I think this is a personal best... not only in terms of the book itself, but also my ability to finish a "real" book. I flew through the pages in just two short nights --- just two sittings!! For a guy that has read less than five books in his lifetime for pleasure, that is saying something.
Sure, I was helped by the fact that the power was out in my house last night, but I continued to read on... by candle light. I think "the man" and "the boy" would be proud of me moving forward in the face of own "hardship"... albeit my level of adversity is laughable compared to that of the heros in this novel.
Special thank you to my dear brother who not only suggested this book, but went to the trouble and cost of finding it and sending it to me... knowing that there would be little probability of me turning the first page if the book didn't literally land on my doorstep. Thank you my brother for sharing this story with me and leaving me no excuse for not cracking the cover and digging in.
In terms of literary works, I feel that this is the type of book that I could read a hundred times and continue to get more out of it on each pass... sure, I got the general gist of the story upon my first read, but the wording and simple complexity in the language used was truly remarkable and crafted so exquisitely.
So well done that a few minutes ago, I looked up Google images for "The Road" and found the one above... this was precisely how I pictured it in my head thanks to the author's masterful prose. Just excellent...
2 comments:
You boys both have impressive literary skills. Maybe derived from the Athol water but, them again... maybe not.
Well, you did it. Good job. And I will keep my promise to you...I won't ask you to read another novel. Unless I write one, of course.
So, I won't be asking you to read another one. Lol
Funny, I did the opposite. I avoided online pictures and photos (mostly from the panned movie) just so as to preserve the images in my mind.
Hey, I gotta say, I cried like a newborn denied the wet teet when I read that last chapter. The words the father said to the boy are son authentic. "I thought I could, but I can't," the father says, when the boy wants to die and be with him. It's the desire to have the legacy live on, in spite of nearly hopeless circumstances.
Cormac McCarthy is a man's writer. All of is stories, from No Country For Old Men to All The Pretty Horses are men's books. Next year, his best novel, Blood Meridian (beside the road, that is) will be a movie. So, I guess I have a year left to read it before Hollywood ruins it for my by casting someone like Tom Arnold in the lead role.
Ciao.
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