My Name Is Maame
The bestselling reading group book that will make you laugh and cry this year
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4.4 • 26 Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER.
Hilarious, honest and heartbreaking, MAAME is the most moving debut of 2023 - and a heroine you'll never forget.
*Read with Jenna Today Book Club Pick*
*Apple Book of the Month*
*A 2023 Debut of the Year as chosen by:
SUNDAY TIMES, STYLIST, VOGUE, RED MAGAZINE, INDEPENDENT, BELFAST TELEGRAPH, HUFFINGTON POST UK, POP SUGAR, HARPERS BAZAAR, MY WEEKLY, EVENING STANDARD, COSMOPOLITAN, BUSTLE*
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'Lively, funny, poignant . . . Prepare to fall in love with Maddie. I did!'
BONNIE GARMUS, Sunday Times bestselling author of Lessons in Chemistry
'Utterly charming and deeply moving . . . Maddie's journey will resonate with anyone who's had to grow up - or who's still trying to'
CELESTE NG, New York Times bestselling author of Little Fires Everywhere
'I loved every page of this beautiful, heartwarming, empowering book. An exceptional debut from an incredibly exciting new talent'
BETH O'LEARY, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Flatshare
'One of the must-reads of the year' SUNDAY TIMES
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Maame (ma-meh) has many meanings in Twi, but in my case, it means woman.
Meet Maddie Wright.
All her life, she's been told who she is. To her Ghanaian parents, she's Maame: the one who takes care of the family. Her mum's stand-in. The primary carer for her father, who suffers from Parkinson's. The one who keeps the peace - and the secrets.
It's time for her to speak up.
When she finally gets the chance to leave home, Maddie is determined to become the kind of woman she wants to be. One who wears a bright yellow suit, dates men who definitely aren't on her mum's list of prospective husbands, and stands up to her boss's microaggressions. Someone who doesn't have to google all her life choices.
But when tragedy strikes, Maddie is forced to face the risks - and rewards - of putting her heart on the line.
But will it take losing everything to find her voice?
As blisteringly funny and achingly relatable as its heroine, MAAME is an unforgettable coming-of-age story about finally becoming the heroine of your own life.
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EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT MAAME:
'Tender and compelling from the word go, Maame is one of the year's most anticipated books' STYLIST
'A poignant and heart-warming coming of age story' RED
'George's novel is a deeply moving one, packed with heart and sparkling prose' HARPER'S BAZAAR
'Moving, funny, poignant and completely unforgettable, you'll love this beautiful coming of age tale' MY WEEKLY
'Funny, resonating and uplifting, Maame is going to be big in 2023' EVENING STANDARD
'An accomplished debut from a talented writer' PRIMA
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this pitch-perfect debut, George captures the uncertainty, freedom, and anxiety of a London woman's mid-20s. Narrator Maddie Wright is a people pleaser who earns the nickname Maame ("the responsible one") from her family. She has an unsatisfying theater admin job where she is often "the only Black person in the room," and while her older brother, James, lives his life as he wants and her mother spends most of her time in her homeland of Ghana, Maddie steps up as the main caregiver for her Parkinson's afflicted father. Between her mother hitting her up for money and her incommunicative father, Maddie searches on Google for career guidance and dating advice, as well as remedies for panic attacks and grief. As her social life further dwindles and she worries she'll always be a virgin, Maddie begins the "slow descent into a dull existence." Then her mother finally comes back to take care of Maddie's father, and Maddie moves into a flat with two roommates who are determined to help her live a larger life, starting with a list of actions to turn her into "The New Maddie." But just as she's getting a taste of independence, tragedy strikes at home and at work, and she's forced to confront the microaggressions she faces in daily life, as well as ask herself how she deserves to be treated. The work's ample magnetism resides in the savvy portrayal of Maddie as a complicated, sharp, and vulnerable person who is trying to figure out adulthood. Readers will revel in this.
