As the star of the beloved director John Hughes Brat Pack film classics “Sixteen Candles,” “The Breakfast Club,” and “Pretty in Pink,” former teen queen Molly Ringwald defined teenage angst, love, and heartbreak in the 1980’s. Now a wife and mother of three herself, as wells as starring on the TV drama, “The Secret Life of the American Teenager,” Molly is facing a new angst-inducing time in her life—her 40th birthday! Molly reveals that her role as a mother on her new TV show “is a bit of a flash forward” into her own kids’ future, which she hopes won’t include acting, at least until they’re much older. Molly shares that her own parents were “naïve” about the perils awaiting a child star, but she also credits them with her ability to overcome the challenges that can lead to many young actors’ downfalls. “My parents were very present and cared a lot. They were always people I felt like I could go and talk to, always very nurturing. I’ve always been somewhat bookish, curious about the world and very interested in how I could make myself better and not just get stuck in the one thing,” she says.

Apropos as encouraging every woman to become “the sexiest, funniest, smartest, well dressed, and most confident woman that you can be,” is what this book is about for Molly. She shares a lifetime of experience in a vibrant, fun, stylish, and sexy collection of intimate stories and candid advice: Getting the Pretty Back, a fully illustrated “girlfriend’s guide” to life. She shares personal anecdotes and entertaining insights about the struggle to get through the murky milestones and identity issues that crop up long after the prom ends. Whether she’s discussing sex and beauty, personal style, travel and entertaining, motherhood, or friendship, Molly embodies the spirit of being fabulous at every age, and reminds us all that prettiness is a state of mind: it’s “the part of you that knows what you really want, that takes risks.”

Lavishly illustrated by Ruben Toledo, Getting the Pretty Back is sure to charm women of all ages with Molly’s unforgettably personal, refreshingly outspoken take on life, love, and, of course, finding that perfect red lipstick. . . .