I feel like my rating might have been bumped up to five stars if I had been able to absorb Ray in one sitting. The fragmentary stream-of-consciousness style of prose would have been more powerful if I hadn't had to stop reading for such trivial things as work. This is the first book that I have read by Hannah. I've always been interested in his work, being a fan of Southern Literature, but his death earlier this year prompted me to finally get to it. Ray is a mad, crazy ex-fighter pilot, who also happens to be an alcoholic doctor with an eye for the ladies. The characters that people his world, such as "Sister," Charlie DeSoto, and Mr. Hooch, are creations worthy of entire novels to themselves.
I can certainly see why one would want to reread this book. There are so many brilliant lines, and hallucinogenic passages that just beg to be reread on the spot.