The Dog of the South

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.

¦One hot summer we rented this house near Austin, Tex., that was on a river with natural springs where you could swim. I found a paperback of Charles Portis¦ Dog of the South in the house, which I¦m ashamed to say I stole because it was so funny. I had to have it! Since then I¦ve bought other copies of that book and left them at people¦s houses in an attempt to revere the karma¦ Arthur Bradford, author of Dogwalker