From the unique perspective of a Volkswagen bus named Vinnie Van Go come poems personal and political, observational and witty. Disgruntled with the academic establishment and the academic declination of American college students, Vinnie's owner, affectionally known as "The Professor," takes Vinnie to the open road after Vinnie undergoes a substantial "born-again refurbishment." The two head to Key West—the land of Ernest Hemingway, watersports, sex, infamous night clubs, and more sea, sun, and sand than a beach-seeking soul can imagine. Pirate days meet zombies, poetrygeists taunt the creative spirit, and the importance of existing as one human family becomes clearer and clearer. In Key West, Vinnie and The Professor encounter spring break, chic freaks, Key West's famous Duvall Street, and adventure after adventure fit for any bohemian, nine-to-five, corporate-despising soul.

Like the colorful photographs accompanying the short, rhymed verses housed like beach-roaming hermit crabs in this collection, each poem captures the many eclectic aesthetics and personalities forming Key West. Collectively, the poems testify to the power of breaking away from society's constraints to explore the facets of one's self and existence that only a long-awaited road trip can reveal. Using the van's personification, this collection celebrates individuality as it intersects with nature and civilization, as well as a population where an island's distance and isolation has allowed for an increased self-awareness evident in Key West's intrigue and personality. Readers encounter Key West royalty, and their spirits are set free amidst palm trees, sailboats, and shacks that have more character and history than one poem can hold.

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