The King of the Sea Monkeys is a novel in two parts. Because the
protagonist suffers from a traumatic brain injury, the first part is
fragmented, finding its way in the larger narrative in disorderly
pieces. The novel is centered on a young high school teacher: too
idealistic at work; too childish at home: living a fairly normal life,
but unable to navigate the waters. This normal life disintegrates when
he is involved in an altercation at a convenience store which ends in a
shooting. He survives a terrible injury but the world of the protagonist
is undone. Issues of traumatic brain injury are examined and the
existence of God comes into question. We find ourselves asking what the
framework of a real life is.