Lily Burana is an American

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

whose books include ''Grace for Amateurs: Field Notes on a Journey Back to Faith'' (Thomas Nelson], 2017), I Love a Man in Uniform: A Memoir of Love, War, and Other Battles'' (Weinstein Books, 2009), the novel ''Try'' (

St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, in the Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under si ...

, 2006) and ''Strip City: A Stripper's Farewell Journey Across America'' (

Miramax Books Miramax Books was an American publishing company started by Bob and Harvey Weinstein of Miramax Films to publish movie tie-ins. Between 2000 and 2005, while Jonathan Burnham was its president and editor-in-chief, the imprint published the memoirs ...

, 2001). ''I Love a Man in Uniform'' won the

ELLE Magazine ''Elle'' (stylized ''ELLE'') is a worldwide women's magazine of French origin that offers a mix of fashion and beauty content, together with culture, society and lifestyle. The title means "she" or "her" in French. ''Elle'' is considered the w ...

Reader's Prize in May 2009. A ''New York Times'' review of the book by

J. Courtney Sullivan Julie Courtney Sullivan (born 1982), better known as J. Courtney Sullivan, is an American novelist and former writer for ''The New York Times''. Biography Sullivan grew up outside Boston, Massachusetts. She attended Smith College in Northampt ...

lauded it as "a notable historical document." ''Strip City'' was named one of the Best Books of the Year by ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

'', ''

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon (P ...

,'' ''

New York Newsday ''New York Newsday'' was an American daily newspaper that primarily served New York City and was sold throughout the New York metropolitan area. The paper, established in 1985, was a New York City-specific offshoot of ''Newsday'', a Long Island- ...

'', and ''

The Rocky Mountain News The ''Rocky Mountain News'' (nicknamed the ''Rocky'') was a daily newspaper published in Denver, Colorado, United States, from April 23, 1859, until February 27, 2009. It was owned by the E. W. Scripps Company from 1926 until its closing. As ...

.'' In 2008, ''Entertainment Weekly'' published a feature called "So You Want to Write a Memoir," which indexed a thousand recent memoirs by subject. ''Strip City'' was among ten memoirs cited for their singular quality: "Whatever you might expect from a cross-country stripping odyssey, this surely isn't it. For one thing, Burana's eloquent, thoughtful goodbye to her longtime craft of bump-and-grind is decidedly unsexy. For another, her experiences frame a sort of social history of strip clubs and the girls who work at them." As a journalist, Burana frequently writes about media, pop culture, religion, feminism, and LGBTQ issues, with a recent emphasis on the cultural and domestic dimensions of military affairs. She has written for over 50 publications, including ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

,'' ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'', '' GQ'', ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', ''

The Los Angeles Times ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'', ''

Self The self is an individual as the object of that individual’s own reflective consciousness. Since the ''self'' is a reference by a subject to the same subject, this reference is necessarily subjective. The sense of having a self—or ''selfhood ...

'', '' Glamour'', ''

'', ''

Details Detail(s) or The Detail(s) may refer to: Film and television * ''Details'' (film), a 2003 Swedish film * ''The Details'' (film), a 2011 American film * ''The Detail'', a Canadian television series * "The Detail" (''The Wire''), a television epis ...

'', the ''

Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the creat ...

'', and the ''

New York Observer New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

''. She was a contributing editor at ''

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'' and ''

SPIN Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

.'' As a public speaker, she has appeared at

The United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

San Francisco State University San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different b ...

, and the

San Francisco Art Institute San Francisco Art Institute (SFAI) was a private college of contemporary art in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1871, SFAI was one of the oldest art schools in the United States and the oldest west of the Mississippi River. Approximately ...

. Her recent book, ''Grace for Amateurs: Field Notes on a Journey Back to Faith''
Thomas Nelson
2017), was released on October 31, 2017.

Personal

Lily Burana started writing for punk 'zines while still a teenager. Her first book, ''Strip City: A Stripper's Farewell Journey Across America'' was a chronicle of her work as a stripper during her late teens and early twenties. Burana married an Army officer in 2002. In 2008, she began "Operation Bombshell," a burlesque class for wives of deployed soldiers. She lives in New York, and had her first child in 2014, who was baptised a Catholic.

References

External links

* *
''Los Angeles Times'' Op-Ed about the privacy debate at Dover AFB''New York Magazine'' articles by Lily Burana
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burana, Lily Living people American women bloggers American bloggers Year of birth missing (living people) American female erotic dancers American erotic dancers Journalists from Wyoming American women novelists Women memoirists Journalists from New York City 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American women writers Dancers from New York (state) Dancers from Wyoming Novelists from New York (state) American women non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers American LGBT writers