“A Fine Mess” started out as a lesson in self-worth for a loved one. It was intended to form a message to the reader: to not allow yourself to be diminished in exchange for superficial friend or partnerships.

It features Alistair, an African Gray parrot born under unusual circumstances, who has a cognitive ability unique amongst his kind: human-level intelligence. A sophisticated, cynical, sarcastic parrot with a penchant for philosophy and a no-nonsense attitude toward the world at large and his “owner”, Cecelia, a young thirty-something seeking companionship in all the wrong places, with all the wrong people.