How Fires End by Marco Rafalà in conversation with Oliva Kate Cerrone

Set in post-World War II Sicily and mid-eighties America, HOW FIRES END chronicles the long legacy of a single act of violence, illustrating along the way the complicated dynamics of familial bonds, the devastating effects of war upon childhoods, and the inextricable nature of personal and political identities. In a sweeping narrative that contains multiple perspectives and grand themes—revenge, love, forgiveness—the novel not only offers a striking portrait of a single family, but also interrogates traditional and troubling definitions of masculinity and the powerful allure of fascism. HOW FIRES END is a story of Sicilian Americans, but it is not a mafia tale. It is a story of World War II, but it is not an account of military conflict. It is, instead, a heartfelt examination of the complex relationship between immigrant parents and their first-generation children.

Marco Rafalà is a first-generation Sicilian American novelist, musician, and writer for award-winning tabletop role-playing games. He earned his MFA in Fiction from The New School and is a cocurator of the Guerrilla Lit Reading Series in New York City. Born in Middletown, Connecticut, he now lives in Brooklyn, New York. How Fires End is his debut novel. For more information, visit www.marcorafala.com.

The author will be in conversation with Olivia Kate Cerrone, author of The Hunger Saint (Bordighera Press).