Romano, Marc

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Romano, Marc

PERSONAL: Male. Education: Graduate of Yale University.

ADDRESSES: Home—Brooklyn, NY. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Broadway Books, 1745 Broadway, New York, NY 10019.

CAREER: Journalist and translator. Former staff writer at New York Review of Books. Also worked on Wall Street.

WRITINGS:

Crossworld: One Man's Journey into America's Crossword Obsession, Broadway Books (New York, NY), 2005.

Articles have appeared in Village Voice and Boston Globe.

TRANSLATOR

Agota Kristof, The Third Lie, Grove Press (New York, NY), 1996, published in The Notebook; The Proof; The Third Lie: Three Novels, 1997.

Georges Simenon, Dirty Snow, introduction by William T. Vollmann, New York Review Books (New York, NY), 2003.

(With Lawrence G. Blochman) Georges Simenon, Three Bedrooms in Manhattan, introduction by Joyce Carol Oates, New York Review Books (New York, NY), 2003.

Georges Simenon, The Man Who Watched Trains Go By, introduction by Luc Sante, New York Review Books (New York, NY), 2005.

Georges Simenon, Tropic Moon, introduction by Norman Rush, New York Review Books (New York, NY), 2005.

SIDELIGHTS: A translator of French novels, Marc Romano also loves to do the New York Times crossword puzzle, which he usually completes in a phenomenal ten minutes or less for the weekly version and in about sixteen minutes for the Sunday puzzle. His interest in crossword puzzles led him to write Crossworld: One Man's Journey into America's Crossword Obsession. The book is in part a memoir focusing on Romano's own fascination with crosswords and in part a study of the broader world of crossword puzzles, including a history of the New York Times crossword puzzle and profiles of crossword-puzzle masters, most notably New York Times crossword puzzle editor Will Shortz and his predecessor Eugene T. Maleska. The author also recounts his visit to the 2003 American Crossword Puzzle Tournament held in Stamford, Connecticut.

In a review for Bookreporter.com, Robert Finn wrote that "Romano seems to have enjoyed himself too at Stamford. That's what makes his book a fun read. Leave the philosophical musings to those unenlightened souls who solve grimly without taking any real pleasure in doing so." Writing in the Boston Globe, Deborah P. Jacobs noted that the author "artfully conveys the adrenaline rush of tournament-level competition and offers other insights that will intrigue devoted puzzlers." Jacobs went on to note, "Some of the best parts of Crossworld are Romano's ruminations on the nature of puzzling and its allure." A Publishers Weekly contributor commented that the author uses "wit and verve" to provide "a bird's-eye view of the arena of crossword addicts, combining basic information with engaging anecdotes." Tina Jordan, writing in Entertainment Weekly, called the book more than "a smart, funny chronicle."