neurodiversity with european chemistry
Tilly Twomley graduated from high school, and it took everything she had to do it. With her ADD she struggled to focus enough to sit still and do well in her classes, or she would get so completely focused that everything else fell away for hours at a time and she would snap back to reality and see that she forgot about her homework. Now she’s free of school, and she wants to stay that way. However, her parents don’t see things the same way.
Tilly’s parents want her to get ready to go to college, to find a vocation, to settle in to a good solid job. In order to get her some business experience before what they think of as her freshman year, they send her to Europe for the summer to intern for her older sister. Mona and her partner Amina are starting a business selling nail polish, and Tilly has beautiful hands they can use to sell their product. They have a series of sales meetings set up through Europe, and Tilly’s parents are hoping she will use that time to learn from Mona, and to change her mind about college. Tilly just wants to spend time in Europe and shake off all the parts of her that she’s had to add on to make other people happy. Now she just wants to be herself.
However, her flight from Cleveland to London doesn’t get off to a great start. She had to rush to make it to her plane, and then a British rude guy kicked her out of the window seat so he could sit there. Okay, so it was his assigned seat, but Tilly wanted to sit there. But she moved, awkwardly trying to get out of his way just as he was trying awkwardly to get out of her way, and they collided. She had trouble sleeping, couldn’t eat her meal without an amount of ketchup that caused grave disappointment from the flight attendant, and couldn’t help but lose it herself when a little kid a couple of rows up got airsick. With British guy’s help, she made it to the bathroom before things got away from her. But they made it to London, and then Tilly embarrasses herself one last time before turning and high-tailing it off the plane.
It’s not until the next morning at her sister’s place that Tilly wakes up to get ready for their trip to Paris. That’s when she finds out that there is another intern for the summer. And when the other intern shows up, it’s none other than British guy from the plane.
Oliver Clark had just flown back to London from a two week internship at a Cleveland museum. And his flight had been a nightmare. His autism makes interacting with strangers more difficult, and the American he sat next to on the plane had been a challenge to say the least. And then he shows up to his new internship to find out that the girl from the plane will be working with them all summer. She does seem impressed when he shows her his Instagram, where he gets to show off his obsession with colors. He has a healthy following and has even been called out by design professionals as an account to watch. Oliver loves colors and is fascinated by the ways colors interact and the psychology of how colors influence behavior.
Mona, Amina, Oliver, and Tilly spend the day wandering around London, Oliver getting photos of Tilly’s hands, so he can create social media content for days to come. The more time he spends with Tilly, the more inspired he feels, the more he can feel the colors coming to life around him. And while he struggles to understand her chaotic energy, he starts to feel more and more at home around it.
As the days go by and the cites roll out before them, as the sales presentations get more polished and Oliver and Tilly become more comfortable with each other, they each find their footing in new ways. The start-up is growing, and their social media is exploding. But at the end of the summer, Tilly still has to figure out what she wants to do with her life. Will she figure out a way to stay true to herself, or will she have to give up everything she’s been working toward, give up her feelings for Oliver, and head back to Cleveland to be unhappy again?
Tilly in Technicolor is part coming-of-age story, part rom com, and part brilliantly insightful look at what it feels like to be a neurodivergent teenager in the world today. Author Mazey Eddings has crafted an entertaining story of healing and self-discovery that sings with color, energy, and vibrancy. It’s a celebration for those who see the world in different ways and encouragement for everyone to be honest about who they are and what they feel.
I thought Tilly in Technicolor was a really lovely story. I have struggled with neurodivergence myself, so I could see myself in these characters. I remembered the masking and the guilt and the confusion and feeling like everyone understood something that I just could not see for myself. Reading about these characters helped me to slow my breathing too, and to find some healing, and to remember that there is nothing wrong with me just because my brain works differently. I think this story is a balm to the soul of those who have found themselves challenged by a world that doesn’t always understand them, and it’s a wealth of comprehension for those who know and love someone who is neurodivergent but who can’t always understand them. Tilly in Technicolor is a truly beautiful story, and I am grateful that I got to spend in Tilly’s world.
Egalleys for Tilly in Technicolor were provided by Wednesday Books through NetGalley, with many thanks.
