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Start giftingMaame
A Today Show Read With Jenna Book Club Pick
Bookseller recommendation
“Heather Agyepong‘s narration of an already beautiful novel took it to the highest level. She poured so much emotion and culture into every single word written by Jessica George that I couldn’t stop listening to it. Maddie was absolutely brought to life with this audiobook. ”
Morgan,
Pantego Books
Bookseller recommendation
“A moving and meaningful 'coming of age' debut, with a peek into Ghanaian culture and book publishing. Maddie is craving freedom and excitement but is unsure of how to achieve it, so she googles her questions! Told with wit and charm. Beautifully narrated by Heather Agyepong!”
Melanie,
The Well-Read Moose
Bookseller recommendation
“By turns heartbreaking and heartwarming, this is the story of 25-year-old Maddie who is just now setting out on her own. With a largely absent mother, she took on adult responsibilities at a young age and became her father’s primary caregiver when he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. Now she has moved into her own apartment and has begun to explore aspects of life that most other women discover in their teens or early twenties. Dating, sex, drinking, new clothes, nights out with friends are on her 'new Maddie' to-do list. As is to be expected, her new life brings highs and lows, and she struggles and learns and grows. This is an intimate and honest exploration of one woman’s life, and of the intersections of family, culture, friendship, and mental health.”
Nancy,
Raven Book Store
Bookseller recommendation
“Maddie, a 25 year old daughter of Ghanaian immigrants, is living at home with her father in London. Her father has Parkinson’s and her mother mostly lives in Ghana, so she is left to manage her father’s care while trying to start an adult life. I enjoyed the complex relationship between Maddie and her mother and Maddie’s efforts to navigate the work world, as well as her first attempts at dating. I listened to this book and loved the narrator.”
Amy,
A Great Good Place for Books
Bookseller recommendation
“In this very engaging and powerful story about family, duty, grief, cultural differences, racism, love and the power of friendship that still manages to be witty, we get to know quirky, introverted Maddie on her journey of finding her own way and becoming confident in who she is.”
Anne,
Newtonville Books
Bookseller recommendation
“Maame is a sweet coming-of-age story that follows Maddie, the daughter of Ghanaian immigrants, as she navigates family obligations, dating, loss, and career challenges. Maddie is brave and fun, and I really want to be her friend. Since finishing the book, I’ve found myself wondering how Maddie is doing and wishing her the very best. Sometimes heartbreaking and sometimes funny, Maame was truly a joy.”
Courtney,
Greene Books
A Today Show #ReadWithJenna Book Club Pick
"The patchwork elements cooperate with one another both on the page and in the audiobook, thanks to Heather Agyepong’s elegant narration." —New York Times
"Maame is a deeply funny yet emotional novel that comes alive with narration. A great pick for the twenty-something trying to make their way in the world, this audiobook will have you laughing on your commute to work." —USA Today
"Sardonic, authentic, and a little bit sad, it moves along at a brisk pace. Compulsively listenable." —Vulture
Maame (ma-meh) has many meanings in Twi but in my case, it means woman.
It’s fair to say that Maddie’s life in London is far from rewarding. With a mother who spends most of her time in Ghana (yet still somehow manages to be overbearing), Maddie is the primary caretaker for her father, who suffers from advanced stage Parkinson’s. At work, her boss is a nightmare and Maddie is tired of always being the only Black person in every meeting.
When her mum returns from her latest trip to Ghana, Maddie leaps at the chance to get out of the family home and finally start living. A self-acknowledged late bloomer, she’s ready to experience some important “firsts”: She finds a flat share, says yes to after-work drinks, pushes for more recognition in her career, and throws herself into the bewildering world of internet dating. But it's not long before tragedy strikes, forcing Maddie to face the true nature of her unconventional family, and the perils—and rewards—of putting her life on the line.
Smart, funny, and deeply affecting, Jessica George's Maame deals with the themes of our time with humor and poignancy: from familial duty and racism, to female pleasure, the complexity of love, and the life-saving power of friendship. Most important, it explores what it feels like to be torn between two homes and cultures―and it celebrates finally being able to find where you belong.
"Meeting Maame feels like falling in love for the first time: warm, awkward, joyous, a little bit heartbreaking and, most of all, unforgettable." —Xochitl Gonzalez, New York Times bestselling author of Olga Dies Dreaming
A Macmillan Audio production from St. Martin’s Press.
Jessica George was born and raised in London to Ghanaian parents and studied English Literature at the University of Sheffield. After working at a literary agency and a theatre, she landed a job in the editorial department of Bloomsbury UK. Maame is her first novel.
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Reviews
A Today Show #ReadWithJenna Book Club Pick
A February Indie Next Pick
"George paints in bold, bright strokes [and] lets dark moments commingle with light ones…George shows the details and scope of life with such confidence and joie de vivre, it’s easy to forget she’s a first-time novelist. By the end of Maame, Maddie still has questions and she’s still curious, but she knows how to find what she needs in the real world. If that’s not a modern hero’s journey, I don’t know what is." —The New York Times
"George has fashioned an appealing hero here: You can’t help but root for Maddie’s emancipation. Funny, awkward, and sometimes painful, her blossoming is a real delight to witness. A fresh, often funny, always poignant take on the coming-of-age novel." —Kirkus (starred review)
"A pitch-perfect debut…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." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Masterfully balancing comedy, tragedy and tenderness, Maame is a nuanced and powerful coming-of-age story. George candidly captures the false starts, heartbreak and awkwardness of early adulthood with empathy and a necessary dose of humor. Like Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones, Candice Carty-Williams’ Queenie Jenkins and Gail Honeyman’s Eleanor Oliphant before her, Maddie is a good reminder that through all of life’s hardships, we can be the authors of our own happy endings, and it is never too late to become who you might have been." —Bookpage
"A funny, poignant, and relatable tale about self-discovery." —Real Simple
"George illustrates the complexities of navigating two cultures and rising from the pressure of other people’s expectations beautifully. This is a clever and deeply moving debut." —Booklist
"A wry, compassionate debut novel...Full of dry humor and entirely relatable moments, Maame is a warmhearted, often hilarious account of one woman's journey through her awkward yet exciting 20s. Readers will root for Maddie to find self-confidence and happiness, both at work and in her personal life...George's narrative is a tribute to all women who make the effort—no matter how difficult or confusing—to take control of their own lives." —Shelf Awareness
"Meeting Maame feels like falling in love for the first time: warm, awkward, joyous, a little bit heartbreaking and, most of all, unforgettable. Jessica George viscerally renders the exquisite pain and poignant hilarity of coming of age as a woman today while perfectly capturing the extra thickets of thorns that lay in the paths of women of color in all white spaces. Maame is so many women I have known and loved: experiencing firsts, coming to hard revelations and choosing to bite into life with full, open hearts."
—Xochitl Gonzalez, New York Times bestselling author of Olga Dies Dreaming
"A poignant coming-of-age tale about finding strength, hope and courage when life gets too much and leaves you with more unanswered questions. Maame's quiet confidence is true to life and liberating." —Lizzie Damilola Blackburn, author of Yinka, Where is Your Huzband?
"I inhaled Maame, a brilliant coming-of-age story. Maddie is such a relatable heroine, her voice honest, warm, heart-breaking and heart-healing. It felt truly modern, yet somehow timeless. I adored it." —Nikki May, author of Wahala
"I loved every page of this beautiful, heartwarming, empowering book. The world is going to fall in love with Maddie—she stole quietly into my heart and made herself at home there. An exceptional debut from an incredibly exciting new talent."
—Beth O'Leary, bestselling author of The Flatshare
"A tender and absorbing novel." —Peace Adzo Medie, author of His Only Wife
"This is such a special book. Warm, beautifully drawn and instantly engaging, George tackles pain, loss and longing with the lightest of touches. I learned so much from Maddie, even as I was rooting for her to reclaim her power and jump-start her own life." —Lauren Bravo, author of The Second Chance Store
"This book is going to be EVERYWHERE next year. A truly sparkling coming of age tale. Vividly drawn, witty and heartbreaking." —Julie Owen Moylan, author of That Green-Eyed Girl
"Maame is a really special novel, at once sweet and sad and funny and so full of life. The sort of book that people are going to cherish, and with good reason" —Bobby Palmer, author of Isaac and the Egg
"Agyepong is a soft voiced, melodious narrator who brings across the intersectionality of identity that children of immigrants confront....Her gently delivered, nuanced performance will make listeners feel as though they are listening to a friend describe her latest problems." —AudioFile
"The story is delivered beautifully by narrator Agyepong whose voice brings Maddie to life. Also notable are Agyepong's smooth readings of phrases and idioms in Twi, the dialect of Akan spoken in Ghana by Maddie's family." —Booklist starred review
"Lively, funny, poignant . . . Prepare to fall in love with Maddie. I did!" —Bonnie Garmus, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Lessons in Chemistry
"In the audiobook, George’s delightfully delicate command of language is enlivened by visual artist and actor Heather Agyepong’s brilliant narration, which reveals not only variations in Ghanaian and British accents but also emotional worlds." —Bookpage starred review
"An utterly charming and deeply moving portrait of the joys—and the guilt—of trying to find your own way in life." —Celeste Ng, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Our Missing Hearts
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