Beth Golay

Suzanne just reviewed that last week.

So you two are like-minded with your book selections.

Let's see if this next one matches.

This conversation has been edited for time.

You can find all of Day's recommendations at kmuw.org.

David Malman with WW Norton, thank you so much for joining us today.

Marginalia was produced at KMUW Wichita and is part of the NPR Network.

Our editors and producers for this week's show are Haley Krausen and Luann Stevens.

Torrin Anderson composed our theme music.

This is Marginalia.

I'm Beth Golay.

I'm Beth Golay, and this is Marginalia.

Belle Burden works pro bono as an immigration attorney in New York City.

Her new book, Strangers, A Memoir of Marriage, begins in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when her husband announced he's leaving her and their kids, an unexpected and abrupt end to a 20-year marriage.

This memoir first appeared as an essay in the New York Times Modern Love section.

Through Burden's account, we learn about the beginning and end of her partnership.

But we also learn about her well-connected family and its impact on her life.

Burden's father descends from the Vanderbilt dynasty, and her grandmother is Babe Paley, a magazine editor and socialite who ran in crowds with Truman Capote.

I recently spoke with Burden about how she transformed her initial article into a full book, despite roadblocks she first encountered decades ago.

Here's our conversation.