Liz Pryor is an author, speaker, parenting columnist and life advice expert. She is the owner of www.LizPryor.com and author of What Did I Do Wrong? Published by Free Press/Simon & Schuster, nominated for the books for a better life award 2008.
Last year, Liz went up against 15 thousand hopefuls in a national search for the position of “life advice guru” on ABC’s Good Morning America, and won. She dispensed an advice column weekly for ABC news, answered relationship and parenting advice questions, and appeared on air for the morning show. Her candid shoot from the hip approach to the growing challenges of everyday life in this fast paced culture, offers support and hope in a voice that resonates. Her familiar yet unique style has been coined as a modern day dear Abby meets a slice of Jon Stewart.
Last year, Liz went up against 15 thousand hopefuls in a national search for the position of “life advice guru” on ABC’s Good Morning America, and won. She dispensed an advice column weekly for ABC news, answered relationship and parenting advice questions, and appeared on air for the morning show. Her candid shoot from the hip approach to the growing challenges of everyday life in this fast paced culture, offers support and hope in a voice that resonates. Her familiar yet unique style has been coined as a modern day dear Abby meets a slice of Jon Stewart.
“Pregnant at 17, Good
Morning America’s Liz Pryor was hidden in a juvenile detention center by her ashamed family. A poignant, often funny reminder that we learn who we are when we’re at our most challenged.”—Good Housekeeping
“A searingly honest recounting of what it’s like to both love your parents and realize their all-too-
human frailties.”—Family Circle
“This is a funny, tender and brave coming-of-age tale.”— People Magazine
“Authentic and unforgettable”—Publishers Weekly
“Unsentimental yet moving”—Kirkus
For readers of Orange Is the New Black and Girl Interrupted,
a powerful memoir about a lifelong secret, and a dramatic experience that will change a young girl’s life forever
In 1979, Liz Pryor is a seventeen-year-old girl from a good family living in a wealthy Chicago suburb. Halfway through her senior year of high school, Liz discovers she is pregnant—a fact that her parents are determined to keep a secret forever. They don’t want their daughter’s future defined by this mistake. They also want to protect their family’s name. One snowy January day, after driving across three states, Liz’s mother drops her off at what Liz thinks is a Catholic home for unwed mothers—but when they arrive, she learns that the home is actually a locked, government-run facility for delinquent and impoverished pregnant teenage girls.
In the cement-block residence, Liz is alone and terrified: a girl from a privileged, sheltered background living amid tough, street-savvy girls who come from the foster care system or juvenile detention. But over the next six months, isolated and in hiding from everyone she knows, Liz finds herself questioning everything she was once taught about the world. Left to fend for herself she eventually bonds with the girls and, for the first time, sees life through a wider lens.
Told from the perspective of that fragile yet resilient 17 year-old-girl, LOOK AT YOU NOW is an honest, moving, suspenseful story about finding strength and friendship in the most unlikely circumstances. Liz’s journey speaks to the power of family to elude us even as they are closest to us, and to the value of digging deeply to learn who we are as individuals. For anyone who has lived with a version of judgment or shame, this book offers a reminder of the power we have to define our own lives. Infused on every page with the drama of how one single mistake can change everything, this is a memoir you will not forget.
Here is a great discussion guide for Look at You Now.
What Did I Do Wrong? - Liz Pryor
The journey of this book began as a simple self-exploration of my own experiences with lost friendships. I was convinced I was the only woman on the planet who suffered the shame, guilt and confusion at the ending of my friendships. When I finally began to open up about these experiences with other women, I quickly learned it wasn’t just me, and then I realized I wanted to write this book. Real life stories from ordinary everyday women, paved the way to breaking the silence on a subject so many of us experience and so few of us ever discuss.
When women end friendships with each other they often give-and get- the silent treatment. No reasons, no warning, no nothing. Without the societal support or understanding that accompanies romantic split-ups, most women suffer the loss of female friendship in silence.
WHAT DID I DO WRONG? is the first book to break that silence, examining the special bonds that characterize female friendships. It then helps women understand why friendships fizzle by explaining how to recognize the signs of trouble, how to resolve the old wounds, and even, sometimes how to to reconnect and resolve matters with old friends.
I’d love to hear stories and ideas from women who have anything to share relating to this subject. If you’re not sure your experiences are related try reading an excerpt or asking a question. I look forward to hearing from you. You can e-mail me at liz@lizpryor.com
WHAT DID I DO WRONG? is now available and is published by Free Press, a division of Simon & Schuster.
Liz Pryor is an author, speaker, parenting columnist, and life advice expert. Her book about female friendship, What Did I Do Wrong?, was a finalist for a Books for a Better Life Award. In 2011, ABC’s Good Morning America conducted a national search for an on-air life advice guru, and out of fifteen thousand applicants, Pryor was choen for the position. She lives in Los Angeles with her three children.
Morning America’s Liz Pryor was hidden in a juvenile detention center by her ashamed family. A poignant, often funny reminder that we learn who we are when we’re at our most challenged.”—Good Housekeeping“A searingly honest recounting of what it’s like to both love your parents and realize their all-too-
human frailties.”—Family Circle
“This is a funny, tender and brave coming-of-age tale.”— People Magazine
“Authentic and unforgettable”—Publishers Weekly
“Unsentimental yet moving”—Kirkus
For readers of Orange Is the New Black and Girl Interrupted,
a powerful memoir about a lifelong secret, and a dramatic experience that will change a young girl’s life forever
In 1979, Liz Pryor is a seventeen-year-old girl from a good family living in a wealthy Chicago suburb. Halfway through her senior year of high school, Liz discovers she is pregnant—a fact that her parents are determined to keep a secret forever. They don’t want their daughter’s future defined by this mistake. They also want to protect their family’s name. One snowy January day, after driving across three states, Liz’s mother drops her off at what Liz thinks is a Catholic home for unwed mothers—but when they arrive, she learns that the home is actually a locked, government-run facility for delinquent and impoverished pregnant teenage girls.
In the cement-block residence, Liz is alone and terrified: a girl from a privileged, sheltered background living amid tough, street-savvy girls who come from the foster care system or juvenile detention. But over the next six months, isolated and in hiding from everyone she knows, Liz finds herself questioning everything she was once taught about the world. Left to fend for herself she eventually bonds with the girls and, for the first time, sees life through a wider lens.
Told from the perspective of that fragile yet resilient 17 year-old-girl, LOOK AT YOU NOW is an honest, moving, suspenseful story about finding strength and friendship in the most unlikely circumstances. Liz’s journey speaks to the power of family to elude us even as they are closest to us, and to the value of digging deeply to learn who we are as individuals. For anyone who has lived with a version of judgment or shame, this book offers a reminder of the power we have to define our own lives. Infused on every page with the drama of how one single mistake can change everything, this is a memoir you will not forget.
Here is a great discussion guide for Look at You Now.
What Did I Do Wrong? - Liz PryorThe journey of this book began as a simple self-exploration of my own experiences with lost friendships. I was convinced I was the only woman on the planet who suffered the shame, guilt and confusion at the ending of my friendships. When I finally began to open up about these experiences with other women, I quickly learned it wasn’t just me, and then I realized I wanted to write this book. Real life stories from ordinary everyday women, paved the way to breaking the silence on a subject so many of us experience and so few of us ever discuss.
When women end friendships with each other they often give-and get- the silent treatment. No reasons, no warning, no nothing. Without the societal support or understanding that accompanies romantic split-ups, most women suffer the loss of female friendship in silence.
WHAT DID I DO WRONG? is the first book to break that silence, examining the special bonds that characterize female friendships. It then helps women understand why friendships fizzle by explaining how to recognize the signs of trouble, how to resolve the old wounds, and even, sometimes how to to reconnect and resolve matters with old friends.
I’d love to hear stories and ideas from women who have anything to share relating to this subject. If you’re not sure your experiences are related try reading an excerpt or asking a question. I look forward to hearing from you. You can e-mail me at liz@lizpryor.com
WHAT DID I DO WRONG? is now available and is published by Free Press, a division of Simon & Schuster.
Liz Pryor is an author, speaker, parenting columnist, and life advice expert. Her book about female friendship, What Did I Do Wrong?, was a finalist for a Books for a Better Life Award. In 2011, ABC’s Good Morning America conducted a national search for an on-air life advice guru, and out of fifteen thousand applicants, Pryor was choen for the position. She lives in Los Angeles with her three children.
