A Gun and Cherries in the Bucket of Blood

Book excerpt: Italian immigrants of the early 20th century experienced an inevitable, and often emotionally painful, cultural transformation after arriving in America. Worlds turned upside down. Lives changed forever. Greg Casadei captures what that process was like in this touching tale about his family's "Americanization." He also provides insights and lessons that his experiences provided along the way. The Americanization of Greg's family began with his grandparents in Sassofeltrio, Italy in the early 1900s. It ended with the January 2010 passing of his father in Tucson, Arizona. In between lies a rich story of fear and faith, hardships and overcoming, respect and toughness, risk taking and rewards, family and friends, love and togetherness, separation and crumbled foundations, death and despair, and the gradual unraveling of a once tight-knit family. Through historical facts, anecdotes and humor, Greg provides a vivid picture of what it was like growing up in an Italian family in America. You'll laugh, cry and want more as Greg recounts stories about colorful family members and their lives in Sassofeltrio, Oakwood, Michigan, and Tucson, Arizona. After turning the last page, you'll understand why the Americanization of Greg's family was so painful, but why he wouldn't have traded the experience for anything.