Cheslie Kryst’s Family to Release Book She Wrote Before She Died (Exclusive)

“Extra” correspondent Cheslie Kryst died by suicide on January 30, 2022, at 30 years old, and now one of her lifelong dreams will be fulfilled. She will be a published author when her book, “By the Time You Read This: The Space Between Cheslie’s Smile and Mental Illness,” is released on April 23 by Forefront Books.

Cheslie’s mom, April Simpkins, is honoring one of her final wishes by having their book published. Telling “Extra,” “She left me her final wishes in the text message that she sent to me the morning that she passed… that I see to it that her book get published and it has been quite a journey doing that.”

In the book, Cheslie shares her story of striving and accomplishing so much, including an MBA, law degree, a Miss USA win, and working for “Extra.” The second half of the book is written by April, who tells her story starting on the morning Cheslie died.

April shared, “These are her own words… Cheslie for most people who saw her on TV or saw her at events, she was smiling and she was bubbly and she was happy, and that was her true self… but there was still a lot of pain that she felt and I do feel like the book stands right between that place of what people saw in her smile and her private battle with depression and that is why we use that phrase ‘the space between her smile and mental illness.’”

Simpkins also shared never-before-seen video with “Extra” from their trip to Israel for the Miss Universe pageant in December 2021. Cheslie recorded a video announcing she wrote a book. She smiles, saying, “It’s so wild. Like, I wrote a book!”

April told us, “We don’t know what’s going on in the lives of many people, but what we can extend is kindness, a listening ear, and a safe space. and I hope that when people read this book that they promise themselves to seek help when they need it, that they work to create a safe space so that their friends can share, and that they learn how to really listen.”

You can pre-order the book here, and the net proceeds from sales will go to the Cheslie C. Kryst Foundation.