Nothing to Fall Back On: The Life and Times of a Perpetual Optimist

Successful and smart, Betsy Carter was not only the ultimate "New York Woman," she also founded a magazine by that same name. For nearly 20 years, she led a high-gloss life that others only dream of -- travel, fashion, parties, power -- 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.

This moving story, set against the gossipy and often hilarious world of magazine publishing, reveals what it is like to be stripped bare, to wander through the rubble, and to finally put yourself together again.