Obsessive, Intrusive, Magical Thinking is a memoir from Marianne Eloise that gives an insight into neurodiversity with honesty and humor. Eloise takes us through what it is like to obsess over intrusive thoughts, and to be scared and overwhelmed by your own brain. But she also celebrates her special interest in Disneyland, and the fact that her ability to hyper-fixate on certain subjects has given her an empowering release in hard times.
What I liked about this book was that I felt there was a lot about Eloise's life we don't hear about. She refuses to divulge every detail of her traumatic experiences for our entertainment, and instead chooses to focus on how those things have shaped her as a person.
Eloise helps the reader to understand her experience of neurodiversity, OCD, grief, and chronic illness without feeling pressured to exploit her own trauma. The author opens up her obsessive, intrusive, magical world to us and, in doing so, sets a precedent for representing neurodiversity in a whole new way. This is a refreshing memoir and, whether you recognise yourself in the pages or not, you'll certainly learn something from it.
Review by Abi.
Obsessive, Intrusive, Magical Thinking was published on 06/04/22 by Icon Books.
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