Holly Bourne

Author

Holly Bourne is a British author whose young adult novels tackle serious subjects — mental health, feminism, relationships, and growing up — with honesty, humour, and an absolute refusal to talk down to her readers. She has become one of the most important and influential YA writers in the UK. Born in 1987, Bourne studied journalism and... worked as a journalist and editor before turning to fiction. She was a project manager for a youth charity and worked as the editor of a news website for young people — experience that gave her an authentic understanding of the issues facing teenagers and young adults. Am I Normal Yet? (2015) was her breakthrough — the first book in the Spinster Club trilogy, following Evie, a sixteen-year-old recovering from severe OCD and anxiety, who starts college determined to be "normal." The novel's unflinching, funny, and compassionate portrayal of mental illness earned widespread praise. How Hard Can Love Be? and What's a Girl Gotta Do? completed the trilogy, each exploring different aspects of feminism and identity through different members of the Spinster Club. The series was praised for making feminism accessible and relevant to young readers without being preachy or simplistic. Bourne writes about mental health with particular authority and care — she draws on her own experiences and treats her characters' struggles with both seriousness and hope. Her subsequent novels, including It Only Happens in the Movies, Are We All Lemmings and Snowflakes?, The Places I've Cried in Public, and Pretending (her first adult novel), have continued to explore difficult emotional territory with characteristic warmth and directness. The audiobook editions of Bourne's novels are engaging, with narrators capturing the honesty and energy of her writing. Her books and audiobooks are essential for young adult readers — and plenty of adult ones — who want fiction that is real, funny, and brave about the things that matter. Read more Show less