The Morrill Memorial Library is honored to host Kate Cohen, a Washington Post contributing columnist and the author of We of Little Faith: Why I Stopped Pretending to Believe (And Maybe You Should Too), for an in-person author talk on Wednesday, October 16 starting at 7:00pm in the Simoni Room.

Author and Washington Post columnist Kate Cohen presents "Why I Stopped Pretending to Believe," explaining why she pretended to believe in God for decades, what made her stop pretending, and what she learned in the process about personal honesty, political courage, raising children, and the state of religion in America. Join us for this timely talk about the rise of the religious "nones" in the U.S., followed by a Q&A.

Copies of Kate's book, We of Little Faith, will be available for sale and signing after the program. Preorder your copy here.

About the author: Kate Cohen is a Washington Post contributing columnist and author of We of Little Faith: Why I Stopped Pretending to Believe (And Maybe You Should Too), which chronicles Kate's journey to outspoken atheism and argues that nonbelievers should be more vocal, for the good of the country. For this work and for her columns inspecting America's outsized deference to religion, the Freedom from Religion Foundation honored her with its Freethought Heroine Award in 2023. She has spoken to groups large and small around the country, and recently gave the keynote address for the inaugural Congressional Reason Reception in Washington, D.C. Kate is the author of two previous books and the mother of three children. She lives with her husband on a hay farm in Albany, New York.

About the book: Here's an impassioned call for nonbelievers to be honest with themselves and their families about their lack of belief--and help change the American cultural conversation. Even though a growing number of Americans don't believe in god, many remain reluctant to say so out loud. Kate Cohen argues that not only is it rewarding for those of little faith to announce themselves, it's crucial to our country's future. As she details the challenges and joys of fully embracing atheism--especially as a parent--Cohen does not dismiss religion as dangerous or silly. Instead, she investigates religion's appeal in order to explain the ways we can thrive without it. Americans who don't believe in god call themselves atheists, agnostics, humanists, skeptics, and freethinkers. Sometimes they are called "nones," based on the box they checked on a survey identifying their religion. And sometimes they call themselves Jewish, Christian, Muslim, or Buddhist. Whatever you call yourself, if you don't believe there's a supernatural being in charge of the universe, it's time to join the chorus of We of Little Faith. [Description from publisher]

Registration is required for this in-person program. Please register by filling out the form below, or by calling the Reference Desk at 781-769-0200 x2.