Benoit is a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, an associate professor at Emerson College, and a New York Times bestselling author.

Book cover titled 'The Promise and Price of Self-Transformation' by Benoit Denizen-Lewis, with colorful, stylized illustration of a human head in profile, layered with multiple faces.

Pre-order his new book, You’ve Changed: The Promise and Price of Self-Transformation.

Out April 28 2026

"Blazingly smart, funny, thoughtful and moving"

Elizabeth Gilbert

"Endlessly thought-provoking and inspiring"

David Sheff

"Fascinating and revelatory"

Larissa MacFarquhar

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  • “Benoit is a world-class writer” 

    Armistead Maupin

  • “What a blazingly smart, funny, thoughtful and moving book about the endless hope—and occasional limits—of human transformation.”

    Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love and All the Way to the River

  • “Denizet-Lewis’s wide-ranging study of change in an era when metamorphosis has become the head-spinning norm is wonderfully reported, often hilarious, and unfailingly captivating.”

    Julian Brave NoiseCat, author of We Survived the Night and director of the Academy Award-nominated documentary Sugarcane

  • “Benoit Denizet-Lewis combines reportage, research, and memoir in a fascinating and beautifully written book that captivated me from the first page. (You’ve Changed) is endlessly thought provoking and inspiring. Read this book!”

    David Sheff, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Beautiful Boy

  • “I read You’ve Changed with rapt interest and delight. But I also read the hell out of it—I annotated it, underlined it, dog-eared it, and scribbled in its margins, because I couldn't help but find myself in it. You will too.”

    Tom Junod, two-time National Magazine Award winner and author of In the Days of My Youth I Was Told What It Means to Be a Man

  • “A deeply considered yet hilarious ride that explores the promises, challenges, validity, and possibility of transformation in all its forms.”

    Ellen Hendriksen, clinical psychologist, Boston University professor, and bestselling author

  • “Benoit Denizet-Lewis brings the curiosity and perception that make him one of our best nonfiction writers to the topic of personal reinvention… Reading (You’ve Changed) will change you for the better.”

    James Kirchick, New York Times bestselling author of Secret City: The Hidden History of Gay Washington

  • “This fascinating and revelatory book should be read by anyone tempted by promises of painless transformation.”

    Larissa MacFarquhar, New Yorker staff writer and author of Strangers Drowning: Impossible Idealism, Drastic Choices, and the Urge to Help

  • “Denizet-Lewis (reminds) us that it’s never too late to be the versions of ourselves we long to become.”

    Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness and Real Life

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About Benoit

Benoit was born and raised in San Francisco and now divides his time between Boston and Prague.

He is a longtime contributing writer with The New York Times Magazine whose work has been adapted into a feature film, received award and fellowship support from New America and the National Endowment for the Humanities, and been featured on The Today Show, Good Morning America, and NPR programs including On Point and Here & Now.

Among his previous books are America Anonymous: Eight Addicts in Search of a Life and the New York Times bestseller Travels With Casey: My Journey Through Our Dog-Crazy Country. 

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