Leila Mottley’s talent is unbelievable. Her first book, Night Crawling, is one of my favorite books ever and was written while she was in high school! Now she is the ripe old age of 23 and she has written another beautiful, heartbreaking book.
The Girls Who Grew Big tells the story of 3 young mothers living in a poor Florida panhandle beach town. They all face tremendous challenges: teenage motherhood, familial rejection, men who are not worth their time or energy but they continue to survive and even thrive all while raising their children. This book is sad but also hopeful as we see the bond between The Girls growing and we witness how they support each other.
Thank you to Knopf and Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book.

this can be a frustrating read — because it's challenging. it challenges so many preconceived notions and stereotypes, so many of the ways we, as readers and as people, judge. its characters are complicated and fallible. its writing is authentic and vocal. its story moves in fits and starts.

but all of that builds intentionally. the moments i felt tense while reading this were opportunities for me to step back and consider why i felt that way, which only made me enjoy the book more.

i wish we got to know more of the girls, the group of young moms at the center of this story, rather than just a few of them. but that's only because i so appreciated how the three we saw were rendered on page.

This book is a worthy successor to the wonderful Nightcrawling. Ms. Mottley has an extraordinary talent for telling emotional stories in a way that feels completely authentic. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I don't think this was a bad book by any means but it just wasn't speaking to me at the time. I might revisit in the future but the story wasn't resonating

I’ve been waiting for another book by the author since reading Nightcrawling!!! That book touched me and I knew this one would do the same. I loved the story line and how she incorporated the found family trope within a story that hits close to home for a lot of women /young girls in this book. I enjoyed watching the young ladies navigate and use each other as a support system.. The author tells a story in a way that is relatable but also informative for those that have not had similar experiences. I can’t wait to see what else Laila has up her sleeve. I’m reading/buying anything she puts on paper at this point.

The Girls in The Girls Who Grew Big is a girl gang in Padua Beach, Florida, a place that one can’t locate on the map because it’s a place folks simply pass through. Conspicuous circumstances bring together the misfit crew: the girls are teenage moms who band together because their nuclear families do not provide the proper support they need to flourish. From hiding a daughter in another state to prevent the public spectacle to parental humiliation and disownment, The Girls pull their resources to care for their kids and each other. If they seem scrappy and on edge, it’s because they know the religious townies condemn their choices and believe the moms are destined for hell.

Mottley structures her book by following the three trimesters of the group’s newest member, Adela. In addition to Adela, the story unfolds from Simone and Emory’s perspectives. The narrative moves linearly, and this character-driven story rotates through these three girls’ lives. In general, Mottley covers ideas like one’s family, agency over their body, and various forms of love—platonic, unrequited, romantic, and familial. More specifically, regarding motherhood, the girls struggle to find the love they need in their partners.

Mottley’s strength in her second novel is her ability to underscore how society can reduce these girls to the label, teen mom. I may not understand the desire to fill a house with offspring who depend on me so that I can give and receive love when I don’t have the “requisite” security measure (i.e., a steady income), and certainly not in my teen years. Yet Mottley treats her characters with a dignity and reasonableness that challenges my thinking. Her spirited girls’ distinct voices and dreams kept me on the edge of my seat, and I eagerly wanted to learn how their circumstances would unfold.

Unlike Nightcrawling, Mottley’s newest came across as a YA read with MA content (which I know makes it not categorically a YA book). The “showing” element could be stronger, and sometimes the “telling” comes across as unbelievable (e.g., Emory and Adela are best friends—When did this happen?—and Emory loves Adela—How is this possible when I didn’t even know they were more than acquaintances?). Mottley’s poetic writing about The Girls’ world transported me to the pristine white sand and emerald green waters, and I looked for more of this showing as it relates to the girls.

23-year-old Mottley, you go, girl.

My thanks to Knopf and NetGalley for an ARC.

Knopf eARC
This was a tender, intimate, and heartbreaking look into three teenage girls all woven together by teenage pregnancy and parenthood. Mottley knows how to write deeply complex characters that are so easy to become invested in. I was right alongside this group of girls and all they were going through. There was some triumph here, but a lot of realistic heartbreaking scenarios. After this and Nightcrawling, this author has solidified herself as an auto-buy for me.

At times I felt like there were 2 different authors writing this. Maybe it was done purposefully because the 3 POVs had different levels of education. I’m not sure, but at times the writing was beautiful. With regards to the story itself, I enjoyed it but felt it dragged at times and some of the storylines were a little hard to believe. Granted, I’ve never been in these girls’ shoes. Although, I do know I would do anything and everything to keep my kids safe and healthy, but it seemed to take these girls a little longer to grasp that part of motherhood. Overall, I enjoyed reading it and would recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf for the complimentary copy of this book. As always, the opinions expressed within this review are completely my own.

This is kind of a fairytale about teenage motherhood. These girls all deeply love their children and are able to keep them clothed and fed while living in the bed of a pickup truck with no explained source of money for multiple years. It is not all sweetness and light, but there isn't much reality either. The girls were all interesting and I enjoyed reading their stories, but I had trouble accepting their continued camaraderie and relatively easy existence.

An intriguing story, multiple story lines. At times it was hard to follow, but about good read. At times it felt "preachy".

This story of teenage pregnancy in the Florida panhandle will take hold of your heart and not let go. Adela, Emory and Simone are part of a group known simply as The Girls and all of them are trying to navigate the struggles of friendship, love, pregnancy and motherhood. Each girl has their own struggles, but in a lot of ways they are the same. This is well written and heartfelt and not to be missed.

Three years ago, I was stunned by this author's debut, Nightcrawling, which was released when she was 19. It was an Oprah Book Club pick and longlisted for the Booker Prize.
The details of Nightcrawling have since faded, though it's still one of my top reads, but this book brought that awe factor right back to me - I'm stunned all over again.

The Girls Who Grew Big is about a group of teenage mothers in a small town on the Florida panhandle. Told in the alternating POVs of Simone, Adela, and Emory, the lines between girlhood and womanhood are blurred as they create a bond only they can understand.

I flew through this in a day. The messiness and angst of teenagers as they navigate their families, their futures, living arrangements, boyfriends, and the South while balancing the demands of motherhood... had me hooked.

Mottley's prose is addictive. Here are a couple of quotes that stopped me in my tracks:

"𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘬𝘪𝘥𝘴 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘺 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩. 𝘈𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘵 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘺 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘪𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘮𝘦, 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦..."

"𝘔𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘭𝘺, 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘭𝘺, 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺, 𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘯 𝘵𝘶𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘢𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦."

🎧 The audiobook narration by AhDream Smith, Erin Spencer & Khaya Fraites was impeccable; each delivered the girls' stories and voices exactly as I had in my head.

Incredible. Cemented as a forever favorite author.

The Girls Who Grew Big is a phenomenally good book. It's an ode to motherhood, to girlhood, to womanhood--to the villages that sustain us through parenthood. Mottley is so kind and generous in her depiction of these young women. They're not stereotypes, and they're not naive. These characters are so well-rounded and live so fully, I really felt like these girls were real people telling me their stories. Each of the relationships, romantic, platonic, and familial, is so thoughtful. Some of them are absolutely heartbreaking, some of them are so sweet and tender. I just can't say enough how much I loved this book. What a fantastic depiction of Florida, too, and the South as a larger whole. There's such a specific culture and Mottley really does it justice. Five resounding stars.

Sometimes you read a novel that just fully inhabits you, makes you feel as though you know the characters in a way that has you cheering for their successes and aching with their disappointments. Leila Mottley’s The Girls Who Grew Big is an astonishing novel, one that will stay with you and never make you think of teenage pregnancy the same way ever again.

Adela is a sixteen year old competitive swimmer from Indiana who finds herself banished to her grandmother’s home in Padua Beach, Florida after she becomes pregnant after having sex for the first time. Angry and feeling betrayed by her family and friends, Adela finds comfort in the friendships she forms with “The Girls,” other pregnant teen moms and mothers who have become a cautionary tale in their small community.

Simone is the de facto leader of the group. Outwardly brazen and tough, she’s wounded by her family’s rejection after she gives birth to twins and must eke out an existence by living out of her red truck that all of the “girls” rely upon for shelter and support. Those also include Emory, who is determined to finish high school and go to college and maybe even Adela if she can open herself up to this strong, ever-revolving circle of mothers, barely adults, who all have a fierce love for their children and dreams of their own even if the community has dismissed them.

Mottley has a way of creating a deeply atmospheric setting and characters that are fully fleshed out, aching with potential and vulnerability. Mottley captures a scene and has an ear for dialogue that makes this characters so relatable and real. The struggles of teen girls and teen mothers is one that has been sensationalized often in the media, but Mottley hold up a true mirror to the situation that may just help us better understand the teen girls we are privileged to know.

I’m stingy with my five stars, but this read is five enthusiastic stars and is definitely a contender for my favorite read of 2025.

Thank you to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor and NetGalley for the eARC.

Leila Mottley writes a book thats going to punch you in the gut. The girls in this book "The Girls" really will stick with me forever. The feeling of motherhood, sisterhood, and the pain was so raw. Wow.

The Girls Who Grew Big is Leila Mottley’s novel follow-up to her debut Nightcrawling. It centers on three high-school age girls—Simone, the mother of twin toddlers; Emory, the mother of a newborn; and Adela, newly-pregnant, sent by her parents to live with her grandmother in Florida until the baby is born. In Florida, the three meet, and the book follows the three girls as they come to their own destinies.

Leila Mottley does an amazing job at depicting the girls’ growth, literal and metaphorical, as they take on new meanings to their lives. My only dislike—and what kept me from picking up the book as long as I did—is the cover! I don’t think it’s particularly well-designed.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf for the ARC.

I absolutely loved this book. The Girls Who Grew Big is a powerful, tender, and beautifully written portrait of young motherhood, girlhood, and the messy space where the two collide. Leila Mottley has created a cast of characters that feel so real, so raw, and so full of life—I found myself deeply connected to each of the Girls by the end.

Adela’s journey is at the heart of the novel, but the strength of this story lies in how well each girl is brought to life individually. Emory, Simone, and the rest of the Girls are each navigating their own unique challenges, and Mottley gives their stories space to breathe and evolve. The character development was fantastic—authentic, layered, and unflinching.

What really struck me was how motherhood is depicted—not as a single, monolithic experience, but as something full of paradoxes: exhausting and joyful, isolating and communal, terrifying and triumphant. There is a particular beauty in how the Girls take pride in one another, how they build their own kind of family in the face of judgment and marginalization. Their bond, especially within the setting of Simone’s red truck, felt like a rebellion and a refuge all at once.

This novel is full of heart and grit, of moments that will make you ache and others that will make you feel unexpectedly hopeful. Mottley has a gift for language and emotional truth, and this book solidifies her as a voice to watch. The Girls Who Grew Big is a tribute to resilience, to complicated friendships, and to the girls who are so often underestimated—and who grow into something fierce and unforgettable.

This was a quick and entertaining read that I finished in a few hours.
A well written story that kept me hooked from the very beginning.
The characters draw you in and keeps you flipping the pages.
The characters were all realistic and very well developed.
I really enjoyed the writing style. I found myself hooked, turning the pages.

4.5 stars

I first read Leila Mottley’s NIGHTCRAWLING a few years ago and it’s a book that has stuck with me. It blows my mind she started writing it at the age of sixteen. So I was very much looking forward to checking out her new novel, THE GIRLS WHO GREW BIG. She’s only 23 years old now and I truly believe I’m witnessing from the ground floor up, a generational talent. If you haven’t checked out her writing, get to it folks!

THE GIRLS WHO GREW BIG is set in a small town on the Florida panhandle and follows three teen moms. Simone is the mother hen of the group , a parent to 4 year old twins. Emory is determined to graduate and continue her education even if it means bringing her baby to class. Adela is sent to live with her grandmother in Florida after her parents find out she’s pregnant. Her Olympic swimming aspirations put on hold for the moment. When the outside world and even family members shun them, these girls look out for each other.

Each character brings something powerful to the table. Told with a raw honesty it is a heartbreaking read but has uplifting moments as well. With challenges thrown their way, their inner strength is put to the test.

A book that makes you think and makes you feel. Doesn’t get much better than that for a reader. Highly recommend putting it on your tbr list.

Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for this advance readers copy, in exchange for an honest review. This story follows several pregnant teenagers and new teen mothers in Padua, Florida. The characters we follow all have different stories but, are ripe with raw emotion and strong emotions.

The writing in this book brought the setting, the characters, and the nuances in this story to life; it was absolutely beautiful and brought you right into the book with these girls. The characters here are complex and messy, which makes them feel so real. I became invested in the characters and very much enjoyed this book. It’s a powerful story with poignant commentary on motherhood, especially teen motherhood, femininity, pregnancy, and the emotions/judgements that accompany all of these experiences. I’d absolutely recommend this book and look forward to going back to the authors debut, as well!