by Michael De Stefano
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GENRE: Fiction (Tragic Comedy/Coming of Age)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Meet
the Corelli clan. Told by the oldest grandson, Frank, this family tapestry,
with pathos and hilarity, begins weaving itself in the 1930s and rollicks
through four riotous decades. The strongest thread is its oldest member,
Antonio. To the ragtag Corelli clan, he is an ocean—an unwavering force upon
which they rely. Lizzy, the youngest Corelli, is the brightest thread. Emanating
from her is the light by which they see the world. Spanning these dynamic
figures is an oddball cast of characters that keep one another in stitches
right up until the life-affirming surprise birthday party of their beloved
patriarch.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPTS:
Munchk and the Cubs went to the championship and put the
exclamation point on what had already been, mostly due to them, an eventful
summer. However, no sooner had the worthy champions finished celebrating their
title, before we knew it or wanted to know it, a new school year was nearly
upon us and with it would mean a swift reorganization of priorities. It was
time for Joe Morgan and Bobby Bonds to be tied up and shelved. It was also time
for love affairs to suffer rules of engagement in the event we wished for the
trifling matter of education to accidentally seep into heads made indolent by
summer heat and animal impulses. And if you happened to had been a resident of
Philly come Labor Day of 1978, it was once again time to turn whatever
attention could be spared to the major league ball club, which for the third
consecutive year was poised to make a run for the Pennant. I prayed the third
go-around would be the charm. To have a lover and a team playing in the World
Series—as a high school junior, you can’t get much more on top of the world
than that. September also brought about another much-anticipated event, if you
were a Corelli. Of course, I would be referring to our grandfather’s surprise
sixtieth birthday party.
On the morning of the big event, Mom sent me running to the
market for ricotta cheese—the very same ricotta cheese that yesterday, Dad
forgot to buy on his way home from work.
“Make sure you get the regular and not the low fat,” Mom
called to me as I was partway out the door. “Uncle Nunzio can tell the
difference, you know, and he’ll cry about it all the way until Christmas! And
Lord knows we wouldn’t want that!”
Mom was sure right about that; with his first steamy
forkful, Uncle Nunzio would know the difference. If there was one thing we all
learned not to do, it was screw with Uncle Nunzio’s food. If you didn’t have
all the right ingredients and decided, as a culinary artist might, to adlib, he
knew it right away—there was no tricking him. If you tried to trick him, he
would appear utterly forsaken, like a child whose birthday came and went
without so much as a card or mention, and then afterward was found wandering in
the woods, a pitiable soul all alone and unloved. I suppose if I grew up eating
weeds, as he had, the right ingredients of a well-anticipated lasagna would be
a big deal, and perhaps enough to ruin my day.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Michael
DeStefano is from Philadelphia, where he is the owner of a hairstyling salon.
Currently, he makes his home in Cinnaminson, New Jersey, is the husband of a
Gulf War veteran, and author of The Gunslinger’s Companion. Any thoughts or
criticisms readers of Waiting for Grandfather wish to share may be sent to
dtbhs@aol.com.
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/michael.destefano.1654
Buy links:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Waiting-Grandfather-Michael-Stefano/dp/1937769577/ref=sr_1_9
Barnes and Noble:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/waiting-for-grandfather-michael-destefano/1134208529
Smashwords:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/986943
Kobo books:
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/waiting-for-grandfather
Thanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteGreat excerpt and cover.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a very good book.
ReplyDelete