Dove

Japhy would sacrifice his freedom for people he will never meet. Ray would sacrifice all those unknown people just to protect him. In 1970, when Japhy receives his draft notice for the Vietnam War, he and girlfriend, Ray, become Dharma Bums. They pack their lives into a duffel bag, and hitch their way to the Canadian border - a safety zone that, once a draft dodger enters, he can never leave. Ever. Not to see family. Not to help injured friends. Not even to attend a loved-one's funeral. On the road, Japhy and Ray are joined by flower children, Leaf and Lauren, and all four decide to find a hippie commune in Toronto where they will be free of their demons, and safe with their secrets. Or will they? Amidst a colorful whirl of psychedelics, love-ins, original music, and political protests, Japhy and his friends discover everything has a price, freedom is not free, and true peace comes at a cost whether you are fighting for it in a war or simply within the depths of your own soul. How far would you go for freedom? Dove is the first book in The Freedom Series and was shortlisted for the Impress Prize For New Writers. As a companion to this novel, a soundtrack of original songs by James Lee Stanley is available.