Haley describes book as inspirational memoir

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley says she wrote her book “Can’t Is Not An Option” as a way to encourage more people, especially women, to seek office.

Haley told The Associated Press she was devastated when people told her after her historic 2010 win they would never run for office after seeing what she went through. The state’s first female and first minority governor described it as a book about overcoming challenges and the progress of a Southern state that elected a 38-year-old Indian-American as its CEO.

Haley was in New York to promote the book’s release. She next heads to Washington, D.C., before her in-state book tour begins Monday in Charleston.

Haley says writing the book was therapeutic, as the look back showed how experiences shaped her.