Aubrey Malone grew up in Teeling Street, then Arthur Street, in Ballina in the fifties. He attended St. Muredach's College from 1964 to 1969. That was the year his father retired. The house was sold and the family moved to Dublin. Afterwards he attended UCD, studying English and Philosophy there. He was a primary school teacher for ten years from the late 70's. From then on he devoted himself mainly to writing.

He quotes from his poetry to link the various episodes of his life in this memoir, using them as stepping stones to chart his journey from Ballina to Dublin and beyond. As the title indicates, the book focuses mainly on his books and how they came about.