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A review by anatomydetective
Cuttle by Chelsea Britain
5.0
I received this ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The views expressed within are my own and unbiased.
This was a fun read that I couldn't put down. I finished it in a day. As a woman on the autism spectrum I was happy to find a book written from the point of view of an autistic woman. It's rare to read something from the point of view of an autistic adult who doesn't live with their parents and functions one their own in the world, albeit with occasional struggles. There are lots of autistic people who date, have jobs, advanced degrees and so on, but these are not the ones who are usually depicted in fiction or showcased by the media.
Though Nora is a research fellow with advanced degrees, she still struggles with sensory issues, hating disruptions of her routine, interpreting social cues and other issues that autistic people cope with constantly. I thought the author did a wonderful job capturing what it is like to live with sensory issues, such as how overwhelming scents and bright lights can be.
Nora sees the world through the filter of her special interest, marine biology. The author peppers the novel with images of sea life. Most of these worked for me, but a few seemed a bit strained or repetitive.
The plot itself kept me interested. I'm not usually one to go for plots that have a large focus on dating, but Nora's encounters were funny and sometimes painfully realistic. Besides handling the challenge of Dating with Autism, the novel also touched on the issues women deal with in STEM and academia. There's so much to love about this novel that its few awkward fish metaphors can be overlooked. I highly recommend it.
This was a fun read that I couldn't put down. I finished it in a day. As a woman on the autism spectrum I was happy to find a book written from the point of view of an autistic woman. It's rare to read something from the point of view of an autistic adult who doesn't live with their parents and functions one their own in the world, albeit with occasional struggles. There are lots of autistic people who date, have jobs, advanced degrees and so on, but these are not the ones who are usually depicted in fiction or showcased by the media.
Though Nora is a research fellow with advanced degrees, she still struggles with sensory issues, hating disruptions of her routine, interpreting social cues and other issues that autistic people cope with constantly. I thought the author did a wonderful job capturing what it is like to live with sensory issues, such as how overwhelming scents and bright lights can be.
Nora sees the world through the filter of her special interest, marine biology. The author peppers the novel with images of sea life. Most of these worked for me, but a few seemed a bit strained or repetitive.
The plot itself kept me interested. I'm not usually one to go for plots that have a large focus on dating, but Nora's encounters were funny and sometimes painfully realistic. Besides handling the challenge of Dating with Autism, the novel also touched on the issues women deal with in STEM and academia. There's so much to love about this novel that its few awkward fish metaphors can be overlooked. I highly recommend it.