The Days Of Our Birth By Charlie Laidlaw Is A Moving Story Of Autism, Friendship And Love

On The Table Read Magazine, “the best arts and entertainment magazine UK“, Charlie Laidlaw’s unforgettable novel, The Days of Our Birth, follows a poignant, twenty-year journey of love and autistic friendship.

“The Days of Our Birth” is a poignant, funny, and unforgettable novel by Scottish author Charlie Laidlaw that follows the twenty-year relationship of childhood friends Peter and Sarah. The story unfolds around their joint birthdays, exploring a unique love story that highlights themes of friendship, loss, messing up, making up, and all the feelings in between.

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A Twenty-Year Evolution

Peter and Sarah grow up living next door to one another in a small town in the east of Scotland and share the exact same birthday. The non-chronological narrative uses chapter headings to guide readers through twenty years of significant moments, looping back on itself to capture various points in their lives from age six into the present day. He is not particularly bright, but she is formidably intelligent and on the autistic spectrum.

Two Very Different Paths

Peter’s journey into adulthood is relatively straightforward, featuring gap year travels across Europe, emerging literary talent, and his first sexual encounter. He experiences personal tragedy alongside lighthearted moments, such as his father’s culinary experiments. Sarah faces harsh bullying at school, where classmates nickname her “Psycho Sarah” and ostracize her for seeing the world differently. She occasionally makes deliberate mistakes to avoid standing out, a form of self-harm she repeats over the years while struggling with feeling like an outsider even after building a successful career.

An Unshakeable Bond

Peter accepts Sarah exactly as she is, acting as her supporter, confidante, and companion while walking hand in hand without caring what others like his best friend Cal think. Peter appreciates Sarah’s keen ability to observe people and make sense of situations, while Sarah admires Peter’s spontaneity and willingness to improvise without needing to plan every step. When Sarah is sent to a new school, the pair begin to drift apart. Ultimately, the narrative forces them to confront their true feelings for each other and realize that love and friendship mean more than the sum of their differences.

About the Author

Charlie Laidlaw is a former national newspaper journalist who covered news, features, and politics in Glasgow and London, where he interviewed Barry Sheene and was threatened with legal action by Noel Edmonds. He also worked as a street actor, baby photographer, puppeteer, and restaurant dogsbody before spending a year traveling across nineteen countries.

His global travels included being threatened by a gun-wielding man in Dubai, receiving an armed PLO bodyguard in Beirut, and visiting Robert Louis Stevenson’s grave in Samoa. Laidlaw later worked briefly in government intelligence and served as a PR consultant, and he now lives in East Lothian with his wife and two children. He has authored several other novels, including “Being Alert!” and “A Birthday Carol.”

Find more from Charlie Laidlaw now:

Website: www.charlielaidlawauthor.com

Facebook: charlielaidlawauthor

Twiter: @claidlawauthor

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