Maeve Higgins & Jon Ronson

Maeve Higgins was a bestselling memoirist and comedian in her native Ireland when, at the age of thirty-one, she left home in search of something more. In her new book, MAEVE IN AMERICA: Essays by a Girl from Somewhere Else, Maeve tells the story of finding herself, literally and figuratively, in New York City. At once smart, curious, and compassionate—and unafraid of mixing the personal and the political—MAEVE IN AMERICA examines our cultural climate with humor, heart, and honesty, and offers fresh and timely insights about women’s lives today.

MAEVE IN AMERICA is a new kind of coming-of-age narrative, a record of what happens when you try—to grow up, to live your dream life (even if that dream is as simple as “no more living with mice”). Self-aware and laugh-out-loud funny, this collection is also a fearless exploration of the awkward questions in life. Is clapping too loudly at a gig a good enough reason to break up with somebody? What kind of shelter dog would you be? Is it ever really possible to leave home? With her warmth and wit—not to mention razor-sharp insight—Higgins tackles topics like immigration, feminism, misogyny, body image, and depression without missing a beat (or a laugh). Whether she’s writing about Rent the Runway, why dolphins are the worst, or the Muslim travel ban, Maeve’s humor and knack for keen observation shine through.

Glamour says, “If Tina Fey and David Sedaris had a daughter, she would be Maeve Higgins.” Publishers Weekly raves of her book: “Higgins has the rare gift of being able to meaningfully engage with politics and social ills while remaining legitimately funny.” MAEVE IN AMERICA is a revealing portrait of a comic figuring out how to make sense of this world and an outsider uniquely skilled at shrewd observations of our current American moment.

Join us as Maeve shares this beautifully crafted book. She will be joined in conversation by author and journalist Jon Ronson!

Maeve Higgins is a contributing writer for The New York Times and the host of the hit podcast Maeve in America: Immigration IRL. She is a comedian who has performed all over the world, including in her native Ireland, Edinburgh, Melbourne, and Erbil. Now based in New York, she cohosts Neil deGrasse Tyson’s StarTalk, both the podcast and the TV show on National Geographic, and has also appeared on Comedy Central’s Inside Amy Schumer and on WNYC’s 2 Dope Queens.