Author Jessie Dunleavy—whose book Cover My Dreams in Ink will be released June 1, 2020, and is now available for pre-order—says, “Paul’s story didn’t end well but, God willing, it can triumph in its capacity to shine a light on all that he kept hidden. And for others suffering as he did, it can lend some insights, promoting hope over despair.”
+Jessie Dunleavy is an advocate for drug policy reform. With firsthand knowledge of the harms inflicted by the war on drugs—particularly for vulnerable populations—she champions policies based on human rights and scientific research and is committed to combating stigma and other impediments to reducing the harms of drug use. In addition to lending her voice through opinion editorials, speaking engagements, broadcast interviews, and social media, she has joined forces with like-minded groups at the national, state, and local levels including the Maryland Harm Reduction Action Network. She is certified by the Maryland State Department of Health as a Master Presenter on the Stages of Change, and advocates for her cause within the Maryland General Assembly. Her work as a school administrator for thirty years entailed community outreach as well as written communication including newsletters, website content, and a blog in which she offered general parenting advice. She has a master’s degree in library and information science and served as an academic librarian for nearly a decade at the outset of her career. She lives in her hometown, Annapolis, MD, and is a fourth generation Annapolitan.
Book Overview:
Born different, a boy struggles. His story draws you in. So, too, does his mother’s relentless quest. From the fight for an appropriate education through the fight for his life as he enters the harrowing world of addiction, a mother’s passion for her son’s equal rights and her unshakable belief in his potential seep through the pages as does her coming to terms with her own flaws. The boy’s poetry—undiscovered in his lifetime—is intertwined, depicting the inner life of a person underestimated and, in many ways, unknown.
Faced with bitter disappointments and often insurmountable obstacles, mother and son cope with adversity, although each in their own way and sometimes in opposition. Also obvious in their story is the bond between them, a bond based upon unconditional love, with their candid communications—often laden with strife but not without humor—as evidence of that bond. From the discovery of a drug that initially provided needed relief to the pure hell of addiction— exploitation, humiliation, punishment—and from homelessness and jail cells to rehab and a wanderlust fueled by the relentless quest to belong, his young manhood is full of heartache but also of grit, determination, and the capacity to love and forgive and the will to keep fighting against the odds.
Cover My Dreams in Ink elucidates the source of addiction and its getting a foothold years before drug use. Inspiring sensitivity for those who are different, compassion for those whose battles arise from uncontrollable circumstances rather than faults of character, this gripping story drives home the urgency for drug policy reform.
Quotations From The Experts:
“Cover My Dreams in Ink is Jessie Dunleavy’s accounting of—and reckoning with—the life and death of her son Paul, who in 2017 fell victim to the opioid crisis. Partly by using poetry he wrote in his lifetime, Dunleavy searches for answers, fully presenting his life and their relationship, warts and all. It’s a powerful technique, and Cover My Dreams in Ink is a worthy elegy for a young man who never got the chance to fully become himself.” —Ben Westhoff, award-winning investigative journalist, author of Fentanyl, Inc., How Rogue Chemists Are Creating the Deadliest Wave of the Opioid Epidemic
Paul was a warm, creative, and loving individual who defied labels. He had many challenges, diagnoses, medications, and, tragically, self-medications. But he also had friends and loved ones, one of whom—his mother, Jessie Dunleavy—has given us this remarkable, searing memoir. Through it, she lets us love Paul, too, and opens our minds and hearts to the struggles of all who cope with disability, alienation, and addiction. —Roger Parloff, award-winning journalist, regular contributor to Yahoo Finance and Newsweek, former editor-at-large for Fortune, and former editor-in-chief of Opioid Watch. Jessie Dunleavy's memoir is a riveting reminder of the ultimate toll of the addiction crisis. An honest and relatable tale that hits home for far too many families. Cover My Dreams in Ink is a must read for any person wondering what it's like to walk a lifetime in the shoes of a loved one suffering. —Ryan Hampton, national advocate and bestselling author of American Fix: Inside the Opioid Addiction Crisis—and How to End It. Jessie Dunleavy has written a beautiful memoir about her son Paul who died from a drug overdose at the age of 34. The book is a searing account of the dysfunctional and negligent US drug treatment system that failed her family.
The tragedy of Paul’s death made the author into a fierce supporter of harm reduction, an advocate for medication-assisted recovery and an activist against the War on Drugs. The other bonus of Cover My Dreams in Ink is Paul’s poetry— each poem offers a glimpse into his humanity, into a life of loneliness and pain but also one of joy and connection. —Helen Redmond, LCSW, expert in substance use, multimedia journalist, senior editor for Filter Magazine, sought after speaker in the US and abroad, adjunct faculty Silver School of Social Work, New York University.
Release Date: June 1. 2020 Published by Apprentice House Press, Loyola University, Baltimore, Maryland Distributor: Ingram Books Bulk purchase available: Apprentice House or Ingram Size: 6 x 9 Pages: 370 Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-62720-259-6 $29.99 Paperback ISBN: 978-1-62720-260-2 $19.99 E-book ISBN: 978-1-62720-261-9 $6.99 Available pre-order: Amazon Books, Barnes and Noble, Bookshop , and Goodreads Author Contact Email: jessie@jessiedunleavy.com jessiedunleavy@gmail.com Website: www.jessiedunleavy.com Cell Phone: 410-271-6534 Facebook: Jessie Dunleavy - Author Twitter: @JessieDunleavy Instagram: jess.dunleavy LinkedIn: Jessie Dunleavy
