Welcome to my blog! I am Harriett de Mesquita: Novelist, Suffolk-resident, Proud Jewess, Fair-weather Sea Swimmer, Frenchie Owner, and I am Passionate about all things Autistic.
Born in South London to an old Sephardi Jewish Family, I moved out into the country in 2019. I now live in the middle of nowhere – more accurately, in rural North-East Suffolk, in a house with a pink kitchen, a lot of creaky floorboards and a ton of books.
At the grand old age of thirty-six I was diagnosed with Autism. Finally, the obsessive pacing, hand-flapping, pain when I looked people in the eye, sudden periods of extreme exhaustion, hypersensitivity and preference to stay in and watch Miss Marple rather than actually talk to people made sense. Being given this diagnosis has changed my life in such a positive way. I am delighted to join the community of autistic woman all over the world and write about my journey into Autism from diagnosis onwards.
When I am not writing or blogging, I can be found in my garden shed doing ballet, trying my best to convince myself that I am still the lithe, twenty-one year old I once was. I also draw, sew, read, play the piano hesitantly and badly, get inappropriate crushes on celebrities and grow cauliflowers.
I love going to the theatre, pink, any kind of bulldog, French architecture and the novelist George Elliot. I think that I may be addicted to sugar. I can’t stand cats, the skin of peaches and tomatoes, and geometrically-patterned clothes.
Lovely to meet you!