The Road

A one word review of Cormac McCarthy’s 2007 Pulitzer Prize winning novel The Road would look like this: Bleak.

The Road tells the story of a man (The Man) and his young son (The Boy) wandering through a world that has been destroyed in what appears to have been a nuclear holocaust. We learn in a few flashbacks that the destruction occurred right before the boy was born and his mother subsequently commits suicide after years of living in the post-apocalyptic world they now call home. A nuclear winter is upon them, with temperatures falling, and the country they inhabit covered in ash and burned to nothing. The Man and The Boy are walking in search of . . . what? Well, they’re heading south in search of the coast and warmer temperatures. But they have no idea what, if anything, will be there when they arrive. Their days are consumed with trying to find food in a world where virtually none exists and trying to avoid the “bad guys” who are fellow survivors that have turned to cannibalism (yes, that’s right) to survive. Civilization is gone. There is basically no plant or animal life left. And they are being hunted. Not exactly an uplifting tale. But if you’ve read any McCarthy you know he isn’t known for upbeat stories with happy endings.

The vast majority of the novel involves just the two main characters walking the road, and despite the fact that there is little action, it is an interesting and thought provoking read. It contains elements of love, what a father will go through to protect and provide for his child, and the idea of enjoying the little things in life, in particular a life as seemingly hopeless as The Man and The Boy live. It is filled with McCarthy’s characteristic incredible prose. Such as when he describes the environment they inhabit: “Dark the invisible moon. The nights now only slightly less black. By day the banished sun circles the earth like a grieving mother with a lamp.” I have always enjoyed McCarthy’s writing style, and I would say that The Road is probably his most accessible novel of the ones I’ve read. You could (or at least I could) also read a lot into the religious themes of the father and son carrying the “fire” in an evil world.

Now, although I thought this was a good book, I have to say that the dark tale, including a couple of grisly scenes, does not make for the easiest read. I don't think you can say you enjoy a novel like this. It is worth reading (in particular for McCarthy fans) and discussing, but just know what you are getting yourself into.

Next up: Finished Superfreakonomics on vacation and the review will be up soon.