The Girls Who Grew Big - by Leila Mottley (Hardcover)

About the Book

"A novel about the heartbreaks, triumphs, and betrayals of a group of teenage mothers living on the Florida panhandle"--

Book Synopsis

From the author of Oprah's Book Club pick and New York Times bestseller Nightcrawling, here is an astonishing new novel about the joys and entanglements of a fierce group of teenage mothers in a small town on the Florida panhandle.

Adela Woods is sixteen years old and pregnant. Her parents banish her from her comfortable upbringing in Indiana to her grandmother's home in the small town of Padua Beach, Florida. When she arrives, Adela meets Emory, who brings her newborn to high school, determined to graduate despite the odds; Simone, mother of four-year-old twins, who weighs her options when she finds herself pregnant again; and the rest of the Girls, a group of outcast young moms who raise their growing brood in the back of Simone's red truck.

The town thinks the Girls have lost their way, but really they are finding it: looking for love, making and breaking friendships, and navigating the miracle of motherhood and the paradox of girlhood.

Full of heart and life and hope, set against the shifting sands of these friends' secrets and betrayals, The Girls Who Grew Big confirms Leila Mottley's promise and offers an explosive new perspective on what it means to be a young woman.

Review Quotes

"Blistering, wise, empathetic. . . . Mottley writes with unabashed reverence for these young mothers, never sanitizing or romanticizing their lives but instead valuing them on the page in all the ways they are not valued in their lives. . . . Mottley has brought the physicality and pain and beauty of birth and new motherhood into the light. That she has done so by way of teenage girls who have too often been shamed and shunned and told to hide themselves away makes her novel all the more vital to behold." --Nina LaCour, New York Times Book Review

"Mottley is a dazzling writer and this novel opens up the world of young mothers in all its makeshift, sticky, struggling glory. The Girls Who Grew Big is sensuous, gripping, and utterly believable." --Emma Donoghue, author of Room

"Raw, wild, and achingly beautiful, The Girls Who Grew Big is one of the most spiritually accurate and electric portrayals of motherhood I've ever read. Leila Mottley is the real deal." --Rufi Thorpe, author of Margo's Got Money Troubles

"The Girls Who Grew Big is a novel about teen pregnancy that brilliantly upends every reductive trope and platitude on the subject. With impeccable and breathtaking prose, Mottley takes us into the treacherous terrain where girlhood and womanhood collide, and where families and friendships fracture, and the lines between them blur. Simone, Adela, Emory and The Girls live out loud and are flawed, tender, and absolutely unforgettable. Mottley continues to show us the power and beauty of her pen!"--Deesha Philyaw, author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies

"Written in big, beautiful prose that expands throughout the novel and leaves the reader full and satisfied. . . . Leila Mottley's grasp of human nature is unmatched." --Candice Carty-Williams, author of Queenie

"This broken world is lucky to have Leila Mottley writing in it. Like Jesmyn Ward, Kiese Laymon and Toni Cade Bambara before her, Mottley digs deep into the parts of America that many tell us to forget. In gorgeous prose, she brings to life the beauty and brutality of the Florida panhandle, and turns narratives about motherhood, girlhood and the South on their heads. Mottley is the real deal--a vital voice in the American literary tapestry, giving us a full, empathetic understanding of the parts of life the rest of culture tells us to ignore." --Kaitlyn Greenidge, author of Libertie

"Compelling and uplifting. . . . Mottley is an elegant and expressive writer, giving each of her unforgettable characters a fullness and relatability that will appeal to many readers. . . . Give to fans of Brit Bennett's The Mothers and Kirstin Valdez Quade's The Five Wounds. . . . Stirring." --Allison Escoto, Booklist (starred)

"Propulsive. . . . Poignant without being saccharine, thanks to the sharply drawn characters and their all-too-human behavior. This distinctive coming-of-age story is worth seeking out." --Publishers Weekly

"A sensual set of character studies, shaped by compassion and defiance." --Kirkus Reviews

"A poignant and deeply engaging exploration of teenage motherhood. . . . Through evocative storytelling and a vivid sense of place, this book paints an unforgettable portrait of resilience, self-discovery, and the power of forging one's path against the odds. . . . Authentic and emotionally compelling." --Jessica Calaway, Library Journal (starred)

"Exquisite. . . . Brilliant. . . . Both hopeful and determinedly honest, The Girls Who Grew Big reflects on how and why we love." --Sydney Harkin, BookPage (starred)

About the Author

LEILA MOTTLEY is the author of the novel Nightcrawling, an Oprah's Book Club pick and New York Times bestseller, and the poetry collection woke up no light. She is also the 2018 Oakland Youth Poet Laureate. She was born and raised in Oakland, where she continues to live.