David Rivers, a cynical and apathetic substitute teacher in southeast Georgia has a problem. His idea of reality seems slightly different than those around him; he also suspects that he may be the only one being victimized by visits from a very unwelcome creature. As his idea of the world around him comes more into focus, so does the darkness that shrouds his life. The epiphany that he hopes will answer all his questions about life and love continues to dangle just out of reach, but not for long. The Spinal Cord Perception, the debut novel from Joshua S. Porter, is an unpredictable situation of being pulled involuntarily between the ugliness and beauty of the human experience. A bleak deadpan narrative filled with horrific depravity and deeply moving moments of love and self realization, the story gives and takes away with no warning, leaving the reader to question the paradox of the agony and ecstasy of everyday life.