Rescued from the squalor of a Rumanian orphanage, and adopted by the rural community of west Mayo, the child that is named J.J. O'Malley should have grown up happy.. After a sudden tragedy, J.J. suffers a catastrophic mental breakdown. Unable to live with himself, he volunteers for an improbable government project which has been set up to explore the possibility of using deep coma as a future option within the EU penal system. When his coma goes online the nation turns to watch, and J.J. is quickly elevated to the status of cultural icon.. The story of a man cursed with guilt and genius and a compassionate examination of how our identities are safeguarded and held in trust by those who love us.