Robinson acquires Brown's 'essential' guide to living with ADHD

Robinson Psychology, part of Little, Brown Book Group has acquired It’s Not A Bloody Trend: Understanding Life as an ADHD Adult by journalist and author Kat Brown.

Editorial director Andrew McAleer acquired world English-language rights to the title from Millie Hoskins at United Agents. It will be published in February 2024.

The publisher says: “There has been an unmistakable rise in awareness and visibility of ADHD in recent years, but it is still a deeply misunderstood condition and one that can be tricky (and potentially costly) to diagnose.

"A significant percentage of adults globally are affected by ADHD but formally diagnosed numbers are much smaller. This is rapidly changing, however, and test-taking has increased dramatically, particularly among women. What was once seen as a condition associated chiefly with young boys is now being properly recognised as something that affects people of all genders (often presenting quite differently) and at all ages.

“But isn’t this just a bloody trend, a fashionable label to pin on yourself or an excuse for being a bit disorganised or distracted? Kat Brown firmly argues against this view in this enlightening and definitive layman’s guide to what ADHD is and how you can with live it.”

Based on her own personal journey to diagnosis in 2020, aged 37, and with contributions by the leading clinical experts in this field, It’s Not A Bloody Trend is, the publisher says, “written with the trademark wry humour and sensitivity that Kat brings to all her writing". “This is an accessible and informative guide to ADHD, essential for anyone who has it (whether they know or not), and also those who don’t but wish to understand more,” it says.

Brown is a freelance journalist and commentator whose work on ADHD, mental health stigma, and other social and arts commentary has appeared in national titles including the Telegraph, Grazia, "Woman’s Hour", Woman’s Health and the Times. Her first book, No One Talks About This Stuff, is an anthology sharing people’s untold experiences of infertility and baby loss (Unbound, 2024).

McAleer said: “We’re in the midst of an explosion of publishing around this disorder, but Kat’s book stood out for me as offering exactly what is needed for better coming to terms with ADHD, through a relatable personal story and breaking down common areas of difficulty into chapters that offer supportive, applied tools to help. I love that Kat takes us through that moment of diagnosis when everything clicks into place, but also goes beyond that to tackle what happens next.”

Brown said: “I am so thrilled to be working with Robinson on this book − not least because they let me keep the title. There has been so much diminishing and stigma around ADHD, just as there was with depression 10 years ago. My biggest hope for this book is that it will offer support and explanation, as well as support and techniques for people in the years-long wait for a diagnosis. Nobody else should spend their life feeling defective. Everyone deserves to have a user manual to their brain, and this is it for people with ADHD.”