Kristen Holt-Browning is a poet, editor and (now) novelist. Her debut work of fiction, Ordinary Devotion, juxtaposes the lives of two women separated by 700 years. Kristen grew up nearby in the hamlet of Stone Ridge, spent some years in New York City (Manhattan, then Brooklyn) before moving back to Beacon 15 years ago.

In this interview, she talks about her experience growing up in the Hudson Valley, raising kids in Beacon, the literary scene here and the pile-up of thoughts and memories in middle age. And she reads two poems and a passage from her novel.

This interview is the latest in a series with Beacon and Hudson Valley-based writers. See also: Ruth Danon, Lucy Sante, Sam Anderson and Danny Goodman.