Publication Date: September 22, 2026
For fans of Sloane Crosley, a sharp, funny memoir from the acclaimed author of Sit, Cinderella, Sit about love, commitment, and whether she’s ready for marriage right before turning fifty.
For years, Lisa Cheek has believed long-term commitment isn’t in her genes. Her romantic history has followed a familiar pattern: date a lot and widely, but never settle down. When anyone has wanted to marry her, she’s run away. So even she is surprised when, at forty-nine, she finally says “yes” to a proposal and commits fully to her boyfriend, Big Johnson. But when she finds out on their wedding day, after the vows, that they aren’t actually married, she hesitates. Should she take this as a sign to run while she still can?
In The Big Day, Lisa Cheek invites us inside one unforgettable wedding day, with its attending hilarity, chaos, and unexpected turns. As everything begins to unravel she looks back on a lifetime of relationships-her own and those of her family and friends-searching for patterns, meanings and the truth about what makes love last.
Witty, unflinching and deeply relatable, The Big Day is a memoir about late-in-life love, marriage, and the complicated question so many people face: When it really matters, do you stay or do you go?
Taking time out of our busy lives to smile just got a boost courtesy of author Lisa Cheek.
No matter where you start in the four pages of table of contents, reading her “mostly true memoir” will soon have you giggling. Seriously though, go ahead and read in sequence because you won’t want to miss a single detail of The Big Day.
The author blends sharp wit as she delves into getting married at age 49. Without giving away any spoilers, something happens that forces Lisa to reconsider a union with Big Johnson.
Her ability to laugh at herself makes this an exquisite romp through the author’s past romantic history, along with family anecdotes.
The Big Day delivers a bride teetering on the edge as she considers family dynamics in making a decision.
Lisa Cheek is an author and former film and television editor known for her humorous, candid writing about relationships and identity. Her debut memoir, Sit, Cinderella, Sit, was a People Magazine pick, an Amazon bestseller, and a Next Generation Indie Book Award finalist, and was named one of Zibby Media’s Most Anticipated Books of 2025. Her latest memoir, The Big Day, is a funny, unflinching look at love, marriage, and the complicated question of whether to stay or walk away. You can find her musings at One Minute Thoughts From A Pink Head on Substack. She lives in Los Angeles with two dogs, two cats, and her husband, Big Johnson, where she has several scripts in various stages of development while working on her next memoir.
