A True Story Based on Lies

A True Story Based on Lies is a remarkable novel dealing with universal issues of class discrimination, male oppression and female servitude through spellbinding dual narratives. Set in contemporary Mexico, the book examines the fallout from a sexual relationship between Leonora, a domestic servant to the wealthy O'Conner family, and the master of the house. When a child, Aura Olivia, is born from this relationship she is brought up as the daughter of the house. As the novel unfolds, the "true" story gradually emerges. We are delighted to reissue Clement's first novel, which was a finalist for the Orange Prize for Fiction and has been taken to the stage by Mexico's National Theatre Company as well as being staged in France and Italy.

"An extraordinary novel that packs a massive weight of meaning into [its short span] and quietly unmasks the terrible consequences of mere thoughtlessness." -Lisa Gee, Orange Prize citation

"You would be forgiven for mistaking Clement's first novel for a book of poetry, such is its lyricism and lightness of touch; yet what we are given here is a narrative that not only pays tribute to Clement's background as a poet, but uses the tricks of the master storyteller to delight and engross." -The Times

"A bold and innovative novel. The rich mixture of the outlandishly real and the hyperfabulistic has a certain superstitious power over the reader. Jennifer Clement employs poetry's ability to mirror thought... superbly drawn" -Jean McNeil, The Times Literary Supplement

"A True Story's poetry is obvious, simple, beautiful and clear, like liturgical music." -Tom Adair, The Scotsman

"This is an unusual and graceful book that, in beautiful and precise prose, tells of unimaginable human suffering and manages, in an unexpected climax, to suggest at least the possibility of redemption." -The Internationalist

"This is a rich, memorable, multilayered novel." -Publishers Weekly