George Guida reads from The Uniform (Guernica World Editions, 2024)
Alexander Sammartino reads from Last Acts (Scribner, 2024)
Two writers explore the expectations and realities of modern masculinity. In George Guida’s novel, a brutal racist attack in 1950 drives Alfie Bagliato’s family from their small town to New York City, where the sixteen-year-old dreams of escaping his Italian American enclave through a career in music and a romance with his cousin Adeline. All too quickly, disappointment and frustration lead Alfie to join the military, to follow Adeline to San Francisco, and then to become a New York City cop. The clash with protesters during the 1968 Columbia University student uprising forces him to confront his inherited bigotry and fear as he wrestles with his love for Adeline and desire for a new life. Alexander Sammartino’s satirical tale follows David Rizzo, proprietor of a failing firearms store in Phoenix, who nevertheless has reason to feel optimistic. His son, Nick, has just recovered after a near-fatal overdose, which prompts Rizzo to use Nick’s resurrection to create a television commercial for his gun emporium. But the relationship between father and son is fragile, mired in mutual disappointment. And when the pair embarks on their scheme to avoid bankruptcy, a high-stakes crash of hijinks, hope, and disaster ensues.
Discussion led by Fred Gardaphé, John D. Calandra Italian American Institute, Queens College, CUNY.
