Never Say Never Finding a Life That Fits

From the beloved teen star, talk-show host, and media personality, an uplifting and revelatory memoir about turning forty, losing weight, and learning to reinvent oneself at any age. The world first met Ricki Lake in 1988 as Tracy Turnblad in the hit movie Hairspray.Weighing in at just over 200 pounds, the 5'3" teenager challenged what it meant to be an overweight woman in America: thisfat girl got the guy, was part of the in crowd, and could sing and dance like nobody's business. When she got her own talk show at twenty-four, Ricki had been transformed. She was a slender, mature woman whose long-running show changed daytime television forever. Ricki Lake's life has been a series of rebirthsfrom fat to skinny, married to divorced, rich to poor, and more. In her intimate, bold, and relatable book, Ricki offers wisdom to anyone who has ever struggled in her own skin. She takes us behind the scenes of her troubled childhoodfilled with food issues, abuse, and an unabashed yearning for a better life outside of her suburban home. She shows how she reinvented herself as an author, filmmaker, and much beloved finalist on Dancing With the Stars. Never Say Neveris an inspiring, entertaining, and down-to-earth account of one woman who defied the odds and refused to give up. Ricki Lake turned an unconventional life into an unparalleled triumph, and this memoir stands as a hopeful, hilarious, and honest exploration of how any woman can do the same.

Ricki Lake is an actress, television host, and the executive producer of the documentary, The Business of Being Born. She is also the author of Your Best Birth. She lives with her husband and two sons in Los Angeles.