In Episode 68, Eilene Zimmerman (author of Smacked) shares how she decided to go public with her experience discovering her ex-husband was addicted to drugs, her research into addiction in the legal profession, and how Peter’s death shaped Eilene’s life now.

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Highlights

• How Eilene went from not divulging the real reason Peter died beyond a very small circle of friends and family to writing a memoir about her experience.
• How her kids have been doing since Smacked was published.
• How Peter’s law firm reacted to the NYT article and the book’s publication.
• When Eilene believes Peter first started using.
• What it was like for Eilene to go through this as Peter’s ex-wife (rather than as his wife).
• Why she started missing Peter after he passed away (even though they’d been split up for quite awhile).
• Addiction in the legal profession and the toxic culture of BigLaw.
• Eilene’s journalism career and how Peter’s addiction and death shaped her journalism career moving forward.
• Smacked being optioned for film by Elisabeth Moss’ production company.

Eilene’s Book Recommendations [30:38]

Two OLD Books She Loves

• Less by Andrew Sean Greer | Buy from Amazon [31:07]
• Circe by Madeline Miller (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [32:37]

Two NEW Books She Loves

• The Gifted School by Bruce Holsinger | Buy from Amazon [37:17]
• The Testaments by Margaret Atwood (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [39:10]

One Book She DIDN’T LOVE

• Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [42:31]

One NEW RELEASE She’s Excited About

• Magic Lessons by Alice Hoffman (Release Date: October 6, 2020) | Buy from Amazon [45:01]

Last 5 Star Book Eilene Read [46:54]

• The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead | Buy from Amazon [46:54]

Other Books Mentioned

• Smacked by Eilene Zimmerman | Buy from Amazon [0:54]
• The Boys’ Club by Erika Katz (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [22:55]
• Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [35:58]
• The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [35:58]
• Wild Game by Adrienne Brodeur (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [36:02]
• The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [39:10]
• The Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman | Buy from Amazon [45:01]
• Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman | Buy from Amazon [45:01]
• The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [46:25]

Other Links

• “The Lawyer, the Addict” by Eilene Zimmerman, The New York Times

About Eilene

Website | Instagram

Eilene Zimmerman is a journalist and social worker. For three decades, she has written about business, technology and social issues for a wide array of national magazines and newspapers. She was a columnist for The New York Times Sunday Business section for six years and since 2004 has been a regular contributor to the newspaper. In September 2020, Zimmerman completed a masters degree in social work.

Next Episode

There will not be a new episode next week since the podcast is on a bi-weekly schedule.

The following week, there will be a full length episode featuring Peace Adzo Medie, author of His Only Wife (airing October 28).