Overview

After World War II, Reg Beck buys The Crown Hotel, then one of 72 pubs in Bendigo, 12 of which were within 300 metres. In the days before motels, his wife Madge manages the accommodation side of the business catering for many important VIPs including County and Supreme Court judges. Their children Max (aka 'Mickey'), then aged four, and his sister Zelda, five and a half, are engulfed by the hotel environment leading to exciting adventures, close shaves, trouble, funny times as well as sorrow and miscellaneous other benefits and detriments. The narrative describes challenging schooldays at Gravel Hill State in the 1950s and Bendigo High in the 1960s, the market town nature of Bendigo and its old-fashioned shops in the 1950s and some remarkably colourful characters of the time. When Mickey joins the new cohort of 'teenagers' in the 1960's Rock 'n' Roll era, there is a possibility of trouble with a capital T! The book is a rollicking tale written with an eye for the detail of history. Author, Max Beck, is a retired Magistrate and Coroner. Funny, challenging, potent and profoundly tragic, discover the boyhood influences that would shape a man determined to improve others lives through the law.

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9780645657708

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Reviews

"""I'm sure MGM would like to buy the rights to your book - it was very funny!"" Madge Nicholas, Bendigo Vic. ""A great read that brought back many memories of Bendigo."" Jon Race, Melbourne Vic. ""I really enjoyed the read. I did get a laugh from it but also felt so sad for the boy/teenager and his sister who pined for a ""normal"" family life. Interesting facts in history of the times in Bendigo."" Diane Vorwerk, Werribee Vic. ""Your anecdotes bring Bendigo's history, and that era, to life. It is a very entertaining read."" Wayne Parry, Senior Librarian, Goldfields Library Corporation, Bendigo Vic. ""Max has a unique style of writing which draws in the reader and you feel as though you are a silent observer watching as the situations and events unfold... Max recounts many humorous occurrences... I can highly recommend this book to any potential reader. Gary Cleverdon, Geelong Vic. ""Just finished your book and enjoyed reading it immensely. Thank you so much. Marie Harrison, Bendigo, Vic. ""It's a fascinating story, it's a very interesting insight into your life, It's entertaining and I enjoyed it. It will certainly have broad appeal."" Dean Nelson, Melbourne Vic."

Author Information

After graduating with two law degrees and practising for many years as a barrister and solicitor, Max became a Magistrate and Coroner. As a child, raised in the Crown Hotel, he had little supervision, functioning at times on the fringe of the law as a promising juvenile delinquent. Fortunately, he was never caught by the cops. His book is a collection of tales embracing a narrative romp of his life as a young boy growing up in central Bendigo. They are all true and will grab your attention, entertain, inform and make you laugh or cringe.Writing skills have always formed an important part of Max's life in the law. This is his second book. His first was A Different Earth, a true story of a pioneering widow who walked over land, with six children, from South Australia to the Victorian diggings in the 1850s, published by Cornwall Editions with an introduction by Professor Philip Payton, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia.

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