Book Launch and Author Talk with OLLI Instructor Richard Matturro: Myskania

Thursday, May 28, 2026 at 4:00 p.m.
In-person at BCC
Free and open to the public, reception with light refreshments to follow.

Lil Chronis, a 44-year-old history professor with a distinguished career, is facing dismissal from the university after a complaint from a student that Dr. Chronis, during a conference over a term paper, claimed to have been present — physically present — at the Trojan War. The job of supporting her in the complicated disciplinary procedure for removing a tenured faculty member falls to a colleague, Bailey, who barely knows her and accepts the role of union representative reluctantly. Lil’s bizarre account of having been a girl named Myskania, who was born in Troy and lived through the 10-year siege, at first leads Bailey to think she is crazy, but her otherwise rationality and intelligence, not to say friendliness and wit, induce him to listen to her story, which is interwoven with the main narrative. The more he hears, the more fascinated he becomes with her, even as he realizes that his own good judgment is being eroded.

Richard Matturro, a native of Rye, New York, holds a doctorate in English with a specialization in Shakespeare and Greek Mythology. After sixteen years at the Albany Times Union and fourteen years teaching literature at UAlbany, he now lives on an old farm in the foothills of the Berkshires. He is the author of numerous newspaper articles and short stories and is a frequent OLLI instructor. Myskania is his eighth novel.

The paperback edition is out now and will be available for purchase and signing after the talk!