The Perfume Burned His Eyes

A coming-of-age tale dashed with relatable angst and humor.– “Entertainment Weekly”A restless Queens teenager becomes the protégé of music legend Lou Reed in Imperioli’s energetic debut novel … Matthew’s first-person narrative is full of endearing vulnerability, immediacy, and authenticity. This is a sweet and nostalgic coming-of-age novel.– “Publishers Weekly”An edgy coming-of-age romp set in New York City prominently featuring the ‘character’ of rocker Lou Reed.– “Parade”Even though Reed looms large throughout–the novel even takes its title from Reed’s ‘Romeo Had Juliette, ’ from his 1989 solo album New York–the book is much less about him and more about Matthew’s own journey through adolescence in the seedier corners of 1970s New York.– “Stereogum”Imperioli’s lived-in details about the city help make the world feel realistic … [The novel] is an immersive trip into its narrator’s memories of a turbulent time. Some fictional trips into 1970s New York abound with nostalgia; this novel memorably opts for grit and heartbreak.– “Kirkus Reviews”

Michael Imperioli is best known for his starring role as Christopher Moltisanti in the acclaimed TV series The Sopranos, which earned him a Best Supporting Actor Emmy Award. He also wrote five episodes of the show; was coscreenwriter of the film Summer of Sam, directed by Spike Lee; and was anthologized in The Nicotine Chronicles, edited by Lee Child. Imperioli has appeared in six of Spike Lee’s films and has also acted in films by Martin Scorsese, Abel Ferrara, Walter Hill, Peter Jackson, and the Hughes Brothers. He cohosts the rewatch podcast, Talking Sopranos, with his Sopranos costar Steve Schirripa, with whom he also penned the best-selling book, Woke Up This Morning: The Definitive Oral History of The Sopranos. Additionally, he is a singer and guitarist in the band ZOPA.