Recommendations based on "Ootlin The must-read memoir about growing up in the UK care system"

A raw, compelling memoir from actress and activist Evanna Lynch detailing her rise to fame as Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter movies while facing disordered eating, and how she learned to navigate the path between fears and dreams—for readers of Jennette McCurdy’s I’m Glad My Mom Died and Tom Felton’s Beyond the Wand. Evanna Lynch’s casting as Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter films is a tale that grew to almost mythic proportions—a legend of how she faced disordered eating as a young girl, found solace in a beloved book series, and later landed the part of her favorite character. But that is not the whole story. Even after recovery, there remains a conflict at her core: a bitter struggle between the pursuit of perfection and the desire to fearlessly embrace her creative side. Revealing a startlingly accomplished voice, Lynch delves into the heart of her relationship with her body. As she takes the reader through a personal journey of leaving behind the safety of girlhood, Lynch explores the pivotal choices that ultimately led her down the path of creativity and toward acceptance of the wild, sensual, and unpredictable reality of womanhood. Honest, electrifying, and inspiring, this is a story of the battle between self-destruction and creation, of giving up the preoccupation with perfection in favor of our uncharted dreams—and how the simple choice to create is the most liberating action a person can take.

A pregnant woman who regards motherhood as a responsible, moral choice prepares for her child's birth by remarking upon and examining her ambivalent feelings toward herself, her society, and her unborn child

The frank and revealing memoir of a writer who draws from her own creativity to heal."I believe our bodies are carriers of experience," Lidia Yuknavitch writes in her provocative memoir Reading the Waves. "I mean to ask if there is a way to read my own past differently, using what I have learned from literature: how stories repeat and reverberate and release us from the tyranny of our mistakes, our traumas, and our confusions."Drawing on her background -- her father's abuse, her complicated dynamic with her disabled mother, the death of her child, her sexual relationships with men and women -- and her creative life as an author and teacher, Yuknavitch has come to understand that by using the power of literature and storytelling to reframe her memories, she can loosen the bonds that have enslaved her emotional growth. Armed with this insight, she allows herself to look with the eye of an artist at the wounds she suffered and come to understand the transformational power this has to restore her soul.By turns candid and lyrical, stoic and forgiving, blunt and evocative, Reading the Waves reframes memory to show how crucial this process can be to gaining a deeper understanding of ourselves.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the nine-time women’s basketball icon and two-time Olympic gold medalist—a raw, revelatory account of her unfathomable detainment in Russia and her journey home.“Compelling . . . An intimate, honest recollection of Griner’s time held captive in Russia. Coming Home reads as a deeply personal, publicly powerful documentation of what happened—what is still happening—to her body and mind.” —SlateOn February 17, 2022, Brittney Griner arrived in Moscow ready to spend the WNBA offseason playing for the Russian women’s basketball team where she had been the centerpiece of previous championship seasons. Instead, a security checkpoint became her gateway to hell when she was arrested for mistakenly carrying under one gram of medically prescribed hash oil. Brittney’s world was violently upended in a crisis she has never spoken in detail about publicly—until now.In Coming Home, Brittney finally shares the harrowing details of her sudden arrest days before Russia invaded Ukraine; her bewilderment and isolation while navigating a foreign legal system amid her trial and sentencing; her emotional and physical anguish as the first American woman ever to endure a Russian penal colony while the #WeAreBG movement rallied for her release; the chilling prisoner swap with Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout; and her remarkable rise from hostage to global spokesperson on behalf of America’s forgotten. In haunting and vivid detail, Brittney takes readers inside the horrors of a geopolitical nightmare spanning ten months.And yet Coming Home is more than Brittney’s journey from captivity to freedom. In an account as gripping as it is poignant, she shares how her deep love for Cherelle, her college sweetheart and wife of six years, anchored her during their greatest storm; how her family’s support pulled her back from the brink; and how hundreds of letters from friends and neighbors lent her resolve to keep fighting. Coming Home is both a story of survival and a testament to love—the bonds that brought Brittney home to her family, and at last, to herself.

Bestselling author and foster carer Casey Watson tells the shocking and deeply moving true story of a young girl with severe behavioural problems.This is the first of several stories about ‘difficult’ children Casey helped during her time as a behaviour manager at her local comprehensive.Casey has been in the post for six months when thirteen-year-old Imogen joins her class. One of six children Casey is teaching, Imogen has selective mutism. She’s a bright girl, but her speech problems have been making mainstream lessons difficult.Life at home is also hard for Imogen. Her mum walked out on her a few years earlier and she’s never got on with her dad’s new girlfriend. She’s now living with her grandparents. There’s no physical explanation for Imogen’s condition, and her family insist she’s never had troubles like this before.Everyone thinks Imogen is just playing up – except the member of staff closest to her, her teacher Casey Watson. It is the deadpan expression she constantly has on her face that is most disturbing to Casey. Determined there must be more to it, Casey starts digging and it’s not long before she starts to discover a very different side to Imogen’s character.A visit to her grandparents’ reveals that Imogen is anything but silent at home. In fact she’s prone to violent outbursts; her elderly grandparents are terrified of her.Eventually Casey’s hard work starts to pay off. After months of silence, Imogen utters her first, terrified, words to Casey: ‘I thought she was going to burn me.’Dark, shocking and deeply disturbing, Casey begins to uncover the reality of what Imogen has been subjected to for years.Casey Watson's book 'Little Girl Lost' was a Sunday Times bestseller w/c 2024-03-25.

Control. Jealousy. Isolation. Blame. Anger. Violence. The inspiring true story of a young woman who suffered a terrifyingly abusive relationship culminating in a horrific acid attack from the man who claimed to love her. Adele was just 23 years old when she was scarred for life by an acid attack arranged by her ex-boyfriend, Anthony. The attack left her partially bald and she lost her right ear. This was Anthony's attempt to stop her from ever being attractive to another man - a final act of 'control' over her and the horrific end to a terrifying case of domestic abuse. The acid attack came after she had ended her relationship of several years with Anthony Riley, the man who said he couldn't live without her. Anthony Riley was convicted in October 2015 and was sentenced to a minimum of 13 years in prison. This is Adele's brave story, the story of one woman's incredible fight to recover from the most appalling injuries and to decide that she would not be controlled, she would be strong.

'In the journal I do not just express myself more openly than I could do to any person; I create myself.' Intimate, vulnerable and unsparing, Reborn bears witness to the evolution of Susan Sontag. With entries dating from 1947-1963, the first instalment from Susan Sontag's diaries charts her ascension from early adolescence to her early thirties. Unabashed, though thoroughly self-reflective, Sontag's diaries reveal the inner workings of her mind, her insecurities and her passions. This compelling account of the evolution of America's greatest post-war intellectual allows us to behold the moral and political awakening of the artist and critic. 'An exceptionally vivid, and often moving, account of a young woman's painful journey towards acceptance of her own nature.' Sunday Telegraph 'Moving on several levels . . . thrilling . . . fascinating . . . often reads like a brilliant postmodern bildungsroman' New York Magazine 'One can feel Sontag's mind beginning to ripen and bloom, and the full force of the intellectual originality that would be her hallmark emerging' The Guardian

An upcoming book to be published by Penguin Random House.

'Bravo, Norma! I love you' Paulo Coelho 'A life-affirming book' Daily Mail 'An uplifting personal story of a year lived like no other' Daily Express Two days after her husband of sixty-seven years died, nonagenarian Miss Norma was diagnosed with cancer. When told about her treatment options - surgery, chemo and radiotherapy - she rose to her full five feet and said in the strongest voice she could muster- 'I'm ninety years old. I'm hitting the road!' Driving Miss Normais the story of her inspirational road trip across the US in a thirty-six-foot motorhome with her son, Tim, his wife, Ramie and their Poodle, Ringo - showing us that it's never too late to begin an adventure, inspire hope or become a trailblazer. Based on a social media phenomenon with over 500K devoted Facebook followers, it follows Miss Norma's transformative journey of finally spreading your wings and living life on your own terms. With each adventurous stop on her cross-country journey a once timid Miss Norma said YES to living in the face of death - trying oysters for the first time, experiencing a pedicure, and taking the hot air balloon ride her late husband never found time for. With each passing mile (and one hilarious visit to a cannabis dispensary), Miss Norma's health improved and conversations that had once been taboo began to unfold. Norma, Tim and Ramie bonded in ways they could never have anticipated, and their definitions of home, of family and friendship expanded as strangers became friends and showered them with kindness. Bursting with Miss Norma's generous spirit, Driving Miss Normaignites a renewed sense of life, family, fun and self-discovery - at any age.

Narrated with warmth, humor, exceptional candor and wisdom, The Sum of Our Days is a portrait of a contemporary family, tied together by the love, strong will, and stubborn determination of a beloved matriarch, the indomitable New York Times bestselling author of The House of the Spirits, Isabel Allende.   "An inspiring and thought-provoking work." –Denver Post   Isabel Allende reconstructs the painful reality of her own life in the wake of the tragic death of her daughter, Paula. Narrated with warmth, humor, exceptional candor, and wisdom, this remarkable memoir is as exuberant and as full of life as its creator. Allende bares her soul while sharing her thoughts on love, marriage, motherhood, spirituality and religion, infidelity, addiction, and memory—and recounts stories of the wildly eccentric, strong-minded, and eclectic tribe she gathers around her and lovingly embraces as a new kind of family.   This unforgettable memoir is a powerful story of resilience, grief, and the unconventional bonds of family: Grief and Loss: A mother’s candid account of continuing on after the tragic death of her daughter, Paula, turning profound sorrow into a celebration of life. An Unconventional Family Tribe: Meet the eccentric, strong-minded, and eclectic tribe of relatives and friends Allende gathers around her, bound by love and unwavering loyalty. Motherhood and Matriarchy: Explore Allende’s powerful reflections on love, marriage, and motherhood as she navigates being the matriarch of a sprawling, modern family. A Generational Saga: From her stepdaughter Jennifer’s battle with addiction to the miraculous birth of her granddaughter Sabrina, witness the raw and hopeful tales that define three generations.