Autobiography

What It Feels Like for a Girl

What It Feels Like for a Girl

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-05-24 00:51:29
  • Update Date：2025-09-13
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Paris Lees
  • ISBN：0241450128
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

"Fresh， original， heartbreaking" Reni Eddo-Lodge

"Devastating， hilarious， unlike anything I have ever read。 Destined to be a classic" Pandora Sykes

"Impossible to put down: Paris Lees' What It Feels Like For a Girl is genuinely singular。 It's raw， viscerally real and Byron is a character who will stay with you long after you've finished" Yomi Adegoke

'A must-read 。。。 as mesmerising as it is poignant' Stylist， SPRING MUST-READ BOOKS TO FEEL EMPOWERED
'This utterly distinctive memoir， written almost out loud in Nottinghamshire vernacular， hauls you into the world Lees grew up in。。。 it's shocking， funny， heart-rending and totally brilliant' The Bookseller， EDITOR'S CHOICE MAY 2021
'What It Feels Like for a Girl says it like it is' Evening Standard， BEST NEW BOOKS IN 2021

Thirteen-year-old Byron needs to get away， and doesn't care how。 Sick of being beaten up by lads for "talkin' like a poof" after school。 Sick of dad - the weightlifting， womanising Gaz - and Mam， who pissed off to Turkey like Shirley Valentine。 Sick of all the people in Hucknall who shuffle about like the living dead， going on about kitchens they're too skint to do up and marriages they're too scared to leave。

It's a new millennium， Madonna's 'Music' is top of the charts and there's a whole world to explore - and Byron's happy to beg， steal and skank onto a rollercoaster ride of hedonism。 Life explodes like a rush of ecstasy when Byron escapes into Nottingham's kinetic underworld and discovers the East Midlands' premier podium-dancer-cum-hellraiser， the mesmerising Lady Die。 But when the comedown finally kicks in， Byron arrives at a shocking encounter that will change life forever。

Bold， poignant and riotously funny， What It Feels Like For a Girl is the unique， hotly-anticipated and addictively-readable debut from one of Britain's most exciting young writers。

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Reviews

Bob Hughes ，

A really bold， punchy， funny and tender memoir that details Paris Lees in her younger days， her growing understanding of her gender and sexuality， and how she manages to skirt trouble， up until she first goes to university。Paris Lees manages to make her memoir feel like a novel， to the extent that you occasionally snap back into remembering that it is real， and that the woman writing the story not only endured， but survived， everything in its pages。The most noticeable thing about the book is som A really bold， punchy， funny and tender memoir that details Paris Lees in her younger days， her growing understanding of her gender and sexuality， and how she manages to skirt trouble， up until she first goes to university。Paris Lees manages to make her memoir feel like a novel， to the extent that you occasionally snap back into remembering that it is real， and that the woman writing the story not only endured， but survived， everything in its pages。The most noticeable thing about the book is something that hits you within the first few words- it is all written in accented dialect。 In the hands of a less confident writer， it could come off hackneyed and gimmicky， and I was nervous when I first saw it， but Paris Lees uses it as a strength， it carrying a strange and endearing charm throughout the book。The sections about her burgeoning sexuality and gender identity are powerfully done- she is almost casual at talking about sex work， realising she is a woman and finding herself， and it feels liberating and profound。 It almost feels that， if she had written about it in a typical way （somewhat more sentimental or declaratory）， it would not have fit。 For me， the power of the voice in this book is what drives it to be such a thrilling and thoughtful read。 I received an advanced copy of the book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more

David Randle ，

I found the book very ME ME ME。 I lived in hucknall and a simalar age， who was also brought up in a council house on a council estate and we found plenty to do。Was very self pity and blame others。The only good note was that it does provide an interesting insight into those that get on the wrong path and how troubling that path can be。

Cj Robertson ，

In ‘What It Feels Like for a Girl’ Paris Lees takes us through her teen years in a writing style that feels like she is talking to you and telling you her story。 I’m not English so the language took a minute to get used to， but it wasn’t distracting at all and I found it drew me more into the writing。This memoir was hilarious and heartbreaking all in one， and at times it was easy to forget this was even a memoir！ It made me emotional to read how much she wanted to do something important with her In ‘What It Feels Like for a Girl’ Paris Lees takes us through her teen years in a writing style that feels like she is talking to you and telling you her story。 I’m not English so the language took a minute to get used to， but it wasn’t distracting at all and I found it drew me more into the writing。This memoir was hilarious and heartbreaking all in one， and at times it was easy to forget this was even a memoir！ It made me emotional to read how much she wanted to do something important with her life and knowing what she has done and is doing now。 I could’ve happily read another hundreds pages plus of her time in Brighton and beyond。 Thank you to NetGalley for providing a copy in exchange for my honest review。 。。。more

Neena Manek ，

This was a visceral insight into the difficulties that Byron faces since feeling different from all his friends from a young age。 It is very easy to root for the protagonist， while simultaneously being horrified by the situations that he encounters from going cottaging to hedonistic nights out。 It portrays both the absolute joys of him/her finding his/her tribe and the lows of being in the very depths。 It was a very different genre of book that I would normally read， but I enjoyed it overall and This was a visceral insight into the difficulties that Byron faces since feeling different from all his friends from a young age。 It is very easy to root for the protagonist， while simultaneously being horrified by the situations that he encounters from going cottaging to hedonistic nights out。 It portrays both the absolute joys of him/her finding his/her tribe and the lows of being in the very depths。 It was a very different genre of book that I would normally read， but I enjoyed it overall and would recommend it。 #netgalley #whatitfeelslikeforagirl 。。。more

Oliver ，

Books written in vernacular tread a thin line， one that I rarely care to walk。 But it's hard to imagine this memoir without its very specific language。 The energy of the story is right there in the words， and although it took me a few chapters to overcome my resistance， on the whole I think it works really well。It's a relatively short， punchy book， an odd mix of subtlety and brashness。 Each chapter is titled with a song name or lyric。 I love this conceit， probably because I knew all the songs so Books written in vernacular tread a thin line， one that I rarely care to walk。 But it's hard to imagine this memoir without its very specific language。 The energy of the story is right there in the words， and although it took me a few chapters to overcome my resistance， on the whole I think it works really well。It's a relatively short， punchy book， an odd mix of subtlety and brashness。 Each chapter is titled with a song name or lyric。 I love this conceit， probably because I knew all the songs so found it really evocative of a certain time and lifestyle。 I hesitate to praise a trans memoir for not really centring 'the trans stuff' but I did really enjoy how 'background' Lees' transness is throughout。 There isn't really a big moment of realisation or revelation， no 'here's how I came by my name' or 'this is when I realised I was different' or descriptions of dysphoria。 Instead Lees focuses on friendships， community， wild nights out， difficult family dynamics and the painful and confusing stumbling towards 'growing up' - you know， universal stuff。 Urgh， I hate myself。 My thanks to Penguin and NetGalley for the ARC。 。。。more

Siobhan ，

What It Feels Like For A Girl is a memoir about Lees' teenage years， growing up in Nottingham and trying to find an escape。 Teenager Byron is fed up of living in Hucknall， fed up of parents who don't care， and fed up of nothing to do。 When Byron meets a new group of friends， including the unforgettable Lady Die， a new life of dancing， drink， and drugs awaits， but things aren't always straightforward。This is an immediate and bold memoir， written in the present tense， and with a sense of narrative What It Feels Like For A Girl is a memoir about Lees' teenage years， growing up in Nottingham and trying to find an escape。 Teenager Byron is fed up of living in Hucknall， fed up of parents who don't care， and fed up of nothing to do。 When Byron meets a new group of friends， including the unforgettable Lady Die， a new life of dancing， drink， and drugs awaits， but things aren't always straightforward。This is an immediate and bold memoir， written in the present tense， and with a sense of narrative， character， and linguistic creativity that feels more like fiction than a lot of memoirs do， but also means that it feels more honestly like looking back and telling stories too。 There's a lot of early 2000s culture packed in， as well as a real sense of both Hucknall and Nottingham （and the amount of public transport you have to get if you don't live in the local city/big town）。 Being trans is crucial to the memoir， but there's also a lot about class and sexuality and bullying。As someone who's heard of Lees from her journalism but didn't know much about her life， this is a fascinating and frank look at growing up， getting in trouble， and finding direction， written in a distinctive， conversational way。 It was a good book to become immersed in， fairly short and sharp， and as a fan of Lord Byron the references to him were an added bonus！ 。。。more

Emma Hardy ，

Possibly one of the most fresh， original and surprising reads in a while。I got so wrapped in the story， I forgot it was a memoir and then it surprised me even more。When it started， it reminded me of This is England， with the gritty Nottingham backdrop。 As I know Nottingham quite well， a lot of places were familiar to me， which created the picture for me nicely。This has its own very unique language and after a while I got used to it。 However， I feel like breaking down the language took away from Possibly one of the most fresh， original and surprising reads in a while。I got so wrapped in the story， I forgot it was a memoir and then it surprised me even more。When it started， it reminded me of This is England， with the gritty Nottingham backdrop。 As I know Nottingham quite well， a lot of places were familiar to me， which created the picture for me nicely。This has its own very unique language and after a while I got used to it。 However， I feel like breaking down the language took away from the shocking story and it may feel more impactful told more directly （just a personal view。）Lots to think about， and really focuses on hot topics within society currently。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=What It Feels Like for a Girl

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=What It Feels Like for a Girl&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,What It Feels Like for a Girl&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0