So I have finally read and finished one of the novels written by the late Cormac McCarthy titled “The Road”. This is the first book I have read by him, and it gave me an experience that I’m not about to forget about anytime soon.
We follow the journey of a father and son as they trek through a scorched America. Nothing moves in the burnt out wastes, save only for the ash that is blown about by the wind. And it is deeply cold; cold enough to break the stones. And the sky is always dark.
Both of them are making their way to the coast. The only things that they have is a pistol, for protection against lawless band of marauders roaming about, and a cart filled with food that they had scavenged, and of course they have each other.
When I generally think of post apocalyptic stories the most obvious thing would be Mad Max or things like that. But “The Road” is a different beast altogether. Dark, bleak, the world the father and son are in is devoid of hope, ravaged by some calamity that is never explained, but I can imagine what it might be. But, the duo are sustained by one thing, love, and their drive to survive.
Yes, this is a very depressing story, but one that is very very engrossing. Some will say that it is boring or pretentious, or even take issue with McCarthy’s writing style. But for me this is a damn good story of survival in a world ravaged by destruction, regardless of how bleak and depressing it is. There are some horrifying moments here, even though it’s not a horror novel, and even some touching moments as well.
There’s movie adaptation of it, but I never really seen it other than the trailer.
There’s also another novel written by McCarthy that’s gotten me Interested, “Blood Meridian”. I believe that one is supposed to be darkest one. Might eventually go and track down a copy if I get a chance.
by i-the-muso-1968
3 Comments
One of my favorite books! It was difficult at time for me to read having children of my own. But I’ll be damned if it wasn’t the most realistic depiction of what a post apocalyptic world would be like imo.
Next up… Blood Meridian.
If you continue with McCarthy’s work I cannot recommend the Border trilogy enough. All The Pretty Horses was the first novel of his I read and the first novel that ever made me cry, but all 3 books are just masterpieces.