Marriage Story

Written by Richard Russo

Narrated by Adam Grupper

“In this clear-eyed and deeply moving essay, Richard Russo gives a hard second look at a story he thought he knew—his parents’ divorce—and finds not only a more expansive personal history, but a more expansive American history. It’s a course of self-reflection, compassion, and connection we would all do well to follow.” —Ann Patchett

“I have watched in wonder for years as Richard Russo has danced as elegantly as Fred Astaire. It is almost impossible to see any move that is not masterful in his prose. This piece is gorgeous, hard as diamonds, and ultimately profoundly moving.” —Luis Alberto Urrea

Who better to take on America’s current class war and its complex, moving parts than Richard Russo? The Pulitzer Prize–winning author is a giant in American letters, beloved by critics and readers alike. Among his gifts are the comedy and compassion he brings to bear in his stories; his effortless style, as readable as it is elegant; and his near-singular ability to capture the lives of America’s working class, the men and women who hail from factory and mill towns that have been left behind as the global economy evolves. Russo was born and raised in such a town—Gloversville, New York—and it’s to this setting he returns in his Scribd Original memoir Marriage Story to chronicle his parents’ lives and why their marriage, ultimately, never had a prayer. His mother and father didn’t share the same faith in America, and their divergent beliefs—one pessimistic, one optimistic—separated them from each other, and sometimes from reality, revealing tensions that Russo’s been writing about ever since.

Through this story of his parents and grandparents and his own departure from both a town and a way of life, Russo declares himself a poster boy for the American Dream and also a well-placed critic of it and of this country’s “brutal contradictions.” His dark-skinned father was the son of Southern Italian immigrants, never quite like the other guys, and yet he was like any other G.I. home from World War II: He did backbreaking work on a road crew, and at night he left his family at home to frequent the local poker rooms. He did not believe that his son, whose name ended in a vowel, would ever be “allowed” to succeed. His mother, the more hopeful of the two, believed hard work and education were the answer to everything that ailed the working class and immigrants alike, refusing to concede to the systemic inequities and disadvantages of ethnicity, race, class, and gender that often made the obstacles to climbing the ladder too great, as they did, in many ways, for her.

A touchingly personal and peculiarly American tale, as topical as it is timeless, Marriage Story speaks directly to the raw material from which so much of today’s divisive political climate has been forged. During the most recent election, the author writes, “many of my friends talked about leaving the country.” But not Russo. “I’ve learned that leaving your home is tricky. If I left my country now, I’d just be repeating myself, having already physically left a place that refused to leave me.” His parents would not have left either, “despite not being able to agree on what America really meant.”

“Maybe it comes down to this,” he writes. “In the end, what do we do with love?”

• Language: English
• Publisher: Everand Originals
• Release date: Apr 13, 2021
• ISBN: 9781094417875

Richard Russo

Richard Russo is the author of nine novels, two collections of short stories, a memoir, and several produced screenplays. Empire Falls won the 2002 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, and his adaptation of the book for HBO was nominated for an Emmy. His collection of essays, The Destiny Thief, will be published in 2018. He and his wife, Barbara, live in Portland, Maine.

Reviews for Marriage Story

[Paul Hollen · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Beautiful prose. Enigmatic storytelling. Deeply touching and a story most of us will hear echoing in our hearts, as we think of our own childhood fallacies.

[Eric Myers · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I found this really wrenching, especially the final ten minutes. Beautifully narrated as well.

[Carmen Villaruz Valentin · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The story was touching & poignant. Narrator was terrific.

[Eric Fenato · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I liked it. It was thought provoking on several levels.

[Teodora Cristina · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A short story we can all find a piece of to relate to.

[Elaine Maikovska · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Forthright and interesting. It was informative to listen to and I learned much about the writer and his parents.

[Suzanne G Perry · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

More about the state of our world and how we can relate to each other in understanding.

[Sara Belson · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This essay is everything that needs to be said. I feel compelled to share it with everyone I know.

[Diane Pater · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

KWell done history of America from World War II until now , honest insights.And I want to read more

[deb silva · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Definitely 1 of America's best writers his observations ring t
rue time after time

[RobynGermaine · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I really dislike when people interject politicians or political ideologies to their stories, as most of the politicians don’t age well… the political stories don’t either… when we find out the rest of the story…. Everything was going so well until then….

[fredo gumbo · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Russo is a master. Love his writing. A new Richard Russo book is always a big deal to me. He never disappoints.

[Dave Ihde · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Expected a downer but was totally surprised. Filled with insight, heart and love.

[Stephen Trotter · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Russo, along with Richard Ford and Updike, have long been favorites of mine when reflecting on life in baby boomer USA. The gross generalization of 74 million people is at best pandering and a worst reflects a pattern of declining skills. I suggest you enjoy the political free part of the book which is well done and skip the echo chamber missive.

[Greg Fitzgerald · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What I loved about Russo’s telling of his family story is that it is the telling of all our family stories and how they relate to where we have fallen into place depending on our class or race, our redness or blueness, our growing up in a working class neighborhood or an upper-middle class cul-de-sac. It opens up an inner dialog among readers to begin assessing how much we hate America or how much we love it.

[wendy franklin · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I always enjoy his writing but am now left cold by his political pontificating.

[RoyJohnson490 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Looking at the description and premise of the book, a memoir that is focused on the divorce of the author’s parents, I was expecting this work to be depressing, tragic, and the like. And while I wouldn’t exactly call this book a bundle of rainbows or anything like that, I will say I was surprised by how uplifting and compelling the book was to read through.

First off, let me say this right off the bat: Richard Russo is a phenomenal writer. I don’t know how he does it but the way the man weaves sentences, metaphors, and imagery together through his prose is simply impeccable. You’ll be so compelled by the man’s writing that you could go through this book in a single sitting. It helps that the memoir itself is only an hour long which makes such a task easier. But still, in that hour, Richard Russo packs the story of his parents, his grandparents, and America itself.

Hearing the stories of his parents was fascinating because of their different perspectives on America: his mother’s optimistic and sometimes delusional faith in the American Dream and the ideals of its meritocracy vs. his father’s cynical take of America as a country that will push you down if you aren’t white, male, and wealthy. Russo goes into the backstories of his parents to explain how they came to possess such disparate worldviews: his father experiencing the horrors of war serving in WWII, his mother’s desire for independence whilst dealing with a sexist world and her own impulsive failings. Russo does an incredible job establishing these people in his memoir that you truly feel like you know them personally. Russo gives you enough to truly empathize and sympathize with these people even whilst not being afraid to show the flaws in their characters and personal philosophies.

The same amount of detailed character work is also applied to his grandparents as well. While they are less prominent in the memoir compared to his parents, you still get a lot of important details about them that adds context to Russo and his mother’s life. In particular, Russo’s grandmother who was dealing with extreme anxiety from her husband leaving for WWII that left her borderline agoraphobic. With the grandparents, Russo is able to go in depth about mental illness, the price of war, religion, and the roles women played back in those days.

And through the stories of himself and his family, Russo also explores how their stories connect to the story of America. Both of Russo’s parents died believing they were right about America. In the end, Russo sees merits in both ideas but leans more towards his father’s cynical take. Indeed, Russo is not sparse when it comes to detailing the problems with America. But despite that, it is not a completely hopeless read. Similar to what he thinks of his parents, Russo loves his country even though it is a complete mess.

Going off the editor’s note on Scribd, I was expecting more stuff about the Trump era. But there were really only a few mentions of Trump and his followers. I’m sure people going in wanting to hear the author’s take on the Trump era will be disappointed. But I felt the discussions of our present-day issues including racism, income inequality, and the pandemic were brief enough to leave an impact without completely bogging down the story. I believe the stuff we did get worked well with the story Russo was trying to tell.

I’ll admit I wasn’t expecting the first audiobook I give a 5/5 to be a one-hour memoir talking about a messy divorce, the delusional fantasy of the American Dream, and our current political hellscape we’re living through. But this memoir, in my eyes, truly deserved all five stars. Special mention has to go to the audiobook narrator, Adam Grupper. His voice fits this book so well. It had a gruff, raspy quality that matched with the hardened, experienced, and worldly-wise perspective of the author. Honestly, his voice went so well with the author’s words I was sometimes convinced this was the author speaking himself. If you haven’t checked it out yet, I’d highly recommend listening to it on audiobook.

And in general, I recommend you check this book out if you’re a fan of memoirs. And even if you’re not, you might enjoy this particular memoir. There are certainly many ways to spend an hour of your time. So why not check out an incredible memoir.

[Diana Taber · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

What Is a Premise? " A story's premise is the foundational idea that expresses the plot in simple terms. A good premise will communicate your story's essence in a one-sentence or two-sentence statement."
America has changed and this is why. The rest of the essay was blather to express and justify his liberal ideas. I believe we in America, are not in trouble because of the character's Mother, Aunt, Father, Grandmother or Aunt. I believe it is the character's educated liberal ideas that are why America has changed.
I believe the whole essay was written to express that one statement. Sneaky.... I admit that I was blindsided.
Was this written a day before or the day after the current President's inauguration? America definitely changed the day after the inauguration and not because of of me or who I voted for ...twice.

[Jennifer Brickey Adkins · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Garbage. 45 minutes of my life I will never get back.

[susan abery · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

More disjointed than is usual for this author but Russo’s voice still came shining through. Prefer the authenticity of his books set in the old mill towns, this autobiographical essay also deals with that. Worth reading.

[Caroline · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Really enjoyed this, very insightful and well written. I will look into more books by this author.

[Susan Asack · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I don’t know a Trump supporter who is not educated or who would ever say anything negative about people of color.
We support the right of Dreamers to citizenship. Now that the Democrats are in control again why are they not seeing to legitimatizing the Dreamers.
We have Black and Hispanic friends. We support immigration reform while choosing
some control of our borders and voting integrity.

[Bill Davis · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

A meandering book that never lives Up to its own description. There is no real discussion about the break up of America but rather the author's recollections from his own life that dubiously is attempted to be used as a metaphor.

[Tiffany Glover · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Such a naive, elitist, leftist viewpoints. Plenty of well educated, higher earning Americans voted for Trump because we are capitalists! NOT deplorables, nor are we racist, as many of us are not even white.

[Alicia Noppenberger Reuter · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Honest, wise, kind and insightful, Russo writes of his family, his town and country. Thoroughly enjoyed the hour spent listening.

[mark · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The first few sections were exceptional observational prose. Then the politics entered the essay and that was painful. It went from observational to preachy quickly. The author’s views of his personal life were excellent. The last half were not personal observation; it was more like sound bites from CNN.

[Thomas Foreman · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Great addressing conflicting visions until the finale. He then stereotypes the right by their tiny most extreme supporters while portraying the left as enlightened and moderate. The bulk of Trump voters are nothing like he imagines, but are trying to preserve the Founders vision of equal treatment under the rule of law. No that vision was not instantly obtained but the country steadily and since the civil rights laws in the 60s rapidly made progress.

Abandoning this goal because perceived progress is not rapid enough with laws and executive orders that discriminate on subjective basis, driven by humans propensity for corruption, is what drives the majority of the right.

In contrast the extreme left fringe attacking the countries foundations is moving into the mainstream of so called progressives.