What a Girl Wants

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What to expect

Read by the author, Roxy Bourdillon. Featuring an exclusive audio Q&A between the author and Laura Kay.

'Courageous, moving, bold and beautifully, brilliantly written.' – Daisy Buchanan

I am 13 years old and these are my secrets.
1. I have a crush on Jet from ITV gameshow Gladiators. So strong! So pretty!
2. I still play with Barbie dolls. It’s mostly making them scissor. Or snog. Or lie on top of each other with feeling.
3. I just kissed my best friend. Spoiler alert: she’s a girl.

From the suburbs of Leeds to the streets of Sydney, from the queer clubs of London to a quiet life by the sea, through love, family, friendship and heartache, join Roxy Bourdillon on a journey to work out exactly who she is.

What a Girl Wants is the perfect read for anyone who’s searched for their place in the world, for anyone who’s ever been catcalled, anyone who's despaired about their body, fallen in love, had their heart broken and found friends who can put it back together.

From overcoming shame and finding your tribe, to surviving the dating scene and learning to really express yourself, this is a book about joy, empowerment and freedom.

It's a laugh-out-loud treat of a read for fans of Dolly Alderton's Everything I Know About Love and Caitlin Moran's How to Be a Woman - but with a glorious queer twist.

Critics Review

'Courageous, moving, bold and beautifully, brilliantly written.'

Daisy Buchanan

'Smart and funny – genuinely brilliantly, laugh out loud funny. What A Girl Wants is unabashed, bold, even confronting at times and it's exhilarating to read Roxy's words, to be witness to her life.'

Laura Kay, author of The Split, Making It and Wild Things

'An inspiring and refreshing read! I wish this had been around when I was 19. And 29, and 39. . .'

Val McDermid

'What a girl NEEDS, because every girl NEEDS to read this – relatable for the girls who've gone through it and reassuring for the girls who are going through it.'

Charlie Craggs, author of To My Trans Sisters

'This is the book I wish existed when I was younger, all told in Roxy’s wonderful, unique, inimitable way. Roxy has my heart.'

Adele Roberts, broadcaster and author

'Beautiful, kind, inclusive, hilarious, passionate. A taster of how glorious things can be when a girl gets what she wants.'

The L Word star Rachel Shelley

'Jam-packed with hilarity and heart! The personality that has always made Roxy’s journalism a must-read shines through!'

Rosie Wilby, comedian, broadcaster and author of The Breakup Monologues

'Funny, thought-provoking and totally charming. . . An important and passionate book on the power of sexuality, creativity and love. Brilliant.'

Karen McLeod, author of Lifting Off and In Search Of The Missing Eyelash

'Heartfelt, sexy and highly entertaining, Roxy Bourdillon's memoir is also tender on the realities of growing up queer under Section 28 and what it means to be out and proud today.'

Holly Williams, author of The Start Of Something and What Time Is Love?

'A no holds barred trip down memory lane that packs a hilarious, nostalgic and seriously sapphic punch.'

Jamie Windust, author of In Their Shoes

'A fabulously femme romp through a queer life, that will be a guiding light for anyone embracing their truth.'

Lotte Jeffs, author of This Love, The Queer Parent and How to Be a Gentlewoman

Hilarious, honest – and sometimes painful. . . From her first secretive kisses to arguments with femmephobic bouncers, Roxy's stories are affirming – and occasionally outrageous! At once a giggly gossip-fest with your lesbian best friend, and a fiercely feminist call to arms, What A Girl Wants is a must-read!

Rachel Dawson, author of Neon Roses

'An honest, uplifting and inspirational journey of discovery. I loved it!'

Mari Hannah

'An exuberant, open-hearted memoir about growing up a lesbian under Section 28, and about living a richly queer life in 21st century Britain.'

Kate Young, author of Experienced

'I loved this book on so many levels. . . It’s beautifully written, a truly uplifting and engaging read.'

VG Lee

'I adored What a Girl Wants. It’s such a lovely, warm book to escape to. It gave me so much joy.'

Kate Holderness, actor and author

'A warm, tender, and playful memoir of growing up lesbian under Section 28 all the way up to becoming the DIVA magazine editor-in-chief.'

Lily Lindon

'Relatable, entertaining, thought-provoking and utterly charming. I loved it!'

Matt Cain

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