Robert R. McCammon has only reinforced the knowledge that Southern writers have a great command of the language. And his masterpiece "Boy's Life" is proof. What a great read. Yeah, it took me a couple of months (hey, I got a job at the end of October and it has taken up my unemployment-reading time), but this book will stay with me probably for the rest of my life (I'm 54 by the way). Great prose, characters, and situations. Though it took me a few months due to real life getting in the way, I can assure you that once you start this book, you won't quit. I can't recommend it enough.