PUNKS
$9.99 kindleeBook, Paperback,
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PUNKS

by Richard CucaresePublish: Dec 13, 2019Series: PUNKSLiterary Fiction

Book Overview

Philadelphia, 1985. A once bustling industrial metropolis is now a veritable wasteland, rife with joblessness, homelessness and explosive racial tensions. Out of the swill and misery, a familiar anarchistic sound has returned to the scene and there’s a new, wild tribe of kids ready to show the city and America the error of its... ways, whether either’s ready for their political and musical take on things, or not.Nineteen year old Gemma ‘Swan’ Stinson, a tall, sultry hellcat with long, dark auburn hair, piercing green eyes and fingernails as sharp as switchblades, is a tenacious street kid who’s turned her abusive, addictive, catastrophic life around, becoming a brilliant college student, vigilant activist and a hard-working punk rock busker whose guitar prowess and exquisitely ranged voice leave her with dreams of a better life but never quite remove her from a flawed, complex and nightmarish past, or a resurfacing sinister figure, hoping to crush everything she loves.Gem’s undying devotion for her adopted punk family, the Misfits, is surpassed only by her love for eighteen-year-old classmate and singer, Robert ‘Robbs’ Cavelli, a New York expatriate with a conflicted view of where his future lies. Sharing in Gem’s distaste over current politics, Rob rebels against his conservative upbringing in the suburban hell of Bucks County, Pennsylvania, which ultimately fuels his ambition to write the songs committing them to being “Punks for Life.”Narrated from Rob’s literary perspective, PUNKS and the subsequent novels of the trilogy is an unrestrained ride of humor and heartbreak, triumphs and tragedies and envelops them into the riotous punk scene at famous venues such as Trenton’s City Gardens, New York’s CBGB’s and Philly’s underground clubs.Rolling the dice on life’s gambles, will Gem and Rob fall victim to the will of the streets or stand tall against them, because when you have the love of each other and your music, the chance to make it big, and your faithful tribe of punks, you’ve got nothing left to lose. read more
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PUNKS complete series

Thriller Mystery Literary Fiction

BIOGRAPHY
Whether busking on street corners in Philadelphia, New Hope, PA or Lambertville, NJ, singing in venues the size of a postage stamp, large as a theater or as dank and devious as the underground settings could be, writing lyrics, poetry, fiery political or social articles, hitting the streets or the airwaves to fight f... or the poor and homeless (especially teens), workers’ rights and many other causes close to his heart, or finding the time to sit down and write a series such as ‘PUNKS’, the sounds of anarchy also known as punk rock have been Rich Cucarese’s lifelong soundtrack and fueled his ambition to continually fight for what is right and just.
With a background as patchwork as his musical influences, Rich spent a few years in college (Pennsylvania State University, Ogontz/Abington Campus 1985-86), toiled in the massive mills of United States Steel Corporation’s, Fairless Works not too far from Trenton or Philadelphia, and when the majority of the plant was shuttered, he went through a series of changes leading him back into music, activism and a never-ending stream of writing.
Eventually returning to what had become a much smaller steel plant after the Free Trade shakeouts, Rich became more involved in the Steelworkers Union (USW) as Local 4889’s Rapid Response Coordinator; writing many timely, socially active pieces including ‘The Battle for Prosperity Over Poverty’, which was awarded Best News Story of the Year by the United Steelworkers Press Association.
He’s been interviewed by CNBC, MSNBC, BBC America and VICE News as well as various print sources about everything from Free Trade and its social impact on communities, to protests he was involved in such as Occupy Wall Street. As always, he will credit much of his social and political enlightenment to his punk tribe and the anarchistic upheaval of the norms that many punk rock groups espoused, whether they were on this side of the Atlantic or across the pond.
Although he's in the process of working on what will be the second part of the 'PUNKS' saga, which will hopefully be out in the latter part of 2022, Rich has accomplished writing his first fictional murder mystery, 'The Black River', (a complete revision of an earlier, self-published foray) which takes places in New Hope, PA (a river town not far away from where he grew up) and is due to be on bookstore shelves in the beginning of 2022.
Rich resides in Bucks County, Pennsylvania with his four fiery but equally kind-hearted daughters, his funny, gregarious son and a wife who has actively supported his writings, his music; even though their musical tastes are worlds apart, and still manages to forgive his teenage stupidities like jumping headfirst and happily into mosh pits at an advanced age.
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Richard Cucarese other Books

The Black River
$9.99 kindleeBook, Paperback, Signed Paperback,
The Black Riverby Richard CucaresePublish: Dec 17, 2021Crime Fiction Thriller Suspense Mystery
Book Detail
Title PUNKS
Series PUNKS
Author Richard Cucarese
ASIN B082QSW1PS
Publish Date 13, Dec 2019
Language English
Page Count 275
Cover Photographer Richard Cucarese