Hoboken native and Wall Street Journal rock and pop music critic Jim Fusilli describes his new novel “Narrows Gate” as the sharing of his “love affair with Hoboken.”
Fusilli returned home to Hoboken on Thursday evening for a chat with residents about his new novel and to sign books at the Hoboken Elks Lodge on Washington Street.
Narrows Gate (AmazonEncore), which has sold thousands of copies, is the story of two men growing up in a waterfront town on the Hudson River. One character loves the city, and another can’t wait to escape.
For Fusilli, the characters each represent a part of him that had Hoboken pride, but was drawn by the appeal of nearby Manhattan.
‘[The characters] sound like real Hoboken people.’ – Jim Fusilli
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When he spoke before a similarly aged crowd about old Hoboken stores and landmarks that were gone now, audience members would nod and say “Oh yeah.”
Recently he began to write short stories about Narrows Gate, or the fictional version of Hoboken. The stories received high accolades and even some awards. Fusilli decided to write the novel.
He said that after he wrote the book, he wasn’t sure how it would be received.
“Maybe this book is awful,” Fucilli said he remembers thinking. “I liked it; my wife likes it…but you never know what’s going to happen. Every writer thinks their work is good.”
Pantoliano involved
Before the release of Narrows Gate, an audio version was recorded featuring Hoboken native Joe Pantoliano.
Pantoliano is dyslexic, and Fusilli said that during the recording sessions, Pantoliano would memorize his lines.
What was surprising to Fusilli, he said, was that even though he had grown up with Pantoliano in Hoboken during the same time, they did not know each other. However, the two worked together to tell the fictional story based in Hoboken for the audio version, and Fusilli said that the book is doing well.
“I sold 5,900 books on Monday on Amazon,” he said. “I never sold 5,900 books.”
He said the book also includes music references, including one character, “Bebe,” who bears a strong resemblance to Hoboken’s famous son, Frank Sinatra.
But he said it was important to keep the characters fictional, because he wanted them to be a part of his story and do things that maybe someone like Sinatra would not have done.
“It’s better to just make them all up,” Fusilli said.
In addition to using fictional names, Fusilli also fictionalized Hoboken landmarks. For example, he renamed Our Lady of Grace Church, “St. Matty’s.”
“I took a map of Hoboken and renamed the streets,” he said.
But Fusilli said the book has characters who bear a strong resemblance to Hobokenites.
“I re-read the book and it makes me laugh out loud,” Fusilli said. “Because [the characters] sound like real Hoboken people.”
Fusilli, who said he writes for approximately five hours per day, said the book took approximately three years to write and produce, from start to finish.
According to Amazon.com’s book description, Narrows Gate is “a novel that rekindles the spirit of such groundbreaking works as Mario Puzo’s The Godfather and Budd Schulberg’s On the Waterfront[.] Narrows Gate is a powerful, epic saga that captures the heart of the immigrant experience—and the soul of America.”
Ray Smith may be reached at RSmith@hudsonreporter.com