, make this a great empathy building book.
Her friendship with Bethany is beautifully depicted, just like the waves that surround their island home, they may move away from each, but they always return together. They both live on Holy Island (Lindisfarne) in Northumberland. This small, island community provides a unique setting for the novel. Indeed, so ruled by their environment are they that Phoebe and Bethany board at school a few times a week depending on tide times!
In many ways this is a quiet novel about a quiet girl, but just like Phoebe there is plenty going on beneath the surface. Perfect for fans of Sara Barnard and Patrice Lawrence.
Amy McKay
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About
Finding Phoebe Synopsis
Phoebe is autistic. She prefers to stay in her comfort zone: walking her dog, writing fantasy fiction, surviving school with as few incidents as possible. When her best (and only) friend rebels and gets a secret boyfriend, Phoebe reluctantly agrees to cover for her.
Before long, Phoebe's dealing with all sorts of things she'd rather not, like deception, fashionable jackets, and the bewildering politics of the school chess club. Breaking the rules has never been Phoebe's thing, but as events take a seriously unexpected turn, she realises there's more to her than she ever imagined...
A letter from the author:
Dear reader/bookseller/buyer/other, I wrote this book for my daughter, or a future version of my daughter. Let me explain. Amelia was diagnosed with autism at the age of four. After some discussion, my wife and I decided that we wanted to talk to her about it sooner rather than later. We wanted her to grow up knowing that she was neurodivergent, and this was just one thing among many that made her a unique human being. So, we wrote her a letter. By then, Amelia was already an avid (and precocious!) reader, having taught herself when she was two, via countless rereadings of Peter Rabbit. She also seemed to absorb information better when it was written rather than spoken, so we felt having something to read, and come back to, would be especially useful for her. Our aim was to explain to her, in as simple terms as possible, why she experienced the world a little differently from some other people; why she found some things very easy and some things very hard; why she could read fluently, but found some social games impossible to fathom. I suppose, like most parents, we just wanted to give our daughter the best tools we could to help her understand herself and the world around her. And we wanted to tell her, at the earliest opportunity, that it’s OK to be different – and often it’s more than OK. That as much as our differences can present us with challenges, they can also, sometimes, be the source of our greatest strengths. In a sense, this novel is a continuation of the same project. Amelia is ten now, but I know she’ll be a teenager in the blink of an eye, and this will bring a whole host of new challenges. Being a teenager is tough for anyone, but it can be particularly tough for autistic girls. It’s the time when social dynamics change, when hormones kick in, when relationships with friends and parents become more complicated – when life, in general, becomes more complicated. In short, it’s messy, and this book is about two girls – one neurotypical, one not – trying to navigate that mess. It’s about love and friendship, self-acceptance and the acceptance of others. My original hope was that it might help my daughter to negotiate the weird, knotty and sometimes frightening transition from childhood to adulthood, but now that it’s going out into the world, I hope it will prove equally helpful and engaging to others – neurotypical or not. With best wishes, Gavin Extence
About This Edition
| ISBN: |
9781839133312 |
| Publication date: |
3rd August 2023 |
| Author: |
Gavin Extence |
| Publisher: |
Andersen Press Ltd |
| Format: |
Paperback |
| Pagination: |
336 pages |
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Press Reviews
Gavin Extence Press Reviews
'Neurodiversity has a voice, and it's witty and uplifting and enlightening all at once.' - Jasper Fforde
'A lovely book.' - Graeme Simsion
'Totally enchanting, it's warm and funny with such a kind heart, just like Phoebe who is a wonderfully charming character to spend time with.' - Ciara Smyth
'A humdinger of a story packed with infectious humour and heart, Finding Phoebe is reading for pleasure at its absolute best.' -Jessica Scott-Whyte
'A lovely story with a compelling and unique protagonist. Extence tackles a subject that has almost become taboo these days and deserves to see the light in YA fiction.' - Susin Nielsen
Author
About Gavin Extence
Gavin Extence was born in 1982 and grew up in the interestingly named village of Swineshead, Lincolnshire. From the ages of 5-11, he enjoyed a brief but illustrious career as a chess player, winning numerous national championships and travelling to Moscow and St Petersburg to pit his wits against the finest young minds in Russia. He won only one game. Gavin's first book, The Universe versus Alex Woods - was a Richard & Judy Book Club choice and one of the Waterstones Eleven; it was also shortlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize, sold over 100,000 copies and is being developed for the big screen. He lives in Sheffield.
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