Adult Alex being charged by a Wild Tiger • Art by Scott Murphy

The story takes place in the late nineties with flashbacks to the eighties. The protagonist, a naive young man named Alex Murphy, is pre-chosen, before birth, to be the one hundred year prophet of the planet's non-human species. In order to assume the title of the prophet, Alex has to go through a series of adventures that start in the dreary halls of a biomedical research laboratory and end in the mountainous terrain in the wiles of Africa.

Along the way, Alex takes a wild ride on a rampaging circus elephant, is forced to crash-land a plane in the African primate preserve, escape a ravenous tiger, and narrowly avoid a raging stampede of millions of animal "spirits" that are ceremoniously released from their one hundred year earthly confines. If that's not enough, he encounters a cast of characters who either want to help him in his journey, or want to make sure he doesn't answer his appointed calling. Once you hear the words "prophets" and "spirituality," it is clear that God has to be somewhere in the story. He is, in a way. It's not a religious story, but there are characters that clearly represent good and evil, and the book has its share of positive spiritual undertones.

It is a story that illustrates the desire to save the planet, but at the same time, exemplifies man's quest to exploit the world's wildlife species and the lengths he will go to for monetary gain. The story is incredibly intertwined. The characters were developed in such a way as to give the reader the choice of deciding who they are or are not. Each character, in one way or another, possesses a unique complexity. Just when the reader thinks they know who a character is, they actually become someone else. In many respects, I the characters are as interesting as the story line itself.

Murphy's Cure is definitely a journey of hope and determination, but at the same time, it makes a statement that with all that is wrong with the world's environment, there is still hope - even in the 11th hour, with every precious minute counting.What has made this story possible is a deep commitment to a cause, and a passion in believing that reaching a goal is worth the struggle and sacrifice.