A Little Less Broken was a really interesting and vulnerable read about autism. I loved the writing.

I INHALED this book.

A Little Less Broken is a memoir about Mariam’s experience growing up with various unexplained symptoms including noise and texture sensitivities, “attitude problems,” difficulty making friends, feelings of rage and overwhelm, and struggles at work. She takes us through her childhood, college years, and young adulthood as her understanding of herself grows—from identifying as an introvert, to learning about Elaine Aron’s concept of the Highly Sensitive Person, to finally realizing she is autistic and receiving an official diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

While I am not autistic myself (at least not that I know of), a lot of this book was extremely relatable and I think the familiarity was part of why I sped through it so fast. I already knew some of these moments; I’ve lived them.

Mariam’s writing about her own experience is clear and compelling, and she includes a lot of cited information and research on HSP and ASD, as well as statistics about autism diagnoses in under-represented race and gender identity groups. Her story evokes all of the emotions: sad tenderness for her unknowing younger self, excitement and pride as she figures things out, lingering frustration and heartbreak for folks with similarly confusing symptoms who still don’t have the answers, resources, or accommodations they need.

I learned so much from this book and I highly recommend it!

Wow! As a neurodivergent mother myself, I found Marian’s memoir to be highly relatable and profound. This book will help so many others!

Sensitive. Serious. Misunderstood. Essayist Marian Schembari spent most of her life internally berating herself for saying the wrong thing (or the right thing to the wrong person), not acting “normal,” and feeling like there was something about her that didn’t quite coalesce with her peers.
Like so many neurodivergent people, Marian's experience of not fitting in boldly declared itself in elementary school. From friends who could no longer tolerate her talking so often or her weirdness to school administrator Mrs. Ross insisting that she was “the worst kid in the fourth grade,” Marian learned she was flawed and unlovable by the time she was nine years old.

Schembari’s heartfelt exploration in “A Little Less Broken: How An Autism Diagnosis Made Me Whole” (Flatiron Books, 2024) brings the reader on her lifelong journey to an adult autism diagnosis while helpfully interspersing pieces of her biopsychosocial road map along the way like tasty narrative bread crumbs.

Her essays have appeared in The New York Times, Slate, and Cup of Jo, and her writing chops are on full display. I am still rereading portions where she doubts her new diagnosis.

Readers of Devon Price, Charlotte Amelia Poe, Clara Tornvall, and Charli Clement should appreciate and enjoy “A Little Less Broken.”

Thank you to Marian Schembari, Flatiron Books, and NetGalley for the eARC.

I loved this book! What an enjoyable and insightful account of a woman diagnosed with autism in her 30’s . It was a wonderful and honest peak inside the head of a neruo divergent. This book is a great read for anyone struggling with any diagnosis or differences….. or parents of children struggling. I have recommended it to many people.

This was a beautiful, honest, and raw memoir. I wasn’t sure how I’d feel about it, but it was moving. Especially the parts about motherhood. I teared up a few times. I am thankful to the author for sharing her life and journey towards an autism diagnosis with readers.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

I admire the author’s insightful portrayal of her experience parenting as an autistic mother. I also appreciate her citing other authors like Devon Pride and Hannah Gadsby.

This is an absolutely beautiful book about the author's later-in-life autism diagnosis. I was hooked from the beginning when I found out that the author grew up in the town I live in so I was invested from the start but the book was so much more than that. Schembari takes you on her journey, knowing that something isn't totally right for the entirety of her life. It is only when she encounters another female who proudly states she has autism and is able to define her own needs to help her function, that the author is able to put two and two together and sets her on her own path of discovery. I was surprised to learn that females and minorities are not typically diagnosed with autism in what has traditionally been seen as a "male" condition. Schembari's work shines a light on this diagnosis and will surely help others in this ever-evolving field. It was a profound moment when after finally being diagnosed, the author states "I wasn't invisible anymore".

Thank you Flatiron Books and Marian Schembari for providing this ARC for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

A very interesting memoir of a lady who struggled most of her life with something she could not name and would eventually be misdiagnosed over the years only to be diagnosed with autism late into her 30s.

I thoroughly enjoyed this memoir. The author did such an excellent job on so many levels.

It was easy to read and understand. I really felt the frustration she would feel, the anxiety, the depression…her emotions jumped off the page. I also really appreciated the statistics and medical information she had peppered throughout the book. It wasn’t too much. It was just enough to propel the narrative and to educate me on topics and stats I wasn’t familiar with.

Her story was so engaging, I didn’t want to put the book down. I also really appreciate how she didn’t attack anybody who may have misdiagnosed her or misunderstood her, even to the comments on her posts. She showed empathy and understanding for the ignorance of others.

I highly recommend this.

***Thank you NetGalley, Flatiron Books, and Marian Schembari for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.***

Really eye opening for me a a neurotypical person to read about the experience of Marian and others mentioned in the book with the autistic diagnosis. Marian writes about her story in a way that is engaging which can make you want to continue reading her work.

I received this book as an e-arc in NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Flatiron Books and NetGalley for an advance readers copy of this book.

After over 30 years of feeling “broken” – socially awkward, sudden rages, sensitivity to sound and other stimuli, and imitating others to seem normal – Marian Schembari’s memoir opens with joy: at 34, she has just been diagnosed as autistic, and suddenly her differences and preferences make glorious sense.

Marian then goes back to her experiences growing up, with all the sadness and pain she felt. Her writing is strong and smooth, and there is humor as well as aching honesty. It is clear she is a strong, smart, and insightful person, who is speaking for untold numbers of women (and girls) who are not readily understood as being autistic, and so unsympathetically lectured, punished, and shamed for their behaviors.
She also deals with even larger issues: the lack of credence given to girls’ and women’s experiences of pain, including endometriosis as well as sensitivity to sound and touch, and emotional dysregulation.

Further, she discusses the importance of having a diagnosis, a label to make sense of ourselves and understand our needs, as well as leading to a community of others like us, and self-compassion.

Rarely have I read a memoir that is also a page-turner, and an eye-opener. I highly recommend this book to anyone struggling with an emotional or physical difference that has left them feeling beyond the range of what we consider “normal” experience.
Brava, Ms. Schembari!

There are too many weirdly coincidental overlapping bits of this memoir for me to feel comfortable reviewing it in depth, but I loved its humor and honesty.

This book was incredible. Made me cry, specifically as a late-diagnosed AuDHD woman. I had to stop several times to collect myself because reading was so tender. The descriptions are so on-point.

Wow wow wow.

This is a beautiful, devastating, eye-opening memoir about a late-in-late autism diagnosis, which happens to so many women (including me!). Marian Schembari paces this book perfectly, naturally inserting relevant autism research into stories about her own life. Hers is one of many stories about women who spent their lives feeling misunderstood and shamed. Because boys set the standard for autism presentation, Marian and many other girls have gone undiagnosed. It has been harmful and confusing for all of us.

We absolutely need more of these stories. Marian’s is the best I’ve read. She captures hyperfixation, autistic burnout, stimming, and social struggles of autism so well. She delivers each story with care and detail, not jumping around too much or trying to tackle too much of a very complex issue.

I love this book so much. It’s what girls like me and Marian and so many others needed decades ago.

This would be a great addition to a class on medical humanities, narrative medicine, or more generally creative nonfiction. I was grateful for the writer's close and up front look at autism as so often books focused on autism look from the outside in, at the people only as patients. This other new viewpoint given here is essential.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.
I always look forward to reading books written by adults who have recently been diagnosed as Autistic. I am one of those late diagnoses women and I can relate to a lot of things in this book. A diagnostic label is r for everyone but for me, it was extremely validating.
This book is well written. She tells her story with honesty and doesn't hold back the tough aspects, especially when she becomes a mom.

Too relatable. This memoir was the mirror I needed, as it reflected back so much of my experience -from sensory issues, social anxiety, and communication challenges. I loved that Marian articulated how an adult diagnosis can give you an entirely new paradigm to view your life, along with the liberation and relief it brings. She also incorporated a lot of research and reporting that I found illuminating. Recommended for all the awkward, clumsy, girls who talk too much or not enough or at the wrong time or just recite Taylor Swift lyrics or Simpsons quotes in lieu of actual conversation and suspect their might be something more at work.