Jeffrey Zaslow, best-selling author, dies

DETROIT -- Jeffrey Zaslow, author of bestsellers such as "The Last Lecture," about a professor dying of pancreatic cancer, and a recent book on Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' recovery from a gunshot wound, was killed Friday in a car accident in northern Michigan.

Zaslow, 53, a husband and father of three daughters, was killed about 9 a.m. near Elmira, according to the Antrim County Sheriff's Department. Police said he lost control of his car and was hit by a tractor-trailer on a snow-covered road. He had been in the area for a book signing.

Outgoing and equally self-deprecating, Zaslow had a knack for ferreting out details that riveted readers. He wrote books that inspired millions, unleashing the insight of Randy Pausch, the computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon University whose lecture about dying from pancreatic cancer and achieving childhood fantasies became "The Last Lecture" in 2008.

Another book, "The Girls from Ames," about 11 childhood friends in Iowa and their bonds while growing up, also became a bestseller.

Zaslow also profiled Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, the US Airways pilot who in 2009 successfully landed a distressed airliner full of passengers on the Hudson River in "Highest Duty."

Last year, he also documented the saga of Giffords, a former Arizona congresswoman, as she recovered from a bullet wound to the brain after an attack that left six others dead. Along with Giffords' husband, former astronaut Mark Kelly, Zaslow co-authored "Gabby: A Story of Courage and Hope."

He first rose to notoriety when, as a Wall Street Journal reporter writing about a national contest to replace Ann Landers, he ended up winning the contest to succeed her at the Chicago Sun-Times.

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He was most recently writing a column about relationships for The Wall Street Journal out of its Detroit office.

His latest book, "The Magic Room," chronicled the happenings at Becker's Bridal in Fowler, Mich., near Lansing, a store with nearly 2,500 dresses, owned and operated by fourth-generation bridal shop owner Sherry Becker Mueller.

He followed eight brides -- including one who had her first kiss the day she became engaged, and a widow who found love again -- from the bridal store to the altar. And he chronicled the ups and downs of the store owner, whose own marriage failed.

"We developed such a great friendship. It's like he's a best friend, a big brother," said Becker Mueller. "I think the world lost one of the greatest people I know. I'm so sad for his wife and his daughters."