Arkansas Adios

by Earl Mac Rauch

The novel's hero is Lester Long, the most precocious eleven-year-old in Red Mound, Arkansas. Lester's dog, Cartoon Dog, looks like a cartoon dog; Lester's big sister, Bolivia, is not too bright; Bolivia's baby, Buster, is not bitten by a fish; and Bolivia's friend Roland is being chased by the FBI. Everyone who should, lives happily ever after.

178 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1971

About the author

An American novelist and screenwriter, best known for writing the screenplays for A Stranger Is Watching, New York, New York and The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension.

Reviews

[Jordan West · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Terry Southern-esque chronicle of an offbeat and thoroughly white-trash childhood; the novel's tone of consistent, deliberate vulgarity is intermittently entertaining, but ultimately it feels fairly slight - on the other hand, the back cover author photo, featuring him posed in a suit while drinking a bottle of Dr. Pepper in his socks, is one of the best I've ever seen.

[🐴 🍖]

essentially this is gummo: the animated series, which should give you a sense as to whether you need to lunge at the nearest used copy or stay far away. regardless, you should check out the kirkus review -- this one clearly broke the reviewer's brain something fierce and it's a sight to behold