Writing is the hardest thing I've done. It's a grind. You see me up here and you think I've made it. But it's not all it's cracked up to be.

The Beacon, Buttershaw 1990. Andrea Dunbar, acclaimed writer of Rita, Sue, and Bob Too, mum, sister, best friend, is struggling with her latest work. Her aching head is full of voices, stories from her past which have to be heard…

A bittersweet tale of the north/south divide, it reveals how a shy teenage girl defied the circumstances into which she was born and went on to become one of her generation's greatest dramatists.

Adelle Stripe’s ‘outstanding debut novel’ of Andrea Dunbar’s life is adapted for the stage by Lisa Holdsworth. This edition was published to coincide with the stage premiere at the Ambassador Theatre, Bradford in May 2019.

Snaps and prickles and brings a talented, troubled woman to life. [Stripe] gives an important story a real spark: Dunbar's energy and mischief bubble in the bleakness * Guardian (on Black Teeth and a Brilliant Smile novel) *
It fizzes like two Disprin in a pint of cider. You can read it in an afternoon and should; there are too few British novels as effervescent and as relevant as this. * Spectator (on Black Teeth and a Brilliant Smile Novel) *
A beautiful period piece of 1980s Britain, as funny and sad as anything by Dunbar herself * Observer (on Black Teeth and a Brilliant Smile novel) *

Adelle Stripe was born in 1976 and grew up in Tadcaster. Her debut novel, Black Teeth and a Brilliant Smile, is inspired by the life and work of playwright Andrea Dunbar. It received the Society of Authors' K Blundell Award for Fiction and was shortlisted for the Gordon Burn Prize. The Observer described it in their books of the year list as “A beautiful period piece of 1980s Britain, as funny and sad as anything by Dunbar herself”.

Adelle is the author of three poetry collections and her writing has appeared in The Quietus, New Statesman and The Guardian. She has recently contributed to Common People: An Anthology of Working-Class Writers. An adaptation of Black Teeth will tour across the UK in the coming year.