A University of Maine at Presque Isle English Professor has had his second novel published and the University will celebrate with a reading and book signing event with the author on Tuesday, Sept. 22 at 7 p.m. in the Campus Center. The public is invited to attend this special event, which will include a reception featuring light refreshments, and wine available through a cash bar.
Richard Lee Zuras, UMPI Professor of English and Creative Writing, takes readers to the end of the Doo-wop era and sets them amidst the glitzy, glamorous resorts of the Mid-Atlantic coast in its heyday in his latest book, The Honeymoon Corruption. Being released this month by the independent press Brandylane Publishing, the novel follows the path star-crossed young lovers Althea and Guy traverse when they elope to the seaside resort town of Wildwood, New Jersey, with two suitcases, a veil, and no plans.
Fast running out of cash, they fall in with a local duo who may be able to provide just the break the young couple needs. But as Guy is introduced to the shadier world that seethes under the boardwalk lights, the newlyweds learn that getting on their feet may demand more than they’re prepared to give.
Neil Connelly, author of The Midlife Crisis of Commander Invincible, said of Zuras’ latest work: “Swiftly-paced, simmering with tension, this thin novel packs the dramatic wallop of a heavyweight contender.”
Zuras was born and raised in Arlington, Virginia, and spent time with his parents and brother most every summer in Wildwood and Atlantic City, New Jersey. From these experiences, and his vivid, undying memories of the Jersey Shore, Zuras has been able to bring to life the world within The Honeymoon Corruption.
Zuras earned his MFA as the McNeese Fellow at McNeese State University under the auspices of Pulitzer Prize-winner Robert Olen Butler. He also did graduate work at the University of Colorado, George Mason University, and the University of North Dakota, where he worked under James Robison. At UMPI, Zuras serves as the advisor to the Film Studies program and he has written box-office reviews for the online site www.fusedwire.com.
In addition to his first novel The Bastard Year, which was published in 2012, Zuras has been published in more than 20 journals, including Passages North, South Dakota Review, Story Quarterly, and The Laurel Review. He has also garnered several prizes, including the Yemassee Fiction Award and the Bernard O’Keefe Fiction Scholarship at Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, and was named a Wesleyan Writers’ Conference Scholar.
All are encouraged to attend this special evening with Richard Lee Zuras. The Sept. 22 event will include a reading and Q&A by the author, followed by a book signing. There will also be a reception featuring light refreshments, and wine available through a cash bar. Copies of both The Honeymoon Corruption and The Bastard Year will be on display and for sale at a discounted price.
For more information about this event, please contact the Community and Media Relations Office at 207-768-9452 or email umpi@maine.edu.
