Title: Quickies: Don’t You Just Love Quickies?
Author: Don P. Marquess
Publisher: XlibrisUS
ISBN: 978-1664174955
Genre:
Memoirs
Pages: 190
Reviewed by: Anthony Avina
Pacific Book Review
With so much heartache, drama, and horrors filling our world on a day-to-day basis, it is easy to forget sometimes to just take small moments to find the joy and humor in life. Humor can be a great tool, not just in a writing or entertainment profession, but in everyday life as well. Being able to find humor not only fills our hearts with warmth, but allows us to really absorb life’s lessons. As Hugh Sidney once said, “A sense of humor… is needed armor. Joy in one’s heart and some laughter on one’s lips is a sign that the person down deep has a pretty good grasp of life.”
In author Don P. Marquess’s Quickies: Don’t You Just Love Quickies?, the author uses humor and wit to explore everyday life and memories over the course of his life. From pranks involving old grave stones in his youth to he and his wife’s attempt at becoming private investigators, bowling nights gone wrong and even his longtime friendship with legendary sportscaster Jack Buck and the memories they shared together, the author uses his unique charm and humor to bring a lifetime of memories to life.
A truly brilliant read, the author does a great job of infusing truth and realness into the overall humor of the memoir. Each story is short, yet packs a punch as the author manages to make himself relatable and the stories themselves pretty grand. Yet the stories are lined not just with humor, but with real-life memories and lessons that so many of us learn throughout our life’s journeys. The first story of Jack Buck in particular includes some of life’s more somber moments, from diagnosing many ailments to witnessing a nationwide and worldwide tragedy unfolding, and yet the stories take these moments and showcase how humor and the bonds we form with one another can overcome those darker moments in life.
This is the perfect read for those who enjoy memoirs, especially those which infuse those memories and moments in a memoir with humor, wit, charm, and brilliant storytelling that makes these very real moments feel like a perfect narrative. As a fan of memoirs, it was fascinating to see the author’s expertise and skill turn his own life and journey into a vivid memoir, taking on elements of imagery which brought these incredible moments to life.
A funny, charming, and engaging memoir, author Don P. Marquess’s Quickies is a must-read book. The remarkable way the author makes the reader feel connected to his life and the people he was fortunate to have in it, from his beloved family to celebrities like Jack Buck and Burt Reynolds, really created a welcoming atmosphere and tone in the narrative, taking readers on a new journey of their own.
