In the final event of our 2020 Black History Month celebration, we are excited to host Bassey Ikpi in conversation with Marita Golden for a very special discussion on Black mental health and the use of literature to raise awareness and prompt dialogue. On February 29, 2020 from 3:00 PM to 4:30 PM, at MahoganyBooks (located inside of the Anacostia Arts Center), Bassey Ikpi and Marita Golden, will discuss their books, I'm Telling the Truth, But I'm Lying and Us Against Alzheimer's, respectively. This event is a much-needed conversation between two brilliant writers about two incredible books addressing one important subject...mental health. 

In I'm Telling the Truth, But I'm Lying, Bassey Ikpi breaks open our understanding of mental health by giving us intimate access to her own. Exploring shame, confusion, medication, and family in the process, Bassey looks at how mental health impacts every aspect of our lives--how we appear to others, and more importantly to ourselves--and challenges our preconception about what it means to be "normal." Viscerally raw and honest, the result is an exploration of the stories we tell ourselves to make sense of who we are--and the ways, as honest as we try to be, each of these stories can also be a lie.

Us Against Alzheimer's is a groundbreaking anthology presented in forty narratives, both nonfiction and fiction, that together capture the impact and complexity of Alzheimer's and other dementias on patients as well as their caregivers and family. Deeply personal, recounting the wrenching course of a disease that kills a loved one twice--first they forget who they are, and then the body succumbs--these stories also show how witnessing the disease and caring for someone with it can be powerfully transformative, calling forth amazing strength and grace.  

Join us on February 29, 2020 from 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM for what promises to be an incredible night of literature, conversation, and community featuring Bassey Ikpi and conversation host, Marita Golden. 

See you there!