Bristol Palin was a pregnant teenager when her mother's run for vice president landed her in the national spotlight. Since then, she's become a tabloid sensation, a TV star and now an author.
Palin will sign copies of her book, "Not Afraid of Life: My Journey So Far," at the Mall of America in Bloomington on Wednesday. The book details her childhood, her relationship with her son's father, Levi Johnston, and her stint on "Dancing With the Stars."
Sarah Palin will join her, signing the November 2010 release "America by Heart: Reflections on Family, Faith and the Flag," a HarperCollins publicist announced Monday
We talked with Bristol about "being known," her hopes for her son, Tripp, and her next TV venture.
Q Explain the meaning of the title, "Not Afraid of Life."
A It can mean a lot of different things: having Tripp and facing all my problems and stuff, owning up to all the mistakes that I've made.
Q In your book, you describe losing your virginity, writing that you were drinking and woke up with no memory of it. Was it non-consensual?
A I'm not accusing Levi of date rape or anything like that. I am just looking back on it with the eyes of a 20-year-old. It was a stupid, stupid decision to sneak out like that and get into underage drinking. It was stupid to get myself into that situation with Levi. It's definitely a warning [for young readers] and I thought if I opened the book with that scene, it would show readers how candid I am in the book and how honest I am.
Q Are you nervous about the fall release of Levi's book, "Deer in the Headlights: My Life in Sarah Palin's Crosshairs"?
A He's already made up everything that he can make up about our family. He's going to have to get a real creative screenwriter to paint that picture. My family knows that. I'm not worried about it.
Q What can you tell us about your Bio Channel reality show slated for fall, where you will be working for a charity in Los Angeles and living with "Dancing With the Stars" co-star Kyle Massey?
A I can't really say all the details yet. But you should definitely tune in. I'm excited for this new project to start up because, at the end of the day, it's for charity -- and Kyle's awesome.
Q What charities are you interested in?
A I'm interested in lots of things. It's not going to be teen pregnancy or anything like that, but it's going to be positive and productive. It's not that usual Hollywood scene because Kyle and I, we don't party, we don't go to clubs. It's going to be like a family show, too.
Q And you consider Kyle to be a part of that family?
A Of course!
Q What will your show tell us about you that we don't already know?
A Hopefully, the media and everyone else will see how being known can do good things, too, like I'll be working for a charity and bringing awareness to that. There are good things, opportunities to do good things. It's going to give me a platform to work for this charity and bring something to it. I think everyone can do their part in helping out other people.
Q How do you think your fame will affect your son?
A Well, Tripp, he was born into this kind of media frenzy, but he's a normal kid. He's awesome. I don't think it's kind of affected him at all. But I don't know what our future holds. I am only 20 years old, and who knows what we'll be doing five years from now? I'll just be happy as long as he's happy and healthy.
Jessica Bakeman • 612-673-4401