New Memoir by Priscilla Presley, “Softly As I Leave You: Life After Elvis,” to be Published by Grand Central Publishing
New York, NY (April 16, 2025) — Grand Central Publishing (GCP) is excited to announce the acquisition of SOFTLY, AS I LEAVE YOU: Life After Elvis, the long-awaited memoir of Priscilla Presley. The book is scheduled for publication on September 23, 2025, in hardcover, e-book and audiobook editions. Ben Schafer, Executive Editor at Grand Central, acquired North American rights from literary agent Alan Nevins at Renaissance Literary Management.
Priscilla Presley’s divorce from Elvis left his fans incredulous. How could she leave the man every woman wanted? From the outside, life in Elvis’s mansion looked glamorous and enviable, and in many respects, it was. But inside the mansion, her husband was constantly surrounded by a male entourage while at the gates, lines of beautiful women waited hopefully for an audience with the King. From the time she was seventeen years old, that life was all Priscilla had known. During her ten years with Elvis, it became painfully apparent that she had no idea who she was outside Elvis’s world. The only way to find herself was to leave that world and seek a new life of her own, because leaving was the only way to survive, for herself and for her daughter.
SOFTLY, AS I LEAVE YOU, is the deeply personal story of what Priscilla lost and what she found when she walked away from the man she loved. Despite the legal separation, their love for one another transformed into a touching and tender dynamic that endured until Elvis’s untimely death four years later. Shattered by Elvis’s passing, she had to reinvent herself a second time as the single mother of a talented, often headstrong daughter who never really recovered from her father’s death. Priscilla’s dedication to motherhood was enriched by the birth of her second child, and she gradually found her footing as a businesswoman, actress, designer, and legislative advocate. She transformed Graceland into an international destination and helped guide the development of Elvis Presley Enterprises. But the unexpected, shattering loss of three immediate family members years later brought Priscilla to her knees. She shares her journey with a quiet dignity that will comfort and reassure anyone who has suffered – and survived – seemingly unbearable loss.
A passionate, compassionate, and inspiring story of finding your place in the world, SOFTLY, AS I LEAVE YOU, is a sweet Southern melody that will take the reader with Priscilla on her long road home.
Priscilla Presley says:“This book covers eight decades of my life. Writing it has been a learning experience on many levels. I have reflected deeply both on myself and on those I love. I have always loved and admired Elvis, but the more than four decades of living without him have taught me how rare and extraordinary he was as a human being. Reliving the trauma in my life has also been challenging. I live with grief, and I have learned that it never goes away. I will never outlive it, but I move through it one day at a time. I carry every one of the people I have lost with me. I feel their presence, and I believe that my journey will eventually bring us back to one another.”
About Priscilla Beaulieu Presley
Priscilla Presley is a businesswoman, author, designer, producer, and actress best known for her roles in the television drama Dallas and the Naked Gun movies. As the cofounder and former chairperson of Elvis Presley Enterprises, she is credited with turning Elvis Presley’s mansion, Graceland, into the second most visited historic home in the United States. As a key architect of the Elvis Presley legacy, she has curated and produced albums, books, films, and concerts honoring the late music legend. She lives in Los Angeles near her son and grandchildren, where she continues her lifelong commitment to animal advocacy.
About Grand Central Publishing
Grand Central Publishing reaches a diverse audience through books that cater to every kind of reader. Its imprints are Balance, Cardinal, Da Capo, Forever, Grand Central, and Legacy Lit. Grand Central Publishing is one of three divisions of the Grand Central Publishing Group, which also includes Hachette Nashville and Union Square & Co.
About Hachette Book Group
Hachette Book Group (HBG) is a leading U.S. general-interest book publisher made up of dozens of esteemed imprints within the publishing groups Basic Books Group, Grand Central Publishing Group, Hachette Audio, Little, Brown and Company, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Orbit and Workman Running Press Group. We also provide custom distribution, fulfillment, and sales services to other publishing companies.
Our books and authors have received the Pulitzer Prize, National Book Award, Caldecott Medal, Newbery Medal, Booker Prize, Nobel Peace Prize and other major honors.
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