Book Review - "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy

Back in July I read Cormac McCarthy's The Road because of the wonderful reviews and comments I'd heard and read. While I recognize McCarthy's evocative writing and the narrative's emotional intensity, I definitely can't say I enjoyed it. The story of a father and son's journey "south" after an undisclosed apocalyptic disaster is brutal and unrelentingly depressing. There isn't a moment of levity or hope. "The Road" is an exhausting read and like a good story often does, it stayed with me for a while, popping into my mind at unexpected moments.

By never telling us where they came from or where they're going and never even telling us their names, McCarthy manages to make the story chillingly universal - it could be us. There is a constant sense of tension and danger with tragedy foreshadowed from the opening lines. There is unspeakable violence and cruelty fueled by other survivors' desperate circumstances. With little or no food, possibly contaminated water, societal order destroyed and some people's instinct to survive at all costs, the reader is constantly waiting for the next horrific scene of cruelty between people, or for the moment when our protagonists finally run out of food and safe water.

Do I recommend the book? Yes, but with the caveat that it is difficult and depressing to read. Will I see the upcoming movie? Eventually on DVD where I can stop it and walk away for a bit - I don't think I can sit through it in the theater.