'Homeless to Harvard' Protagonist Releases Memoir

As the real-life protagonist of the 2003 made-for-TV movie “Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story,” Elizabeth “Liz” Murray '04-'09 was already on her way to becoming a celebrity in her own right as the heroine of a classic American story. Now, however, she’s released a memoir, which chronicles her assent from the streets of the Bronx to the sanctuary of Harvard Yard.

“Breaking Night: A Memoir of Forgiveness, Survival, and My Journey from Homeless to Harvard” shows how the neglected daughter of two cocaine-addicted, HIV-positive parents managed to make it through high school, into an internship at The New York Times, and, finally, to Cambridge—all without a roof over head.

In an interview with NPR about the book, Murray said she does not hold a grudge against her parents and that, in spite of their neglect and their addictions, they still loved her.

“My parents were addicted to drugs. But at the same time, they were incredibly loving people,” she said. “People can’t give you what they don’t have.”

In the same interview, Murray said that "Breaking Night," the title of her memoir, refers to the experience of staying up all night until the first flash of sunlight, which was how she described her situation before she realized she was technically “homeless.”

The book was released on Sept. 7 by Hyperion and is priced at $24.99.