Reg Quist has written a lot of material over the years on an array of topics, but it’s his prairie roots that shone through in his newly published Western novel, Mac’s Way, and he’s not surprised.
“I think it’s my Alberta heritage,” said the Parksville resident. “My family’s all been ranchers and farmers, it’s sort of in the blood.”
Although Quist was raised in a small city in Alberta, he comes from a family of rural farmers and that may be why Western fiction is his topic of choice today.
He and his wife moved to Nanaimo 40 years ago and ten years ago he made the move to Parksville.
Mac’s Way is Quist’s second novel, about a man who leaves a life of poverty to find a better life for himself. There are outlaws, deadly cattle drives, hard times, colourful characters, romance and life lessons in the book. Quist said rather than a typical shoot-em-up type Western, he wanted the book to focus on the people. The characters in the book are very typical of real-life characters, he said.
“You can find those kind of people all through the history books with the struggles and the hardships and the hard work and the determination… that’s all very true historically.”
And the history and locations in the book were throughly researched and also ring true.
Mac’s Way was published through a small company in Arizona, and his first book, Mister Lister Comes Home was self-published. This book is a collection of short stories from a child’s point of view growing up in the 1940’s. The tales include horse drawn delivery wagons, the impact of war on families, outdoor skating rinks and more.
Quist will be at St. Mark’s Fair in Qualicum Beach this Saturday selling signed copies of his new book. He invites people to his booth #506 for a book or just a chat.
For more on Quist check out his website www.regquist.com.