Nothing to Fall Back on - The Life and Times of a Perpetual Optimist (Hardcover, 1st ed)

Successful and smart, Betsy Carter was not only the ultimate "New York Woman, " she was also founder of a magazine by that name. For nearly 20 years she led a life that others only dream of -- travel, power, fashion, parties -- until things started to go terribly wrong. Carter faced a series of catastrophes: a devastating car accident, a failed marriage, a house that burned down. Then her magazine folded, and she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

Somehow, though, through sheer perseverance, optimism, and a keen sense of the absurd, Betsy Carter kept going, and lived to tell about it.

"On one of those perfect days in September, when the full summer air and coolness of autumn make you wistful and optimistic at the same time, I got married. Finally, I had found my soulmate. My friends called him 'Thank God for Gary.' It was kind of a joke, but not really."

This moving story reveals what it is like to be stripped bare, to wander through life alone, and to finally put yourself back together again.