Never Give Up Son: the life and times of Caterina Guerra, her mother, and her son - Softcover

Guerra, Mario

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1925707229 ISBN 13: 9781925707229

Publisher: Sid Harta Publishers, 2020

Synopsis

This is the story of a mother, who even with the loss of her husband to a mental asylum in cruel circumstances and death of her son, never gave up through the downfalls and struggles in her life during the Great Depression and racism against Italians at the time in New South Wales, Australia.

It was not the life she wished for her son and she instilled in him the words, Never Give Up, Son.

The book was intended as therapy for the author during his own downfalls and struggles in life, which included the loss of his business, homes and nearly everything else; but through it all he remembered his mother's words.

This book is dedicated to her memory and struggle and what the author personally overcame in his.

This story has something for everyone: there's racism, bigotry and you enter the dark world of society's underbelly. Some things may shock you and some may find it hard to believe, but it is true. It unfolds during the post WWII period and beyond and is about heartache, betrayal and injustice and depicts real life in Australia at that time.

You will find inspiration from the story.

About this title

About the Author

Mario Guerra was born in Griffith, NSW, on 14 April 1937 and lived in Beelbangera, NSW. After the loss of his father, his mother moved to Yenda, NSW, to be with her mother and father. Mario spent his younger years in Yenda and at 18 moved to Lithgow, NSW, to join the railways as a fireman. When in Lithgow, he was called to do military service for three months and then citizens military service for a further two years. While in military service, he lived in Holsworthy, Griffith and Leeton. At Holsworthy, he took up the sport of boxing, which he never regretted. He moved back to Yenda in 1957 where he continued to be a fireman. He had many career changes, from contract case maker, to fruit farmer, to truck driver, and town carrier in Griffith. During this time, he was an amateur and professional boxer and tournament promotor and played first grade rugby league for Yenda Blues. He became very good in both his chosen sports. Mario lived in society's underbelly, amidst the type of things one has only seen on TV. His true story is a brutally raw account of migrant life from racism to mental illness and beyond. Mario has had a gun put to his head twice; once by a notorious mobster and the other by a man who had just been released from jail. He was taken down by three Mafia families. His book is not one with a happy, fairytale ending. It is real. It is raw. It is written to depict his mother's strength, the cruelty she endured, and the way she forever shaped her son's character. The spectre of mental illness destroyed his family; his father, two uncles and grandfather collectively spending 140 years in mental asylums and his father's mysterious disappearance amidst cruel circumstances - circumstances that were never explained. The incarceration of his father, grandfather and two uncles point to a very different era in Australia's history.

Edition details

• Publisher: Sid Harta Publishers
• Publication date: 2020
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1925707229
• ISBN 13: 9781925707229
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 328