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All Hat
A novel about hope, redemption, and getting even, not necessarily in that order
Just out of prison for attacking the man who assaulted his sister, Ray Dokes heads back to the small Canadian town where he was raised. Vowing to lie low, he moves in with Pete Culpepper, a Texas cowboy who has always been a grounding influence on Ray, but whose debts are growing faster than his corn.
Between roofing houses and watching Pete's nine-year-old gelding at the races, Ray soon crosses paths with just about everyone in town, including Pete's new jockey, Chrissie, a tough young woman whose ease with horses is equaled only by her mistrust of people, and Ray's former lover Etta, who views him with more skepticism than ever. Then there are the hired hands of the Stanton Dean, a wise guy who embodies the phrase "all hat and no cattle," and his sidekick, Paulie, a simple-hearted man who has a way with animals. And last but not least, there's Sonny Stanton, the vicious, violent, and spoiled heir of his father's electronics fortune-and the man Ray spent two years in jail for nearly killing. When the opportunity arises to con Sonny out of some ill-gained wealth-and protect themselves and their homes in the process-everyone's willing to band together and take a gamble.
Surprisingly poignant yet laugh-out-loud funny, All Hat tells a classic story of little guys fighting big guys and reaffirming the meaning of honesty and friendship-and second chances-in the process.
Just out of prison for attacking the man who assaulted his sister, Ray Dokes heads back to the small Canadian town where he was raised. Vowing to lie low, he moves in with Pete Culpepper, a Texas cowboy who has always been a grounding influence on Ray, but whose debts are growing faster than his corn.
Between roofing houses and watching Pete's nine-year-old gelding at the races, Ray soon crosses paths with just about everyone in town, including Pete's new jockey, Chrissie, a tough young woman whose ease with horses is equaled only by her mistrust of people, and Ray's former lover Etta, who views him with more skepticism than ever. Then there are the hired hands of the Stanton Dean, a wise guy who embodies the phrase "all hat and no cattle," and his sidekick, Paulie, a simple-hearted man who has a way with animals. And last but not least, there's Sonny Stanton, the vicious, violent, and spoiled heir of his father's electronics fortune-and the man Ray spent two years in jail for nearly killing. When the opportunity arises to con Sonny out of some ill-gained wealth-and protect themselves and their homes in the process-everyone's willing to band together and take a gamble.
Surprisingly poignant yet laugh-out-loud funny, All Hat tells a classic story of little guys fighting big guys and reaffirming the meaning of honesty and friendship-and second chances-in the process.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published April 2, 2003
35 people are currently reading
92 people want to read
About the author
Brad Smith
133 books101 followersBrad Smith was born and raised in southern Ontario. He has worked as a farmer, signalman, insulator, truck driver, bartender, schoolteacher, maintenance mechanic, roofer, and carpenter. He lives in a eighty-year-old farmhouse near the north shore of Lake Erie. His novel, "One-Eyed Jacks" was nominated for the Dashiell Hammett Prize.
Some of his books that have been published include One-Eyed Jacks (2000), All Hat (2003), Busted Flush (2005), Big Man Coming Down The Road (2007), Red Means Run (January 2012) and Crow's Landing (August 2012).
Follow Brad on Facebook at http://on.fb.me/uQYcIw.
Some of his books that have been published include One-Eyed Jacks (2000), All Hat (2003), Busted Flush (2005), Big Man Coming Down The Road (2007), Red Means Run (January 2012) and Crow's Landing (August 2012).
Follow Brad on Facebook at http://on.fb.me/uQYcIw.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
June 4, 2009
This review was originally published in "ffwd Weekly." The quotes were gathered during my interview with Brad Smith.
Sometimes you crack open a book and you think, “Hmm. Where have I read this before?” You might be tempted to put that book down and move on to something else – something more original – but resist the temptation with Brad Smith’s new novel All Hat.
We’ve heard variations of Smith’s dialogue in countless movies – mostly in old B-grade film noir – and the plot is as familiar as your parents’ ratty old sofa. The book opens with Ray Dokes leaving prison. He’s the classic ex-con who got a raw deal from the justice system after defending the honor of his sister. He’s a cross between Batman and “Robin Hood,” a man that nearly everyone looks up to and respects.
Meanwhile, Etta, the woman he loves, is struggling to keep her farm and care for her ailing father while Sonny Stanton, the son of a rich horse breeder, is buying up all the surrounding land to put together a shady development deal.
Admittedly, it’s a struggle to get through Smith’s early onslaught of the over-familiar. But once the clichés are embraced by the reader something interesting begins to happen: Smith’s small town Ontario characters begin to grow on us. Recognizing the conventions with which he is playing, Smith makes a conscious effort to overcome cliché by providing depth to characters that might otherwise be mere archetypes:
“Even if a lot of it doesn’t make it onto the page I know who these people are,” says Smith. “I know Etta’s background and Paulie’s background. Just to have one or two main characters, to really give the development to them, and have these other characters be sort of one dimensional doesn’t work because people just won’t care about them.”
But he definitely succeeds in making us care. The story itself – the plot – has been seen in countless Hollywood movies and, at times, it feels like a crazy mix of Dick Francis & Elmore Leonard, but Smith actually manages to make us feel for his characters – despite their conventional setting.
Smith’s characters are so compelling, in fact, that he’s consistently being asked about the fate of two of his supporting cast: Paulie and Dean. These men started out, conceptually, as villains, but they became something very different as Smith tapped his book into the computer.
“When I started writing All Hat they were nastier than they turned out to be,” explains Smith. “They were going to be just a couple of punks, but it really wasn’t working. But then I got going with Paulie and his love of animals and he really just took off from there. And, because of that, it really brought Dean around a bit. He’s not as evil as I thought he’d be – he’s kind of a bonehead – but he’s not an evil guy.”
Once Ray, Paulie and Dean – and all the others who populate Smith’s world – have grown on us it’s hard not to cut Smith slack for the familiar feel of the rest of the book, particularly when his background is taken into consideration. Smith is a screenwriter, and his craft has an obvious influence on his prose.
“I write strong cinematic dialogue and very visually,” says Smith. “It’s the only way I know how to write, really.
To Smith’s credit, his writing calls to mind the novels of another screenwriter/novelist, John Sayles. Not bad company for a small town Ontario author.
All Hat is not a great piece of literature. It should not win any major literary prizes. But it’s fun, light and likable. And, as a summer read, as a backyard sun tanning book, that’s exactly what it should be.
Sometimes you crack open a book and you think, “Hmm. Where have I read this before?” You might be tempted to put that book down and move on to something else – something more original – but resist the temptation with Brad Smith’s new novel All Hat.
We’ve heard variations of Smith’s dialogue in countless movies – mostly in old B-grade film noir – and the plot is as familiar as your parents’ ratty old sofa. The book opens with Ray Dokes leaving prison. He’s the classic ex-con who got a raw deal from the justice system after defending the honor of his sister. He’s a cross between Batman and “Robin Hood,” a man that nearly everyone looks up to and respects.
Meanwhile, Etta, the woman he loves, is struggling to keep her farm and care for her ailing father while Sonny Stanton, the son of a rich horse breeder, is buying up all the surrounding land to put together a shady development deal.
Admittedly, it’s a struggle to get through Smith’s early onslaught of the over-familiar. But once the clichés are embraced by the reader something interesting begins to happen: Smith’s small town Ontario characters begin to grow on us. Recognizing the conventions with which he is playing, Smith makes a conscious effort to overcome cliché by providing depth to characters that might otherwise be mere archetypes:
“Even if a lot of it doesn’t make it onto the page I know who these people are,” says Smith. “I know Etta’s background and Paulie’s background. Just to have one or two main characters, to really give the development to them, and have these other characters be sort of one dimensional doesn’t work because people just won’t care about them.”
But he definitely succeeds in making us care. The story itself – the plot – has been seen in countless Hollywood movies and, at times, it feels like a crazy mix of Dick Francis & Elmore Leonard, but Smith actually manages to make us feel for his characters – despite their conventional setting.
Smith’s characters are so compelling, in fact, that he’s consistently being asked about the fate of two of his supporting cast: Paulie and Dean. These men started out, conceptually, as villains, but they became something very different as Smith tapped his book into the computer.
“When I started writing All Hat they were nastier than they turned out to be,” explains Smith. “They were going to be just a couple of punks, but it really wasn’t working. But then I got going with Paulie and his love of animals and he really just took off from there. And, because of that, it really brought Dean around a bit. He’s not as evil as I thought he’d be – he’s kind of a bonehead – but he’s not an evil guy.”
Once Ray, Paulie and Dean – and all the others who populate Smith’s world – have grown on us it’s hard not to cut Smith slack for the familiar feel of the rest of the book, particularly when his background is taken into consideration. Smith is a screenwriter, and his craft has an obvious influence on his prose.
“I write strong cinematic dialogue and very visually,” says Smith. “It’s the only way I know how to write, really.
To Smith’s credit, his writing calls to mind the novels of another screenwriter/novelist, John Sayles. Not bad company for a small town Ontario author.
All Hat is not a great piece of literature. It should not win any major literary prizes. But it’s fun, light and likable. And, as a summer read, as a backyard sun tanning book, that’s exactly what it should be.
November 11, 2017
Ray Dokes is a decent man, fresh out of prison, and not sure of what comes next in his life. Well, next is a thoroughly enjoyable Canadian tale about horse racing, good guys and bad guys and just desserts. Ray moves in with an old buddy, Pete, one of a dying breed of small-time racehorse owners. He connects with former girlfriend Etta, a no-bullcrap young jockey named Chrissie and his old nemesis, the lowdown horseman, Sonny Stanton (any character in a novel named Sonny you know is a bad guy). Then there’s Jackson Jones, trainer of Stanton Stables, plus Dean and Paulie, Sonny’s go-fers. And they are all fed up with this a-hole who always seems to have the upper hand. The action is real, the characters just seem right, and that includes the horses who are all given distinct personalities. And the ending is straight out of the old ‘Mission Impossible’ tv show.
January 17, 2017
I am sure that part of why I am charmed by this book is that it is set in a southwestern Ontario that I recognize. I like the characters. When I started reading it I compared All Hat to An Elmore Leonard novel (loser criminals and ex/cons who are trying to get it right) but I think the characters seem to have greater depth than EL's sometimes do. I like the sympathy with which the author portrays the very difficult situations people find themselves in, trying to hold on to the family farm.
June 3, 2017
Country Living
This is a very enjoyable story! All of the characters are imitations of someone we have all come across. The storyline is great with a very good flow. This story has a great ending.
This is a very enjoyable story! All of the characters are imitations of someone we have all come across. The storyline is great with a very good flow. This story has a great ending.
March 30, 2020
A talented storyteller
This is the third book of Brad Smith that I’ve read, and I’m hooked. He’s a born storyteller and he draws you into the world of struggling farmers or cons trying to make good. Is he as good as Elmore Leonard? No, but he just seems to get better with every new book that I read.
He’s at the top of his class, with an ear for dialogue and a talent for tight plots and believable characters. Find out for yourself.
This is the third book of Brad Smith that I’ve read, and I’m hooked. He’s a born storyteller and he draws you into the world of struggling farmers or cons trying to make good. Is he as good as Elmore Leonard? No, but he just seems to get better with every new book that I read.
He’s at the top of his class, with an ear for dialogue and a talent for tight plots and believable characters. Find out for yourself.
August 17, 2020
Reading this, I kept thinking how my daddy, horse racing man that he was, would have enjoyed this book. And by book I mean the two hour movie they make outta this. Sure it would be better as a miniseries, what with all the splendidly drawn characters and all, but Daddy had no time for no books or no miniseries, what with all the horseplaying and plain old living to be done. So I've read it and happily offered it up to the horse gods in his memory.
July 9, 2025
Good book! Simple and entertaining story. My frost by this author and definitely not my last. I quite liked it. Didn’t matter I don’t know a dang thing about horse racing, I was able to follow it just fine.
March 6, 2019
The Fort Erie racetrack, and Brad Smith's humour and real-life, imperfect human characters--it's great!
April 9, 2020
Great story
The author creates characters that you love or hate with a passion. Another emotional roller coaster. Enough detail to make it seem realistic and credible.
The author creates characters that you love or hate with a passion. Another emotional roller coaster. Enough detail to make it seem realistic and credible.
June 16, 2020
Great characters, intriguing plot. Spare and to the point narrative. Enjoy your time with Ray, Etta, Chrissie, and Sonny (well, Sonny not so much). Highly recommended!
November 17, 2020
An easy read, rather slow to get going, but OK in the end. Kinda nice that it was set in Canada, with lots of familiar place names in western Ontario..
December 27, 2021
Fun read
Good story. Great characters, both human and critters. Lots of laffs and a great pace. Trouble putting this book down.
Good story. Great characters, both human and critters. Lots of laffs and a great pace. Trouble putting this book down.
June 8, 2023
3.4 rounded down to 3 stars. I like the writing style - reminds me of Richard Russo's - but the plot here got a little unrealistic toward the end, in my view.
December 8, 2025
Great Rrad!
I enjoyed these characters and the storyline. Folks got what they actually deserved too. Hope it works out for Ray.
I enjoyed these characters and the storyline. Folks got what they actually deserved too. Hope it works out for Ray.
November 7, 2023
Kindle Unlimited
A classic - and sometimes overworked - tale about a man getting out of prison and attempting to come home, fit back into the weave of life there, and pick up where he left off. Don't let the formulation feel at the beginning put you off of this tale. We have comfortable, attentive people living a life they would choose to be normal and happy in a community of other normal, comfortable people and yet everything that can go wrong can and does, with a touch of heartburn and laughter. I love Brad Smith's view on life even more than I did before I started All Hat. I am pleased to recommend his work to friends and family. This is a tale to share.
REVIEWED on October 24, 2023, at Goodreads, AmazonSmile, and BookBub. Not available for review at B&N or Kobo.
A classic - and sometimes overworked - tale about a man getting out of prison and attempting to come home, fit back into the weave of life there, and pick up where he left off. Don't let the formulation feel at the beginning put you off of this tale. We have comfortable, attentive people living a life they would choose to be normal and happy in a community of other normal, comfortable people and yet everything that can go wrong can and does, with a touch of heartburn and laughter. I love Brad Smith's view on life even more than I did before I started All Hat. I am pleased to recommend his work to friends and family. This is a tale to share.
REVIEWED on October 24, 2023, at Goodreads, AmazonSmile, and BookBub. Not available for review at B&N or Kobo.
November 15, 2011
"From the title and the cowboy hat and the horses, you might think this is an Alberta-based novel. But nope, this is southern Ontario, where most of the cowboys are wannabees, the horses are headed for the racetracks, and the men and women are scrabbling to make ends meet, not thriving on oil revenues. This is where I grew up, and this truly feels like the working class part of the towns and villages and small farms of the real Ontario. Brad Smith captures the tough guy loyalties, the sometimes conflictual romances, and the often precarious insecurities in this rugged world.
This is a guy book, seen through men's eyes, in which the good guys, in an amazing and amusing coup, come out on top of the rich sob's who normally have things their own way.
And it is a fun book -- vividly written, with an outrageous plot, a wicked populist edge, and characters you would like to hear from again."
This is a guy book, seen through men's eyes, in which the good guys, in an amazing and amusing coup, come out on top of the rich sob's who normally have things their own way.
And it is a fun book -- vividly written, with an outrageous plot, a wicked populist edge, and characters you would like to hear from again."
May 9, 2020
Ray Dokes, nearing 40, has just spent several years in prison for assaulting Sonny Stanton, the thuggish young heir to a billion-dollar fortune who raped Dokes's sister. Dokes returns to his hometown and manages to steer clear of Stanton, who has several underhanded financial schemes going, the nastiest being an attempt to buy up local farms, then use the land to develop a race track as a showcase for the thoroughbreds of Stanton Stables. Dokes quietly settles into his new life as a roofer and helps his friend Pete Culpepper to breed horses in his spare time. Romance returns to Dokes's life when Culpepper hires a sexy young jockey named Chrissie to race his low-end thoroughbreds, but even as their liaison plays out, it's clear that Dokes pines for a local woman called Etta, whose farm is one of Stanton's prime targets. Dokes once again finds himself at the center of a showdown with the spoiled scion. One of my 20 best mysteries read in 2003.
May 5, 2014
Wasn't really crazy about this one. It was well written, progressed smoothly, was a good tale...but for me there was just too much secrecy about everything. Took you forever to be told the history and information about the characters and it wasn't like the info really changed anything about the story. So you're just sort of in the dark the whole way through. I also really didn't attach myself to any of the characters. Really didn't have opinions for them one way or the other. Shrug. Just didn't care too much for this one.
March 26, 2009
I'm surprised I gave this as high a rating as I did, given that the horse and racing related details are so completely WRONG in this book I wanted to throw it in the woodstove. They became so frequent I gave up and convinced myself to enjoy the book in spite of this very consistent inaccuracy. The characters won me over, and were a major redeeming feature. Fantastic dialogue. Too bad this guy didn't get the horse part right, it would have been a really great book if he had.
September 23, 2013
Brad Smith’s “All Hat,” is the story of Ray Dokes, just out of prison for beating up the man who raped his sister. Ray returns to the farm owned by an old friend, and the two men wonder if it’s worth it to try to keep the struggling farm alive for another season. The friend has his hopes pinned on winning a race with a bargain horse picked up at an auction. The cast of characters includes a foul mouth woman jockey, Ray’s old lover, and a wanna be wise guy who is “all hat and no cattle.”
January 18, 2011
I'm not usually a fan of books that heavily feature cowboys or horse racing. But Brad Smith certainly manages to write a suitably entertaining novel using such ingredients...while adding a bit of tasty & satisfying retribution into the mix. THIS is the kind of novel that would translate extremely well to television...preferably on HBO or Showtime.
August 10, 2008
A Canadian cowboy story of "comeupance" where the "little guy" works together with the other "little guys" for revenge and cowboy justice. A fun read! I understand it has been made into a movie...I'd see that!
August 18, 2016
I received a free copy via Netgalley in exchange for a honest review.
This is an easy read with some interesting characters to keep it rolling on.
The ending is left open for a further story but other than this there are no complaints.
This is an easy read with some interesting characters to keep it rolling on.
The ending is left open for a further story but other than this there are no complaints.
February 27, 2009
I loved the country-noir and grit in this book...it was like Last Picture Show mixed or No Country For Old Men mixed with humor and a great heist storyline. It was a fun read.
April 27, 2009
One of my favorite Canadian authors. A fun book about horse racing, swindles and double crosses.
October 14, 2010
My favourite author! Great realistic characters without boundaries, set in Canada, and a crazy scheme.
June 4, 2012
So, cowboys aren't really my thing, and I think if they were, I'd have liked this book a lot more. Definitely worth reading, though.
September 11, 2012
I read a review that made this sound like a humorous mystery, which it is not. However, it is a good story with well developed characters & one humorous scene that had me rolling on the floor.
Read
May 7, 2013first few chapters read like a country-and-western song
May 26, 2013
Good. Read more of his.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews