Swimming on Highway N: A Novel

Madeline Dames moves to a small town in the MissouriOzarks to get over the death of her third husband, butinstead finds herself reliving another past. Her damagedyounger sister shows up at her trailer, having changed hername from Angie to Misery, and no sooner does Miserymove in, the abusive mother both sisters fear, Wanda, comesfor a surprise visit.

When Madeline’s new beau, Randy, brings two youngpeople, a man and a woman, to Madeline’s, claiming theyneed a place to stay, Madeline agrees. As it turns out, theyoung man is a deserter from the Iraq War. After writingsome radical letters to newspapers, defending his desertion,he is forced to leave the country, and Randy vows to helpthe pair escape to Canada. Madeline, Misery, Wanda, Randy,and the two young people head to the Northwest, the bestexit point, but are chased by a Nebraska bus boy/bountyhunter, a patriot group with more Internet presence thanresolve, and a renegade nun and her Blackfoot wards.

Swimming on Highway N is an unpredictable generationalstory about abuse, recovery, love, hate, bravery, fear, devotion,and disillusionment. Sixty-year-old Madeline and the restof the characters have to make several crucial choices, all ofwhich can and will affect their lives on the road, and forever.Along the way, everyone learns their most important lesson,that you can never grow too old to surprise yourself.