Annabelle Gurwitch

Jeff Vespa

Annabelle Gurwitch is an actress and New York Times bestselling author of six books and a two-time Thurber Prize finalist. Her essays and satire have appeared in The New Yorker, New York Times, WSJ, and The Washington Post. Her books include The New York Times bestseller "I See You Made an Effort and You're Leaving When?" She co-hosted Dinner & a Movie on TBS and was a regular commentator on NPR. She is a Jewish mother, cancer survivor and patient advocate, a terrible ukelele player, and an unrepentant cat lady who lives in Los Angeles.

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Awards: two time finalist Thurber Prize, New York Times bestselling author (not an award, but still!)

Communities: I'm Jewish. I'm a cancer survivor! I'm a former tv hostess and comedian.

Look at the Bright Side

Authors John Fugelsang, Anabelle Gurwitch and E.A. Hanks have come to the festival with books exploring decidedly heavy topics -- religion, cancer and self-discovery -- in a bright and refreshing way. You'll laugh, you'll cry, but mostly you'll enjoy.

UA Campus Store Stage (Seats 250)  
Sat, Mar 14, 10:00 am - 10:55 am
Multigenre
Signing area: Sales & Signing Area - UA Campus Store Lower Level (following presentation)  

Panelists: John Fugelsang, Annabelle Gurwitch, E.A. Hanks
Moderator: Penelope Starr
Sponsors: Session made possible courtesy of Pi Beta Phi Fraternity - Arizona Alpha Chapter, UA Campus Store, Roberta and Bill Witchger

When Life Gets Messy, Just Smile!

Memoirists David Litt, Maris Kreizman and Annabelle Gurwitch have a gift for turning crisis and mortality into storytelling gold, using humor and candor to illuminate what it means to stay human when life gets messy. Maybe they can teach us how we can grin and bear it, too.

Koffler Room 204 (Seats 300, Wheelchair accessible)  
Sat, Mar 14, 2:30 pm - 3:25 pm
Memoir / Essays / Creative Nonfiction
Signing area: Sales & Signing Koffler/Commons (following presentation)

Panelists: Annabelle Gurwitch, Maris Kreizman, David Litt
Moderator: Mark McLemore
Sponsors: Session made possible courtesy of Judith Wood, Long Realty, Wine and Cereal

Books:

The End of My Life Is Killing Me

Essays
Memoir / Essays / Creative Nonfiction
Zibby Publishing
March 2026
ISBN 9798992377071
208 pages
Buy now

I See You Made an Effort

Compliments, Indignities, and Survival Stories from the Edge of 50
Humor / Comedy
Penguin Publishing Group
February 2015
ISBN 9780142181874
256 pages
Buy now