A conversation with Richard Russo
THIS WORK OF FICTION MIGHT FEEL QUITE REAL TO SOME CONNECTICUT READERS
There’s a passage in Pulitzer Prizewinning writer Richard Russo’s new novel “Chances Are...” that might cause a few unsuspecting Nutmeggers to spit out their coffee.
The book, which came out in July, chronicles a reunion between a group of friends who went to a fictional liberal arts college in Connecticut called Minerva.
A flashback sequence details a trip that the main characters take on a whim and it’s a bit of an eyebrowraiser for anyone familiar with Bridgeport and the surrounding area: “they’d piled into Teddy’s beater and driven to the dog track in Bridgeport, the sleaziest, most depressing place any of them had ever stepped foot, including Mickey, who as a musician had a fardeeper experience of disreputable venues.”
Though the dog track in question is not mentioned by name, it’s fairly likely that the passage is referencing Shoreline Star on Kossuth Street, which, at one time, housed a dog track. It’s one of many Connecticut references in the book. One of the main characters, Mickey, is from West Haven, and Jacy — a key character glimpsed in the flashback sequences — is from Greenwich. The book even makes reference to the Greenwich Time and Danbury NewsTimes.
So how did Russo, a Maine resident, come by these references? The author explained his methods in a recent email interview.
Amanda Cuda: Why did you decide to have Connecticut figure so heavily in the book? And was there any particular East Coast college you modeled Minerva on?
Richard Russo: Like so many of my novels, the driving force behind “Chances Are…” is class, and Connecticut, being such a diverse state, is a treasure trove that contains both wealthy enclaves like Greenwich — where Jacy is from — and lowermiddleclass towns like West Haven — from which Mickey hails.
I’ve placed my Minerva College where Connecticut College is, but, other than geography, the place borrows from all those small, New England liberal arts colleges. Why invent one? Because by 1969 most of those liberal arts colleges had wisely banned fraternities and sororities, and my story demanded them.
AC: There is a key scene set at a “Bridgeport dog track.” Are you specifically referencing Shoreline Star? If so, what made you pick that specific reference?
RR: Though I used to love dog racing, most of my experience of them was in Arizona, where I went to college. But I knew they existed in Connecticut and knew there was one in Bridgeport. No, I never actually went to Shoreline. There was a jai alai fronton I visited a few times, though, and witnessed there the same odd mixture of excitement and desperation that comes with gambling.
AC: Have you ever lived in Connecticut? How much research did you have to do to get some of the references right (specifically, the newspapers)?
RR: My wife and I lived in New Haven for two years when I taught at Southern Connecticut State University, which is why I know the general lay of the land. The newspapers? Ah, that’s the beauty of Google — imagine…the words “beauty” and “Google” in the same sentence. You type in “Danbury” or “Greenwich newspaper,” and up it jumps.
Richard Russo has written eight novels, two collections of stories, and the memoir “Elsewhere.” In 2002, he received the Pulitzer Prize for the novel “Empire Falls.” That book was adapted into an HBO miniseries and another Russo novel, “Nobody’s Fool,” was adapted into a movie. Both projects starred longtime Westport resident Paul Newman. Russo lives in Portland, Maine.