The Most Normal Woman: Essays on Appearances Pre-Order Now
ROISIN KIBERD€16.00
PRE-ORDER NOW FOR DISPATCH FROM 25 AUGUST 2026
I began writing a book about trying to be beautiful. But the more I wrote,
the more it resembled a book about trying to be normal
In this dynamic new collection of essays, critically acclaimed author Roisin Kiberd explores the many ways we change ourselves in pursuit of perfection – or simply normality – and the toll it takes on our inner lives.
Weaving critical commentary with personal experience, the author explores Botox, blondeness, exercise addiction, and subcultures including the underground drag scene and competitive dog shows to better understand how beauty is judged and defined.
From Berlin nightclubs to rural Mayo, from Versailles to the Ringsend Recycling Centre, Kiberd takes us on a journey of obsession led by the question: am I normal yet?
PRAISE FOR ROISIN KIBERD
‘I felt both seen and like I could see more after reading this collection’—Amy Liptrot
‘a writer of extraordinary style and intellectual range’ —Mark O’Connell
‘All I’d hoped for and exactly what I needed’ —Lisa McInerney
ROISIN KIBERD
ROISIN KIBERD has written essays and features for The Dublin Review, Winter Papers, The White Review, The Guardian and Vice. Her first book, The Disconnect: A Personal Journey Through the Internet, was published in 2021. She lectures in creative writing at the University of Galway and is non-fiction editor at The Stinging Fly.
