Who Wants Normal?

A razor sharp, super-smart manifesto by one of the most vital voices in British journalism today. This guide is a crucial call to action not just for disabled women, but for everyone who wants to have a better understanding of what it means to live with a disability * Yomi Adegoke *This book is beautiful, vital and important. I loved it * Jack Thorne, writer of Adolescence *Exceptional … A must read * British Vogue *Frances has long been one of my writing heroes - this book is typically smart, funny, clarifying and enraging * Eva Wiseman *This superb book is a rallying cry for true equality for disabled people. Full of shocking stats, real life experiences and humour, it made me angry, laugh and gasp * Victoria Derbyshire *Supercharged relevance [full of] robust analysis and wry humour… readers will find here stories to inspire, enrage and encourage * Observer *The must-read manifesto…this new book blends memoir and practical insight in an unmissable call to action…it covers education, careers, health, body image, relationships, representation and more * Stylist *Illuminating and spirited - such a necessary book * Marina Hyde *One of the most interesting and important writers working in the UK today * Nish Kumar *Disability is an unnecessarily awkward subject for far too many people given the millions and millions of people within our society who engage with it daily, either due to their own health struggles, or those of someone they love. Frances has a talent for de-stigmatising the conversation and pushing past the uncomfortable to the necessary in an engaging and undeniable fashion. An inimitable voice in disability advocacy. We all need this book * Jameela Jamil *

Frances Ryan is an award-winning journalist and author. For the last decade, she has been a columnist and reporter at The Guardian. Named Commentator of the Year 2024 by the Society of Editors, Ryan’s work has made the front pages of The New York Times, The Guardian, and British Vogue. Her reporting has influenced government policy, been debated in the House of Commons, and featured across various media platforms including Channel 4 News, BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour, and The World Tonight.

Her debut book, Crippled (2019, Verso), was shortlisted for the Bread and Roses Award 2020 and adapted into the short drama Hen Night for the BBC in 2021. Twice highly commended at the National Press Awards, Ryan was recognized as one of Britain’s ‘30 exceptional women journalists’ by Women In Journalism in 2022. In the same year, she became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

Ryan lives in Nottingham and holds a PhD in politics from the University of Nottingham.