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Book details
  • Genre:BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY
  • SubGenre:General
  • Language:English
  • Pages:372
  • Paperback ISBN:9798350902778

Lucky Me

The Life of Brian

by Brian Ashley

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Overview

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Lucky Me is a memoir of one man's life from his earliest childhood memories to his retirement. It is a story of contrasts and of passages from which you will see many similarities in your own life.

  • The difference between the moribund cities of the Northeast in the 1950s, and the vibrant Southern California of the 1960s.
  • The polar opposite of teaching and learning in Catholic Schools vs. Public Schools.
  • The difference in lifestyle and attitude from “Back East” to “Out West.”
  • The contrast between beliefs and lifestyles of an old world and a new one, and how a man dealt with and overcame those obstacles.

What People Are Saying About Lucky Me:

"Everyone is asking the same question; Who cares?"  an editor-at-large

"Ashley writes with uncommon intelligence. Uncommonly low!" a psychologist

"A one-of-a-kind book. (Thank God!)" a teacher

"This book stinks!" an acquaintance

"More trees died for nothing." an environmentalist

"Misses the mark entirely!" a book critic


Description

Lucky Me is a story of a boy then a man obsessed with lifelong learning. An avid young reader, at age 7 to 11, Brian devoured a wide range of books that included Astronomy textbooks, geology, geography, biographies and the complete series of the Hardy Boys. From an early education in Catholic Schools taught by French Canadian nuns, to the freewheeling public schools of Southern California, the story describes significant events in elementary school right through attending college on a football scholarship. It continues on with parallel stories of career and family, then finally to retirement.

In addition to school, Lucky Me is the story of a 50-year career in the home fashions industry, where his career took him all over the country, moving at least twenty times and living in many different cities and neighborhoods.  A young man who discovered a knack for sales, he started as a sales trainee and, over the years, developed into a successful sales, product, and marketing executive, rising to the level of Vice President in a Fortune 500 company. Early on he discovered that he had a talent for creativity and brought many fashion innovations to the industry. Later on, he combined the product innovation with national brands, and worked with companies such as Disney, Mattel, the NFL, Major League Baseball, Warner Bros. and many other designers. He introduced the first black Barbie Bedding to an all-white Barbie world to much fanfare.

In the footsteps of about half the population, it is the tale of a young and naïve dad who had a wonderful family shattered by the pain of divorce and separation from his children, only to marry the love of his life at age 49. It is therefore a story of the seasons of a man’s life, each rich in their own way.

About the author

Brian is obsessed with lifelong learning, achievement, and adventure. His hobbies include reading, writing, photography, pencil drawing, golf and exercise. He keeps a daily journal, does “Morning Pages”, and sketches at least one picture a day.

He is a proud father of five successful children, eleven grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren.

He and his wife, Barbara, live in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, where he is a member of the Golf Club at Venetian Bay. Lucky Me is his first full-length book.

Book Reviews

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Lisa
Amazing! A book about a man who is ordinary but also extraordinary. Aren’t we all extraordinary? This is a book of a man who can be any man in our lives. He’s so very relatable but yet so extraordinary in the details. I commend him for putting it into words. Thank you Brian Ashley! Read more