Honest and Gripping
The memoir is set for release next fall
Jada Pinkett Smith has found herself largely on the receiving end of other people’s life stories in recent years as host of the Red Table Talk. Now, the 51-year-old industry veteran is gearing up to publish her first memoir with the same level of honesty and authenticity she has come to foster on her show. The currently untitled book will arrive next fall, offering a fully comprehensive journey through Pinkett Smith’s upbringing and rise to stardom in what has been described in a release as a “celebration of authentic feminine power.”
“The world has imposed many labels and narratives on Jada Pinkett Smith,” Carrie Thornton, Dey Street Books VP and editorial director, shared in a statement. “This is down to the realities of our media landscape, but also the roles thrust upon women by culture. At the center of all the speculation and false stories is a woman who, like so many women, has had to reconcile her personhood with the needs of those she loves.”
Pinkett Smith’s memoir is said to have two separate love stories resting at its center. And while it’s unclear how much, if any, the book will delve into her feelings surrounding last year’s Oscars incident, her “complicated” marriage to Will Smith defines one of the love stories, which also connects to her journey into motherhood. The other is more pertinent, taking a closer look at her relationship with herself.
The book will also journey back through Pinkett Smith’s childhood in Baltimore, Maryland, where she was raised while her parents struggled with addiction. She also delves into her introduction to theater, which led her to the Baltimore School for the Arts, where, during a brief stint as a drug dealer, she befriended Tupac Shakur early in his career.
“This memoir is Jada giving the world her truth, taking readers on a journey from lost girl to woman warrior,” Thornton continued. “It is my great honor to take that journey with her.”