Description

It’s 1977, and punk rock has just hit Liverpool. The legendary Eric’s club is home to the city’s rebels, posers and misfits. It’s a place of attitude, adventure and new possibilities, and it changes lives. Some become pop stars; Penny Kiley becomes a music journalist.

The story traces Penny’s relationship with the music scene from the turbulent political 1980s into the changing culture of the 21st century. Throughout these years, she never stops being a misfit, and the question remains: how do you navigate normal life when punk is dead and you don’t know you’re autistic?

Atypical Girl begins as a coming-of-age story and ends as a midlife reinvention. What unites them is a search for identity and the role that music plays in all our lives.

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Featuring encounters with Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Echo & The Bunnymen, The Teardrop Explodes, Paul McCartney, The Cramps, Jonathan Richman, Tracey Thorn and more.

Publisher Review

‘So refreshing to read a first-hand account of Liverpool’s vibrant punk and post-punk scenes from a female perspective for once, and Penny Kiley is certainly the woman for the job . . . an unpretentious document of those times and an authentic window into underground late 70s/early 80s UK pop culture’ — Vic Galloway, BBC Broadcaster, Author & Journalist ‘Brian Cox may say that you can’t travel back in time, but Penny Kiley does a damn good job of allowing us to experience the sweat of Liverpool’s punk, post punk and beyond. A satisfying book that shows you just why misfits need music to survive’ — Robin Ince ‘Fabulous . . . it really captures a moment that resonates strongly with me’ — Andy McCluskey, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark ‘Penny Kiley’s adventures in punk and post punk and beyond create a love letter to the narrative that has affected all our lives’ — John Robb ‘Penny was a part of the furniture at Eric’s, quietly observing, reporting and reviewing. If anyone can paint a true picture of those glorious days she can’ — Will Sergeant, Echo & The Bunnymen ‘99% of memoirs are scattered with lies. File Atypical Girl in the remaining 1%’ — Bill Drummond, Co-Founder of the KLF, Writer and Musician ‘I love this book. I enjoyed every word, found many things that related directly to me and found it spoke to exactly my views on what punk means. It’s also an incredible document of Liverpool’ — Rachel Talalay, Director of Tank Girl and Doctor Who ‘A refreshingly feminine take on punk and the tribulations of growing up during an era that was psychologically and culturally disruptive . . . candour and a great deal of wit… loaded with charm’ * Louder Than War * ‘A brutally honest journey through punk by a writer with a distinctive voice’ — Stuart Cosgrove ‘Penny Kiley charts the ins and outs of life as a rock writer in the 1980s and beyond in an engrossing, personal and vivid memoir’ — David Quantick ‘Atypical Girl looks back to a thrilling musical moment as well as trying to make sense of her own late-diagnosed autism… Written in the crisp, lively prose that befits a winner of a Plain English Campaign award, the book is a reminder of the hard work involved in sustaining a career in freelance journalism’ * The Journalist *