Adult Braces

Driving Myself Sane

By: Lindy West

Narrated by: Lindy West

In her most ambitious memoir yet, bestselling author Lindy West takes listeners on a funny and unfiltered cross-country road trip through the most chaotic period of her life. Exclusive self-recorded voice memos captured on the road give this audiobook a raw, real-time immediacy as she rediscovers herself and reinvents her marriage in the process.

Through Shrill—the book and then the Hulu series—Lindy West became an inspiration. To this day she is stopped on the street and hailed as a beacon of empowerment by women who felt badly for not conforming to a narrow set of societal norms—thin, straight, compliant. But behind the scenes, Lindy never felt like she was the self-actualized woman fans made her out to be. When she found herself in the throes of a deep depression, with her marriage and sense of self-worth hanging in the balance, she knew she needed to make a change.

In Adult Braces, Lindy shares the story of her rock bottom, and of the journey she took to claw her way out of it. With her trademark candor and sense of humor, she examines her post-Shrill emotional implosion, her shifting feelings about traditional marriage, and her search for her long-lost self. She also tracks the highs and lows of her journey, from eye-opening natural wonders and kitschy roadside attractions to lackluster tourist traps and campground epiphanies.

The result is an engaging and laugh-out-loud narrative of becoming as Lindy transforms from a passenger into the active navigator of her own life.

Includes an illustrated map of Lindy's journey.

Critic reviews

PRAISE FOR SHIT, ACTUALLY

"Sidesplittingly funny."—Seattle Times

PRAISE FOR THE WITCHES ARE COMING

"Searingly smart... [with an] overarching tone of swashbuckling courage: West knows what she wants to say, and she really doesn't care what you think... a stirring manifesto for honesty... and an exhortation to give a damn."—LA Times

"With her signature wit, brio, and laser-like clarity of vision, one of our foremost thinkers on gender unveils her unifying theory of America: that our steady diet of pop culture created by and for embittered, entitled white men has stoked our sociopolitical moment. Adam Sandler, South Park, and Pepe the Frog all come under West's withering scrutiny in this funny, hyper-literate analysis of the link between meme culture and male mediocrity."—Esquire

PRAISE FOR SHRILL

"Both sharp-toothed and fluid....To see so much of West's writing in one place is to appreciate her range. She can eviscerate the status quo with raunchy humor....She can attack entrenched sexism with skilled polemic....And she can leave both of those modes behind to write poignantly about growing up, losing her father, and falling in love....West is propulsively entertaining."—Slate

"There's some beautiful, joyful writing here: West defies cliches both by being persistently hilarious and deeply loving"—Washington Post

Love this book, I’m sad it’s over

I’ve been waiting for this book since Lindy posted her original trip on Instagram. So funny and wise and not afraid to say what we’re all thinking. 💜

Another marvel from Lindy

I loved listening to Lindy share her journey from Seattle to Key West as she grappled with a changing family dynamic.

Hilarious, Poignant, & Thought Provoking

I genuinely loved this read. It was laugh out loud funny in multiple places, but was also meaningful, deep, and so honest. Everyone should really wait to pass judgement until they’ve heard this story first hand from Lindy. Beautifully written. The imagery she creates is masterful. I simply loved the inclusion of real audio notes in the audio book, which make the reader feel like they are there with her on the road. - Allison J

I loved this book

Lindy West is smart and funny and gets far too much crap flung at her for her brave, honest and vulnerable writing.

Adult Braces was a moving travelogue about West’s personal journey to arriving at polyamory as the best choice for her. It seems to have been taken the wrong way by most of the internet. I encourage readers familiar with that discourse to check the book out for themselves before reading the numerous takedowns it’s received since it’s release 3 whole days ago. That right there should tell you that people may be hate reading but theyre rivteted while doing so. It’s a page turner and Im sorry it’s over.

Another must-read from Lindy!

If you enjoy Lindy’s writing and watched Shrill, you owe it to Lindy to read this one. The audible was excellent. Didn’t want it to end.