I'm Telling the Truth but I'm Lying

I'm Telling the Truth but I'm Lying
AuthorBassey Ikpi
GenreMemoir
PublisherHarper Perennial
Publication date
2019

I'm Telling the Truth but I'm Lying is a memoir by Nigerian spoken word artist Bassey Ikpi published by Harper Perennial an imprint of HarperCollins in 2019.[1][2]

Plot

The book is described as "a deep personal work that chronicles the Nigerian-American author's life living with bipolar II disorder and anxiety, and a woman of color and combating the stigma surrounding it."[3] The essays cover her difficulties as a young child re-locating from Nigeria to America, struggling with household tensions, depression and hospitalization, leading up to her eventual diagnosis of and treatment for bipolar II disorder.[4]

Development

On May 4, 2017, it was announced that her first book, a memoir titled Making Friends With Giants would be published by Harper Perennial in 2018.[3] The book, eventually renamed I'm Telling the Truth But I'm Lying was published in August 2019.

Reception

The book became a New York Times bestseller.[5] Essence described it as a "stunning essay collection".[4] Kola Tubosun calls it "a kind of map for those interested in learning about how mental illness affects people."[6]

References

  1. ^ Ikpi, Bassey (August 17, 2019). "Bassey Ikpi On 'I'm Telling The Truth, But I'm Lying'". NPR (Interview). Interviewed by Scott Simon. Weekend Edition.
  2. ^ Ikpi, Bassey (May 27, 2019). "I'M TELLING THE TRUTH, BUT I'M LYING | KIRKUS REVIEWS". Kirkus Reviews.
  3. ^ a b "Deals: Making Friends With Giants by Bassey Ikpi Acquired by Harper Perennial". Eric Smith. May 4, 2017. Archived from the original on 2017-05-05. Retrieved 2017-05-04.
  4. ^ a b Arceneaux, Michael (October 23, 2020). "How Writer Bassey Ikpi Intricately Weaves the Art Of Storytelling in Her Memoir About Mental Illness". Essence.
  5. ^ "Paperback Nonfiction Books - Best Sellers - Sept. 8, 2019 - The New York Times". The New York Times. September 8, 2019. ISSN 0362-4331.
  6. ^ Tobuson, Kola (July 18, 2019). "Bassey's Literature as Truth; Truth as Literature". Ktravula - a travelogue!.