9781585679317
The Dog of the South share button
Charles Portis
Format Paperback
Dimensions 5.48 (w) x 8.02 (h) x 0.80 (d)
Pages 272
Publisher Overlook Press, The
Publication Date June 2007
ISBN 9781585679317
Book ISBN 10 1585679313
About Book

Ray Midge is waiting for his credit card bill to arrive. His wife, Norma, has run off with her ex-husband, taking Ray's cards, shotgun and car. But from the receipts, Ray can track where they've gone. He takes off after them, as does an irritatingly tenacious bail bondsman, both following the romantic couple's spending as far as Mexico. There Ray meets Dr Reo Symes, the seemingly down-on-his-luck and rather eccentric owner of a beaten up and broken down bus, who needs a ride to Belize. The further they drive, in a car held together by coat-hangers and excesses of oil, the wilder their journey gets. But they're not going to give up easily.

Reviews

Baltimore Sun

Simultaneously hilarious and heart breakingly odd...you find yourself laughing so hard in sections that tears run down your face.

Rochelle O'Gorman

Clipper Audio
For the first time since its publication in 1979, Portis' weirdly humorous third novel has been released on audio. This amusing story from the author of True Grit features Ray Midge, a bore with few interests and even less ambition whose major pastime is collecting old weapons. But when Ray's wife runs off with her first husband, the hated Guy Dupree, along with Ray's car and credit cards, the jilted husband takes to the road, driving from Arkansas to Honduras to reclaim all that he has lost. Narrator Edward Lewis' high-pitched voice and quick delivery perfectly complement the quirky material.