A boy discovers Santa can't bring the present he wants due to the Suez blockade; a one-armed village idiot defeats a circus boxing champion; a funeral cortege disintegrates into a farcical race; and a married man discovers he enjoys the company of a wandering Jack Russell more than that of either his wife or his mistress. These are just a few of Cullen's funny stories about family life in rural Ireland. He writes with clarity of expression and a whimsical, compassionate humor, offering his witty insights into the emotional lives of ordinary men and women. Each interconnected story is a 'beacon of memories' expanding and deepening the integrity of the author's comical vision of life.