ROLAND MERULLO is an award-winning author, born in Boston, Massachusetts, on September 19, 1953. He grew up in Revere, Massachusetts, a working-class Italian American community located five miles from downtown Boston. Merullo has established a successful writing career, with 24 books under his belt, including 17 works of fiction. Some of his notable works include "Breakfast with Buddha," "The Talk-Funny Girl," "Vatican Waltz," "Lunch with Buddha," "Revere Beach Boulevard," and "A Little Love Story." His books have been translated into several languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, Korean, German, Chinese, Turkish, Bulgarian, Croatian, Slovenian, and Czech.
As a former writer in residence at North Shore Community College and Miami Dade Colleges, Merullo has also served as a professor of Creative Writing at Bennington, Amherst, and Lesley Colleges. He has been a guest speaker at many literary events and venues and a faculty member at MFA programs and several writers' conferences. Merullo's essays have appeared in numerous publications, including the New York Times, Outside Magazine, Yankee Magazine, Newsweek, the Boston Globe, the Philadelphia Inquirer, Boston Magazine, Reader's Digest, Good Housekeeping, and the Chronicle of Higher Education.
Merullo's books have been recognized with various awards and nominations. "Breakfast with Buddha" was a nominee for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award and is now in its 20th printing. "The Talk-Funny Girl" is a 2012 ALEX Award Winner and was named a "Must Read" by the Massachusetts Library Association and the Massachusetts Center for the Book. "Vatican Waltz" was named one of the Best Books of 2013 by Publishers Weekly, and "Lunch with Buddha" was selected as one of the Best Books of 2013 by Kirkus Reviews. "Revere Beach Boulevard" was named one of the "Top 100 Essential Books of New England" by the Boston Globe, and "A Little Love Story" was chosen as one of "Ten Wonderful Romance Novels" by Good Housekeeping. "Revere Beach Elegy" won the Massachusetts Book Award for nonfiction, and "Once Night Falls" was selected as a "First Read" by Amazon Editors.