Young adulthood is a time of longing for self-discovery and adventure, and in Joanna Nadin’s Birdy Arbuthnot’s Year of ‘Yes’, the titular Birdy is no different. In 1960, after resolving to say yes to everything, she takes a leap and moves to the fashionable, eclectic Soho in an effort to truly live, and records her escapades in her lively, charming diary.
This novel is wonderfully fun, with the high-octane Soho setting providing many theatrics and amusement for both the characters and the reader. Nadin illustrates the glamour of 1960s London – but doesn’t skirt around the unglamorous side of the characters’ lives either, with broken boilers and rickety chairs in abundance, as well as real heartbreak. The book is extremely funny due to Birdy’s wit and her friends’ eccentricities, but don’t be fooled, Nadin certainly pulls no punches when it comes to more heartfelt, even tragic, situations.
For me, the highlight was the characters. Birdy is fantastic as our fish-out-of-water narrator and protagonist, and although she often creates her own problems, she nonetheless retains the reader’s love through her can-do attitude and general good humour. She comes with a whole host of supporting characters, from her family, to her housemates, to aristocrats, who each bring their own charm to the story, as well as adding commentary on social issues like class and prejudice.
This novel is delightful, dynamic and a fantastic summer read for older teens and young adults, especially for us aimless young people in much the same situation as Birdy, trying to escape monotony and live our lives to the fullest.
Constance McHugh, 17
Birdy Arbuthnot’s Year of ‘Yes’
Joanna Nadin
UCLan Publishing, 2025
Paperback, £9.99
ISBN: 9781916747654
