Dr. Ruth Was Able to ‘Feel the Pages’ of Her Upcoming Book Before Her Death (Exclusive)
Co-author and friend Allison Gilbert says she and Pierre Lehu are honored to take the late sex therapist's upcoming book "over the finish line"
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Dr. Ruth attend the 2019 Ad Council Dinner in 2019Dr. Ruth was able to realize one final goal before her death.
American sex therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer died on Friday, July 12 at 96, her publicist and frequent co-author Pierre Lehu confirmed to PEOPLE. According to The New York Times and The Washington Post, she died at home in New York City — her cause of death is unconfirmed.
Before her death, Westheimer and Lehu worked with co-author, Allison Gilbert, on a book to help people understand and cope with loneliness. Penguin Random House will release The Joy of Connections in September.
The book will offer readers "100 ways to beat loneliness and live a happier and more meaningful life."
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In the pages of the upcoming nonfiction book, Westheimer embodies the role of Ambassador to Loneliness, a position to which New York Governor Kathy Hochul appointed her in November 2023.
courtesy Allison Gilbert
Allison Gilbert, Dr. Ruth and Pierre LehuIn a PEOPLE exclusive interview about the upcoming project and her friend Dr. Ruth, Gilbert speaks about watching Westheimer realize the goal of seeing the book to completion the last time she saw her.
"The last time I saw Dr. Ruth, we were together and the editor of our book was able to bring her a bound copy of The Joy of Connections," the Emmy-award-winning journalist says.
"So she could see it, so she could touch it, so she could run her fingers over the pages and know that it was really, truly happening as all authors like to do. You want to see the pages, you want to feel the pages."
Related: Dr. Ruth Turns 95: 'What Keeps Me Young Is Talking About Sex from Morning Till Night!' (Exclusive)
Gilbert shares that she has a photograph of her hands on the book alongside Lehu's and Westheimer's hands, which she describes as a "milestone" moment since she and Westheimer "met nearly every week" to work on the book.
The author adds that Westheimer — whom she first met in the summer of 2023 when she interviewed her for the New York Times — preferred "depth over breadth" in the time that she spent working, so the dedication she had to the book was especially noteworthy toward the end of her life.
courtesy Allison Gilbert
Dr. Ruth and Allison Gilbert"This constant, this consistent, this near-weekly attention to this book brought her purpose and joy. And I felt so honored to be a part of it with her," Gilbert says, noting that she and Lehu will now take the book "over the finish line."
Although she was a cultural icon known for giving candid, practical sex advice, Westheimer's life experience made her uniquely qualified to help the public address loneliness, as well.
Related: The One Question About Sex That Dr. Ruth Won't Answer
Born in Germany in 1928, she described herself as “an orphan of the Holocaust” because she lost her entire family during World War II. She survived because her mother and grandmother put her on a "kindertransport" train to Switzerland as part of the organized effort to help thousands of Jewish children escape Germany during the war.
Gilbert describes The Joy of Connections as "anchored by Dr. Ruth's life," and experience with loneliness, especially as a child.
Penguin Random House
"There are 100 ways to combat loneliness that we can all take to heart and act upon immediately," Gilbert says. "What I found so inspiring about Dr. Ruth is that she was always about speed, always about action. And so this book is meant to be absorbed and then put to use immediately."
In all of her work, Westheimer wanted to help all marginalized and isolated communities feel connected, Gilbert tells PEOPLE. When she made a friend, they stayed friends for life.
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As one of those fortunate few, Gilbert says, Westheimer gave people "beautiful attention."
"She gave that light, she gave that warmth to everyone around her, and I was just lucky to get a bit of it."
The Joy of Connections comes out on September 3 and is available for preorder now, wherever books are sold.
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