You All Grow Up and Leave Me - A Memoir of Teenage Obsession

"e,Unflinching, rich and revelatory."e,MEGAN ABBOTTGorgeous, moody, and evocative . . . half coming-of-age story and half exhaustively researched true crime. VANITY FAIRBracingly honest and extremely discomfiting, this book is like a riveting episode of Law Order: SVU set at a Manhattan prep school with the U.S. Open as a backdrop.MARIE CLAIREAriveting blend of true crime and coming-of-age memoir The Stranger Beside Me meets Prepthat presents an intimate and thought-provoking portrait of girlhood within Manhattans exclusive private-school scene in the early 1990s, and a thoughtful meditation on adolescent obsession and the vulnerability of youth.Piper Weiss was fourteen years old when her middle-aged tennis coach, Gary Wilensky, one of New York Citys most prestigious private instructors, killed himself after a failed attempt to kidnap one of his teenage students. In the aftermath, authorities discovered that this well-known figure among the Upper East Side tennis crowd was actually a frightening child predator who had built a secret torture chambera "e,Cabin of Horrors"e,in his secluded rental in the Adirondacks.Before the shocking scandal broke, Piper had been thrilled to be one of "e,Garys Girls."e, "e,Grandpa Gary,"e, as he was known among his students, was different from other adultshe treated Piper like a grown-up, taking her to dinners, engaging in long intimate conversations with her, and sending her special valentines. As reporters swarmed her private community in the wake of Wilenskys death, Piper learned that her mentor was a predator with a sordid history of child stalking and sexual fetish. But why did she still feel protective of Gary, and why was she disappointed that he hadnt chosen her?Now, twenty years later, Piper examines the event as both a teenage eyewitness and a dispassionate investigative reporter, hoping to understand and exorcise the childhood memories that haunt her to this day. Combining research, interviews, and personal records, You All Grow Up and Leave Me explores the psychological manipulation by child predatorstheir ability to charm their way into seemingly protected worldsand the far-reaching effects their actions have on those who trust them most.