Meredith F. Small launches "How We Think"

"Small writes with the wit of a comedian, the knowledge of a polymath, and the wisdom of a sage." —Alma Gottlieb
About this Event

Join us for the launch of Meredith Small's How We Think: The Hidden Life of Everyday Ideas, a sweeping, thought-provoking exploration of how humans think about the world and themselves.

Meredith Small will read from the book, followed by discussion, audience Q&A, signing, and reception.

Can't make it to the event? Preorder at the link above to receive a signed copy for store pickup or shipping. Indicate any personalization requests in the "Instructions and comments" field during checkout.

About the book

Humans are the product of millions of years of evolution as well as various forces of culture that influence how we think. Humans also spend much of their brain power on self-reflection. We want to understand ourselves, to decide if there is a universal “human nature” or if we are cultural beings that can think our way out of everything. Can we agree on who we are and what motivates our thoughts? What is the purpose of such an enormous brain? Does it guide us or restrict us?

A sweeping, thought-provoking exploration about how humans, as a species and as individuals, think about the world and themselves, How We Think presents essays about research, questions the way humans use their minds, and considers how that information informs each of us about ourselves. This is a book for everyone—for those interested in anthropology and human behavior and the “big questions” about who we are. How We Think takes the anthropological view about the human thought process, a view that is both evolutionarily deep and widely cross-cultural, always focusing on what makes humans so different from each other, although we are also universally so much alike.

Advanced Praise

"Meredith Small combines the best qualities of Margaret Mead and Dorothy Parker, delighting us with her witty insights into human nature. This is a wonderful collection, full of punch and enlightenment!" —Jonathan Marks, author of Understanding Human Diversity

"Meredith Small is one of anthropology’s most charming, can’t-put-down-whatever-she-writes authors. This collection assembles a set of treasures in one convenient space. Small writes with the wit of a comedian, the knowledge of a polymath, and the wisdom of a sage. And the super-short format of all these essays makes them oh-so-approachable. The result is irresistible." —Alma Gottlieb, co-editor of A World of Babies: Imagined Childcare Guides for Eight Societies

"As a paleoanthropologist, I appreciate not just the science, but the humor too, in this wonderful collection of essays about one of life’s biggest questions: What makes us human? Professor Small’s delightful narrative, sparkling curiosity, and evocative insights into the mechanics and magic of the human brain makes this book a fun, important, very worthwhile read." —Donald Johanson, co-author of Lucy: The Beginnings of Humankind

"The brain is in our head, but our mind spreads out into the world, and Meredith Small has insight into how this works. How We Think invites the reader on a fun-filled romp through our minds, bodies and lives. Packed with information and written in a way that is both accessible and captivating, this book is for everyone who wonders how, and why, we do what we do." —Agustín Fuentes, Professor of Anthropology, Princeton University

About the author

Meredith F. Small is professor emerita of anthropology at Cornell University. She trained as a primate behaviorist at the University of California, Davis, and has observed four different species of macaques in the field and in captive settings. She taught Introductory Biological Anthropology, Primate Behavior, The Anthropology of Parenting, and the Human Life Cycle at Cornell, as well as various topical seminars.

Dr. Small has written for magazines such as Discover, Natural History, Scientific American, and many others. Her column “Human Nature” appeared on LiveScience.com, and she was a regular commentator for NPR’s All Things Considered. She has written nine books and is best known for Our Babies, Ourselves: How Biology and Culture Shape the Way We Parent. Two recent books are on Venetian history: Inventing the World (2020) and Here Begins the Dark Sea (2023). The American Philosophical Society is publishing three volumes of her collective science journalism and essays. The first volume How We Think came out in June, 2026. Her book Family: How the Human Need for Connection Shapes Our Lives will be published by Pegasus Books in October 2026.

Dr. Small received the Anthropology in Media Award from the American Anthropological Association, and her work was chosen twice for The Best Science and Nature Writing volumes from Houghton-Mifflin. She is a Weiss Presidential Fellow for excellence in teaching at Cornell University and has also been honored with the Russell Award for Teaching and an Outstanding Educator Award from the Merrill Presidential Scholar Program at Cornell.

Dr. Small lives in Brooklyn, NY with her two cats, Nicky and Gilly and is in walking distance from her daughter, a family practice attorney in Manhattan.