Yesterday, Mel McDonnell had been one of the most influential and respected members of the United States Senate. Today, he found himself reincarnated as a moist heap of whale excrement, languishing on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean. Thus begins Joe Queenan's satirical fable of reincarnation, political ambition, man's folly, and the capricious nature of the universe - lusciously illustrated with his signature wry wit by award-winning cartoonist Keith Bendis.