Freya Harte is Not a Puzzle

Freya Harte's one wish was to fit in... For as long as she could, she tried her best to appear normal. Why was it that simple, ordinary things like introducing herself to her new classmates were so difficult? Why was she constantly getting her timetable mixed up, forgetting her books and getting lost?

As teachers lose patience with her and the other girls begin to distance themselves from her, Freya struggles
even more. By the time Freya is diagnosed as autistic, she is feeling more alone than ever and determines to keep her diagnosis a secret.

On a class trip to the Gaeltacht, Freya finds herself sharing a room with her old best friend, Orla, and Orla's new friends, Izzo and Chloe. Freya sees this as an opportunity to win back Orla, and finally prove to everyone that she is 'normal'. When they pressure her to sneak out to meet boys, however, it all becomes too much for Freya and she has a very public meltdown.

This experience ends up bringing her closer to Shannon and some other girls she meets on the trip. This helps her to articulate that she and her autism aren't the problem, but rather the way society treats her. Freya finally sees how and where she fits in. She talks more openly about being autistic and embraces who she is.

Auteur

Méabh Collins is a writer and scholar from Dublin. She holds an M.Phil in Children's Literature from Trinity College Dublin, where she is currently pursuing a PhD. In recent years, she has worked as a primary school teacher and in children's and Irish language publishing. She lives in Dublin with her husband and their rescue greyhound. This is her first novel.