The poems in Off the Road tell the story of a man has chosen to embrace life-firmly-understanding full well that that means embracing the challenges and failures along with the successes and rewards. Because the man is Johnny Dolphin (otherwise known as John Allen), a man who has traveled around the world, fathered scientific concepts (including Biosphere 2) and artistic concepts (including Caravan of Dreams Theater), and whose friends run the gamut from the most famous (and infamous) thinkers of the last 60 years to folks from the most remote cultures left on the planet, the life being embraced here is as rich in scope as the poetry describing it is rich in stylistic approach. The writing in Off the Road is straight-forward, unassuming, provocative, and playful by turns. Yet this is a poet whose intent is never to hide behind his words. Off The Road is an excellent journey, providing the reader with a vast multitude of introductions and adventures.