The Road June 15, 2008
Posted by sadiejean in Best Sellers, Book Reviews, General Fiction.Tags: Cormac McCarthy, The Road
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—5—
In an burned, postapocolyptic America, a father and son walk together, heading for the coast. Ash falls from the sky and the temperature is freezing. They have a gun, and not much else. Together they scavenge for food left in stores and homes. They come across corpses and cannibals, and must hide from everyone they encounter. There is nothing and no-one left to live for, except for each other. The father barely hangs to old-world morality, as he tries to keep his son and himself alive.
I enjoyed Cormac McCarthy’s The Road more than I wanted to. Sometimes I am resistant to books that everyone has read, or everyone has loved, especially when they come with an Oprah seal. But I couldn’t resist loving this book. It prose is simple and succinct, the bare minimum, which is all these two people’s lives are. It is haunting and powerful, forcing the reader to think about total devastation of the world we know, and how survivors may be worse off than the dead. The Road presents a world in which hope doesn’t exist, and where memories of the past aren’t enough to sustain two people after complete destruction hits. The Road is one of the best books I’ve read recently, and I recommend it to all who haven’t read it (the few of you there are).
5/5
Check out Jonathan’s review of the Road too!
I got this for my dad for father’s day. I thought the father/son aspect seemed appropriate even though the gruesomeness didn’t. Also picked up a copy for myself
Thanks for the recommendation!
Sounds pretty dark.
On a completely different subject, but definitely a book about people’s journey through life, AN ISLAND AWAY by Daniel Putkowski follows the intertwined lives of several people in the refinery town of San Nicolaas, Aruba. Check it out.
I liked No Country for Old Men and plan to read The Road soon. I also want to read Blood Meridian. I started it, and found it quite different from No Country – far more dense. I like McCarthy’s style.
I read The Road a couple months ago, and it is definately a different and compelling read. The imagery is stark. Through the voice of the boy, the momentum is one of terror lurking around every corner. There are a few of spots in the book that were seared into my brain:
When the man and the boy encounter the people with the truck for the first time, and they run into one of the group’s people while hiding under the road, it was the first moment you realize it’s not going to be a “happy” read.
When they go into the house and the father goes to open the cellar, telling the boy, “Someone took the trouble to put a lock on it, so there must be food down there!” He was right.
The small band of people they see in the group of trees roasting dinner over the campfire was a heart breaking moment; how far one might go to survive.
It only took a couple days for me to read it, but I loned the book to a friend, and she read it in one evening because she couldn’t put it down.
Both my husband and & I read this one a month ago. It’s funny, I may be the only one, ever, not to quite get this book. My husband really liked it. We both reviewed it on my blog.
I really enjoyed your take on the The Road. I haven’t read quite a review that helped me “get it” a little better. Thanks!
Well I guess I’ll be the lone ranger and say I did NOT like this book, not at all. It thought it was bleak, repetitive, and boring, and the dialogue was overly simplistic (Are we still the good guys?) I hated that we never learn what happened- that was the only thing that kept me reading- I wanted to throw the book against the wall when I finished it. But hey, that’s just me
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[...] just finished The Road by Cormac McCarthy. I credit Sadie for recommending this really great book. Or maybe I should just credit Oprah (:p). The Road tells the story of an unnamed [...]
Sadie -
Just discovered your blog, really really impressive. I totally know what you mean about the “Oprahfication” of the book world. But “The Road” is haunting and stayed with me for weeks after I put it down.
Sometimes Oprah goes the other way: one of my favorite books for a long time was “Pillars of the Earth” then Oprah recommended it and reflexively I said to myself “Oh great, now I can;t love this book anymore!” Is that weird?
I have to give her credit for getting people to read, especially really important books like Wiesel’s “Night”. So I guess just because she recommends doesn’t mean it sucks!