The Road by Cormac McCarthy (2006)

The Road by Cormac McCarthy (2006)

This review is in honor of the author, Cormac McCarthy, who passed away earlier this month at the age of 89.

Laura’s Rating: 4.5/5 Stars

Plot: A father and his young son are on a journey across the country in a post-apocalyptic world years after an unknown disaster. 

Opinion:

I didn’t expect to like this book very much but I ended up quite enjoying it. It has some aspects that I don’t normally enjoy, including a very stripped down style (think Hemingway), but it was well written and the text stands on its own. I listened to the audiobook and almost gave this book 5 stars, but I have learned that there are absolutely no chapter breaks in the actual text, which I think would drive me crazy to physically read.

The Road is a somber but powerful book. There’s no flowery language, not much background given, and not even many events that take place over the course of the novel. That’s not the point of the book. The book is about the father and son and their relationship and will to survive in a wasteland of a world. The parent-child relationship is central to the story and how that dynamic shifts and evolves over time.

The book has many illustrations of good and evil, but also highlights the impact of perspective and how the reader perceives each situation. Are you full of hope or pessimistic and practical? Do you assume humanity reverts to good or evil in times of hardship? Do you automatically trust or fear?

The characters are simple yet endearing, with just enough there to make them seem real. I liked that the author could convey complex thoughts and emotions while using such a matter-of-fact style. I would have liked a bit more background and explanation, but I also understand that those details don’t necessarily matter for the story being told. The Road is heavy and intense but it perfectly illustrates the perseverance of the human spirit in the face of utter destruction.