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J. A. Hijiya hasn't led a life of adventure, suffered great tragedy, or pulled himself up by his own bootstraps to forge a corporate empire. His is a quieter life-with its own ups and downs, to be sure-but no more than you'd expect in a "normal" life. It's in life's ordinariness that Hijiya finds beauty, meaning, and no small measure of humor.

Hijiya jumps from topic to topic in a collection of eclectic essay memoirs, exploring the consequences of childhood polio with the same attention to detail and humor he brings to discussing sibling rivalry, a one-time obsession with tanning, and his caring, sometimes offbeat family members.

From his experiences as a Japanese American in the aftermath of World War II to vision loss, food, paper routes, and baseball cards, Hijiya always returns to a central theme: the importance of living a purpose-driven life.

We are all ultimately pieces of valiant dust striving to elude the cosmic vacuum cleaner long enough to discover why we exist. Hijiya has discerned more than most, even in a life some would call commonplace. But those who do so miss the point: every life has meaning-for those willing to look.