North Reading Reads 2006 - Roland Merullo In Revere, In Those Days


Roland Merullo visited the library on April 27, 2006, after meeting with students at North Reading High School.

"My name is Anthony Benedetto, and I live what might be called a secret life."

 So begins Roland Merullo's coming-of-age novel, In Revere, In Those Days, published in 2002, the story of a boy from a close-knit Italian-American family in Revere, Massachusetts, in the late 1950's and '60's. Tonio delights in the warmth and security of his old-world heritage, but he also senses that unlocking his potential may mean leaving Revere and his family behind. He learns that sometimes finding yourself can mean finding your place in your own family.

Roland Merullo grew up in Revere, Massachusetts. He is a graduate of Phillips Exeter Academy and Brown University and has a Master's Degree in Russian Language and Literature. He is the author is six highly-praised novels as well as a memoir, which received the 2003 Massachusetts Book Award. He has written extensively for magazines and newspapers, including the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Washington Post, and Forbes. He lives in western Massachusetts with his wife and two daughters.

Roland Merullo will speak at  North Reading High School on Wednesday, April 26th at 7PM in the auditorium.

"What makes In Revere, In Those Days stand out from most other contemporary novels is its graceful prose, its deep and decent characters, and its quiet insistence upon the fundamental dignity of humanity."

Seattle Times

Emotionally complex, politically intelligent, beautifully written:  Among the best from a novelist in the classic American tradition."

Kirkus Reviews (starred)

Here are responses from others in North Reading who read book: Readers' Comments.
Have you read the book? Tell us what you thought by sending an email to mnr@mvlc.org
and we'll post it with the other comments.

Is your book group interested in reading In Revere, In Those Days?
Call 978-664-4942 to find out about our book club kit and discussion guide.

 

OTHER TITLES BY ROLAND MERULLO

Leaving Losapas, 1991
A Russian Requiem, 1993
Revere Beach Boulevard, 1999
Revere Beach Elegy: A Memoir, 2002
A Little Love Story, 2005
Golfing With God, 2005


Author photos by Amanda Merullo

Return to top of page
Roland Merullo holding In Revere, In Those Days

North Reading Reads 2006

From the Book


" forty years ago, Revere was a different place. There were amusements and food stands along its curve of sandy beach, making it a sort of slightly less famous Coney Island."
(P. 5)

"Have a regular thing you can look forward to every day-a candy bar, a TV show." (P. 82)

"We were the Benedettos, after all, and by the simple force of our love for one another we were going to fashion something worthwhile out of the mud and stone of our fate."  (P. 85)

"In the months of September and October, a rare kind of healing light falls across southern New Hampshire in the late afternoon." (P. 229)



This website was funded by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services,
made possible by the Library Services and Technology Act and administered
by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners

www.flintmemoriallibrary.org

Webmaster: Helena Minton;    Web Design & Development: Margarita Drozdoff;  Logo Design: Steve DiFranza