Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage
INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “Burden’s searing, probing memoir explores . . . what she learned about intimacy and her own spirit.”—People
“A beautifully written instant classic. Strangers is gripping and heartbreaking and a must-read for every wife—and husband.”—Graydon Carter
“Asks us to examine life’s most perplexing questions: Can we see the invisible fault lines in a marriage or truly know the people closest to us?”—Lori Gottlieb
It was a great love story, one for the ages. The speed of our beginning and the speed of our ending felt like matching bookends. They both came out of nowhere. He wanted it, he wanted me. And then he didn’t.
In March 2020, Belle Burden was safe and secure with her family at their house on Martha’s Vineyard, navigating the early days of the pandemic together—building fires in the late afternoons, drinking whisky sours, making roast chicken. Then, with no warning or explanation, her husband of twenty years announced that he was leaving her. Overnight, her caring, steady partner became a man she hardly recognized. He exited his life with her like an actor shrugging off a costume.
In Strangers, Burden revisits her marriage, searching for clues that her husband was not who she always thought he was. As she examines her relationship through a new lens, she reckons with her own family history and the lessons she intuited about how a woman is expected to behave in the face of betrayal. Through all of it, she is transformed. The discreet, compliant woman she once was—someone nicknamed “Belle the Good”—gives way to someone braver, someone determined to use her voice.
With unflinching honesty and profound grace, Burden charts a path through heartbreak to show the power of a woman who refuses to give up on love. Strangers is a stunning, deeply moving, compulsively readable memoir heralding the arrival of a thrilling new literary talent.
“A beautifully written instant classic. Strangers is gripping and heartbreaking and a must-read for every wife—and husband.”—Graydon Carter
“Asks us to examine life’s most perplexing questions: Can we see the invisible fault lines in a marriage or truly know the people closest to us?”—Lori Gottlieb
It was a great love story, one for the ages. The speed of our beginning and the speed of our ending felt like matching bookends. They both came out of nowhere. He wanted it, he wanted me. And then he didn’t.
In March 2020, Belle Burden was safe and secure with her family at their house on Martha’s Vineyard, navigating the early days of the pandemic together—building fires in the late afternoons, drinking whisky sours, making roast chicken. Then, with no warning or explanation, her husband of twenty years announced that he was leaving her. Overnight, her caring, steady partner became a man she hardly recognized. He exited his life with her like an actor shrugging off a costume.
In Strangers, Burden revisits her marriage, searching for clues that her husband was not who she always thought he was. As she examines her relationship through a new lens, she reckons with her own family history and the lessons she intuited about how a woman is expected to behave in the face of betrayal. Through all of it, she is transformed. The discreet, compliant woman she once was—someone nicknamed “Belle the Good”—gives way to someone braver, someone determined to use her voice.
With unflinching honesty and profound grace, Burden charts a path through heartbreak to show the power of a woman who refuses to give up on love. Strangers is a stunning, deeply moving, compulsively readable memoir heralding the arrival of a thrilling new literary talent.
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Readers say *Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage* by Belle Burden is a beautifully written, deeply personal memoir that resonates especially with those wh...
As a rule, I don’t rate memoirs because rating another person’s story is not my place and I do not want to diminish their feelings or experiences. That being said, this book is incredible. It’s a bit different than other memoirs I’ve read and I was completely captivated. I felt Belle’s pain and her story, in the beginning, made me physically ill. I cannot fathom the behavior of her husband and it completely baffled me to the point of anger. And as a horrible as it all was, I was more horrified by the reactions of other people in her life. Her story is one that shows true human behaviors and it is eye opening. But beyond all else, to see Belle come out the other side is what makes her story inspiring. I understand the praise and hype of this entirely and if you’re into audiobooks, Belle narrates this herself and does a phenomenal job. I loved hearing the emotion and feeling in her voice that I don’t think anyone else would be able to provide.
An absolutely beautiful and heartbreaking memoir of marriage, divorce, and ultimately, identity.
I am more of a fiction girl, but when I heard about Strangers, I felt compelled to pick it up (virtually – for non-fiction I usually go with audiobook format).
While I could very much relate to Belle’s experience as a wife experiencing betrayal and then end of a long marriage, I do think any person going through big life changes where their identity and how they see themselves in the world would feel resonance. On a very personal level, so many things that Belle says feel so familiar. It’s good to know that while my life is my own, my experiences and feelings are not wholly unique.
Aside from the subject matter, the writing is absolutely beautiful. Descriptive, visually rich, soft, and agonizing.
Highly recommend.
Heartbreaking and inspirational all at once. Belle Burden is an excellent writer and she does a wonderful job sharing her story with all of it's emotions.
I don’t feel right rating someone’s personal life. I thought it was an interesting memoir. I was shocked that someone so educated could be so naive. I do have to say that I was pretty irritated that the edition I read didn’t have page numbers.
In March 2020, Belle Burden was safe and secure with her family at their house on Martha’s Vineyard, navigating the early days of the pandemic together—building fires in the late afternoons, drinking whisky sours, making roast chicken. Then, with no warning or explanation, her husband of twenty years announced that he was leaving her. Overnight, her caring, steady partner became a man she hardly recognized. He exited his life with her like an actor shrugging off a costume.
In Strangers, Burden revisits her marriage, searching for clues that her husband was not who she always thought he was. As she examines her relationship through a new lens, she reckons with her own family history and the lessons she intuited about how a woman is expected to behave in the face of betrayal. Through all of it, she is transformed. The discreet, compliant woman she once was—someone nicknamed “Belle the Good”—gives way to someone braver, someone determined to use her voice.
With unflinching honesty and profound grace, Burden charts a path through heartbreak to show the power of a woman who refuses to give up on love. Strangers is a stunning, deeply moving, compulsively readable memoir heralding the arrival of a thrilling new literary talent.
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