What I Know Now: Letters to My Younger Self [Paperback]

Ellyn Spragins (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2008

If you could send a letter back through time to your younger self, what would the letter say?

In this moving collection, forty-one famous women write letters to the women they once were, filled with advice and insights they wish they had had when they were younger.

Today show correspondent Ann Curry writes to herself as a rookie reporter in her first job, telling herself not to change so much to fit in, urging her young self, “It is time to be bold about who you really are.” Country music superstar Lee Ann Womack reflects on the stressed-out year spent recording her first album and encourages her younger self to enjoy the moment, not just the end result. And Maya Angelou, leaving home at seventeen with a newborn baby in her arms, assures herself she will succeed on her own, even if she does return home every now and then.

These remarkable women are joined by Madeleine Albright, Queen Noor of Jordan, Cokie Roberts, Naomi Wolf, Eileen Fisher, Jane Kaczmarek, Olympia Dukakis, Macy Gray, and many others. Their letters contain rare glimpses into the personal lives of extraordinary women and powerful wisdom that readers will treasure.

Wisdom from What I Know Now

“Don’t let anybody raise you. You’ve been raised.” —Maya Angelou

“Try more things. Cross more lines.” —Breena Clarke

“Learn how to celebrate.” —Olympia Dukakis

“You don’t have to be afraid of living alone.” —Eileen Fisher

“Please yourself first . . . everything else follows.” —Macy Gray

“Don’t be so quick to dismiss another human being.” —Barbara Boxer

“Work should not be work.” —Mary Matalin

“You can leave the work world—and come back on your own terms.” —Cokie

Roberts

“Laundry will wait very patiently.” —Nora Roberts

“Your hair matters far, far less than you think” —Lisa Scottoline

“Speak the truth but ride a fast horse.” —Kitty Kelley

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The unusual premise for this compilation is not successful in practice. Spragins, an editor at large for Fortune Small Business, persuaded 40 well-known women—among them Maya Angelou, Queen Noor of Jordan and clothing designer Eileen Fisher—to write short letters passing their current wisdom to their younger selves. But too many of the messages these women send themselves are overly familiar: designer Fisher says she should not be so frightened of being alone (i.e., without a man). Sen. Barbara Boxer admonishes herself to be less judgmental of people who disagree with her. More unusually, Ingrid Newkirk, founder of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) encourages her younger self to be true to the inner voice telling her not to eat meat. Madeleine Albright addresses herself at a more advanced age, 44, when her marriage broke down: "You will get through this fog and uncertainty.... You won't become cynical, stoical or hard-bitten...." While the letters reveal personal vulnerabilities, it reduces lessons hard earned through complicated lives to very brief, simplistic messages. (Apr. 4)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

“What these letters offer . . . is hope—hope that those who read them will understand that there is a future where the road not taken is no longer regretted, and, in the end, the choices we make, make us who we are.” —Boston Globe

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Three Rivers Press (April 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0767917901
• ISBN-13: 978-0767917902
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.5 x 7.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #22,172 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #18 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Women's Studies > Feminist Theory

More About the Author

Ellyn Spragins leads Letters To My Younger Self Seminars and Workshops around the world for women's leadership networks and leadership development programs. She has presented at Microsoft, Genentch, Goldman Sachs and Johnson & Johnson and many other corporations. Her books, speeches, seminars and products inspire women to discover their inner wisdom and share it with each other.

She is the author of What I Know Now About Success, published in the spring of 2010 and If I'd Known Then: Women In Their 20s and 30s Write Letters to Their Younger Selves, published by Da Capo Press in May 2008. Previously she authored What I Know Now: Letters To My Younger Self, a New York Times bestseller and Books For A Better Life finalist, published in April 2006.

Previously she was a columnist at The New York Times, writing Love & Money for the Sunday business section, and Editor-At-Large at Fortune Small Business. She also was Vice President of Editorial Development at Oxygen Media and a contributing editor to Newsweek. While at Newsweek, she won the National Press Club's Consumer Journalism Award in 1997 and the Clarion Award in 1998.

Spragins has been an editor at Smart Money, BusinessWeek and Inc., and a reporter at Forbes. Her articles have appeared in O, The Oprah Magazine, Working Woman, Bloomberg Personal, Worth, The New York Times Sunday Magazine, Ladies Home Journal and Town & Country. She has also made numerous television and radio appearances.

Spragins graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in English and economics from Barnard College, which awarded her the Estelle M. Allison Prize for Excellence in Literature. She lives with her husband, John Witty, and two children in Pennington, New Jersey.
Learn more at www.letterstomyyoungerself.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Splendid Idea --carried out to perfection!, May 10, 2006

By 

Arctic Voice Earl (Wisconsin) - See all my reviews

This review is from: What I Know Now: Letters to My Younger Self (Hardcover)

What a super idea ---Contact 41 noted women-- from former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright to country singer and song writer Trisha Yearwood. Then persuade them to write short letters back to themselves at an earlier age.

I suspect many of us -- men and women --have thought at times about "if only we could go back in time and help our younger selves not only cope with life, but chart a true course and make an impact."

The women in the book go to different times in their past life, but it is clear that they care for their earlier versions, no matter if there are some rough edges and mistakes.

Clothing designer and entrepreneur Eileen Fisher, 55, tells herself in her early twenties "You don't have to be afraid of living alone," in response to a troubling live-in relationship.

Author and poet Maya Angelou tells her younger self: "Don't let anyone raise you. You've been raised."

Country music star Lee Ann Womack finds her younger version stressed in recording her first album. She advises making a record to enjoy, rather than one just aimed at success.

I agree with other reviewers that the book is of interest to men and women alike. But I understand that Spragins may do a future book with letters from men. I can hardly wait.

Personally, I'd love to go back over 40 years to my teens and tell myself not to get so hooked on the Chicago Cubs. "Being a Cub fan will result in decades of disappointment," I'd tell that young man with a full head of hair, and so much idealism.

Enjoy the book!

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Lesson in Reflection, May 12, 2006

By 

TJ "art maven" (St. Joseph, MO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: What I Know Now: Letters to My Younger Self (Hardcover)

I found this book as I was looking for a gift for my daughter's college graduation. The concept seemed incredible to me so I grabbed it up and brought it home. Reading the letters inpired me to write my own letter. I wrote a letter to myself 23 years before, pregnant with my daughter. The process of reflection was intense for me. I cried as I remembered the fears I had--the uncertainty. My sister called as I was writing this letter and the two of us went even farther back than 23 years. We remembered each other as children--when we were unable to communicate our fears. Our conversation helped our relationship and helped me to finish my letter to myself. In the end, my letter to me became my gift to my daughter. Without this book, all this reflection would be lost.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Something to pass on!, June 3, 2006

By 

Annya Bergman (Beverly Hills, California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: What I Know Now: Letters to My Younger Self (Hardcover)

I just Read Spragins amazing collection of letters and had to post this message about it. If you're looking for a meaningfull thought provoking gift this is it! This book will be cherished not just because it reveals the inner thoughts of some amazing people on our planet, but because it confirmations the inner voice in all of us that is often ignored.

This book is wonderful for young people who could use the sage advice of a mentor. It's great for people thinking about the changes they want to make in their life. It's also a good way to stimulate you to write your own letter.

After reading "Letters to My Younger Self" I wrote a letter to myself about what I wished I'd known 20 years ago. The experience was very helpfull. It allowed me to think about the past and contemplate the future in a way I hadn't before.