- Published: 26 June 2025
- ISBN: 9781405967976
- Imprint: Penguin eBooks
- Format: EBook
- Pages: 352
The Girls Who Grew Big
- Published: 26 June 2025
- ISBN: 9781405967976
- Imprint: Penguin eBooks
- Format: EBook
- Pages: 352
This broken world is lucky to have Leila Mottley writing in it ... 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
With impeccable and breathtaking prose, Mottley takes us into the treacherous terrain where girlhood and womanhood collide ... 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
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
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
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
Mottley’s tough, vital lyricism drives a fiercely compassionate novel about survival, hope, and love
Daily Mail
A big-hearted story ... Mottley’s refreshing, no-holds-barred approach sees her join the ranks of other Gen-Z novelists who are reinventing how motherhood is portrayed in literature
i paper
[Mottley] is excellent at capturing the mysterious quality of this neglected patch of Florida: its close, salty air, its turquoise waters and its white sands
Guardian
Striking
The New Yorker
A powerful story penned with a surprising maturity ... Quite extraordinary
Trip Fiction