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everyonespal's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
medium-paced
3.75
dpj's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jasonlee77's review against another edition
2.0
Definitely not a book for me, at all. I didn’t like the writing style (it’s amateurish. Yes, I said it and if it’s not amateurish, it’s certainly pretentious) and it ultimately felt like it went nowhere. I realize it has a sequel, but I won’t be reading it. So much of this book just felt pointless, like all of the meandering dialog that had nothing to do with the story. An example; late in the book a character goes into a rant about the John Kennedy assassination, that goes on for many pages and it had ZERO to do with anything in the story. Not only that but McCarthy I guess expects his audience to know all about deep sea diving before reading this. His long, wordy descriptions of the entire process without actually EXPLAINING what any of this means is wrote ONLY for people who know the process. Everyone else? Good luck making any sense out of the long, drawn out, sleep inducing chapters.
The last third of this book was so bad and hard to get through that I dropped it from 3 stars to 2 stars rating. I’m so glad this one is done!
Oh, and a side note: how many times can an author use the word “Jesus!” as a reaction from a character? McCarthy must have some type of record here.
Use something else, McCarthy! JESUS!
Merged review:
Definitely not a book for me, at all. I didn’t like the writing style (it’s amateurish. Yes, I said it and if it’s not amateurish, it’s certainly pretentious) and it ultimately felt like it went nowhere. I realize it has a sequel, but I won’t be reading it. So much of this book just felt pointless, like all of the meandering dialog that had nothing to do with the story. An example; late in the book a character goes into a rant about the John Kennedy assassination, that goes on for many pages and it had ZERO to do with anything in the story. Not only that but McCarthy I guess expects his audience to know all about deep sea diving before reading this. His long, wordy descriptions of the entire process without actually EXPLAINING what any of this means is wrote ONLY for people who know the process. Everyone else? Good luck making any sense out of the long, drawn out, sleep inducing chapters.
The last third of this book was so bad and hard to get through that I dropped it from 3 stars to 2 stars rating. I’m so glad this one is done!
Oh, and a side note: how many times can an author use the word “Jesus!” as a reaction from a character? McCarthy must have some type of record here.
Use something else, McCarthy! JESUS!
Merged review:
Definitely not a book for me, at all. I didn’t like the writing style (it’s amateurish. Yes, I said it and if it’s not amateurish, it’s certainly pretentious) and it ultimately felt like it went nowhere. I realize it has a sequel, but I won’t be reading it. So much of this book just felt pointless, like all of the meandering dialog that had nothing to do with the story. An example; late in the book a character goes into a rant about the John Kennedy assassination, that goes on for many pages and it had ZERO to do with anything in the story. Not only that but McCarthy I guess expects his audience to know all about deep sea diving before reading this. His long, wordy descriptions of the entire process without actually EXPLAINING what any of this means is wrote ONLY for people who know the process. Everyone else? Good luck making any sense out of the long, drawn out, sleep inducing chapters.
The last third of this book was so bad and hard to get through that I dropped it from 3 stars to 2 stars rating. I’m so glad this one is done!
Oh, and a side note: how many times can an author use the word “Jesus!” as a reaction from a character? McCarthy must have some type of record here.
Use something else, McCarthy! JESUS!
Merged review:
Definitely not a book for me, at all. I didn’t like the writing style (it’s amateurish. Yes, I said it and if it’s not amateurish, it’s certainly pretentious) and it ultimately felt like it went nowhere. I realize it has a sequel, but I won’t be reading it. So much of this book just felt pointless, like all of the meandering dialog that had nothing to do with the story. An example; late in the book a character goes into a rant about the John Kennedy assassination, that goes on for many pages and it had ZERO to do with anything in the story. Not only that but McCarthy I guess expects his audience to know all about deep sea diving before reading this. His long, wordy descriptions of the entire process without actually EXPLAINING what any of this means is wrote ONLY for people who know the process. Everyone else? Good luck making any sense out of the long, drawn out, sleep inducing chapters.
The last third of this book was so bad and hard to get through that I dropped it from 3 stars to 2 stars rating. I’m so glad this one is done!
Oh, and a side note: how many times can an author use the word “Jesus!” as a reaction from a character? McCarthy must have some type of record here.
Use something else, McCarthy! JESUS!
The last third of this book was so bad and hard to get through that I dropped it from 3 stars to 2 stars rating. I’m so glad this one is done!
Oh, and a side note: how many times can an author use the word “Jesus!” as a reaction from a character? McCarthy must have some type of record here.
Use something else, McCarthy! JESUS!
Merged review:
Definitely not a book for me, at all. I didn’t like the writing style (it’s amateurish. Yes, I said it and if it’s not amateurish, it’s certainly pretentious) and it ultimately felt like it went nowhere. I realize it has a sequel, but I won’t be reading it. So much of this book just felt pointless, like all of the meandering dialog that had nothing to do with the story. An example; late in the book a character goes into a rant about the John Kennedy assassination, that goes on for many pages and it had ZERO to do with anything in the story. Not only that but McCarthy I guess expects his audience to know all about deep sea diving before reading this. His long, wordy descriptions of the entire process without actually EXPLAINING what any of this means is wrote ONLY for people who know the process. Everyone else? Good luck making any sense out of the long, drawn out, sleep inducing chapters.
The last third of this book was so bad and hard to get through that I dropped it from 3 stars to 2 stars rating. I’m so glad this one is done!
Oh, and a side note: how many times can an author use the word “Jesus!” as a reaction from a character? McCarthy must have some type of record here.
Use something else, McCarthy! JESUS!
Merged review:
Definitely not a book for me, at all. I didn’t like the writing style (it’s amateurish. Yes, I said it and if it’s not amateurish, it’s certainly pretentious) and it ultimately felt like it went nowhere. I realize it has a sequel, but I won’t be reading it. So much of this book just felt pointless, like all of the meandering dialog that had nothing to do with the story. An example; late in the book a character goes into a rant about the John Kennedy assassination, that goes on for many pages and it had ZERO to do with anything in the story. Not only that but McCarthy I guess expects his audience to know all about deep sea diving before reading this. His long, wordy descriptions of the entire process without actually EXPLAINING what any of this means is wrote ONLY for people who know the process. Everyone else? Good luck making any sense out of the long, drawn out, sleep inducing chapters.
The last third of this book was so bad and hard to get through that I dropped it from 3 stars to 2 stars rating. I’m so glad this one is done!
Oh, and a side note: how many times can an author use the word “Jesus!” as a reaction from a character? McCarthy must have some type of record here.
Use something else, McCarthy! JESUS!
Merged review:
Definitely not a book for me, at all. I didn’t like the writing style (it’s amateurish. Yes, I said it and if it’s not amateurish, it’s certainly pretentious) and it ultimately felt like it went nowhere. I realize it has a sequel, but I won’t be reading it. So much of this book just felt pointless, like all of the meandering dialog that had nothing to do with the story. An example; late in the book a character goes into a rant about the John Kennedy assassination, that goes on for many pages and it had ZERO to do with anything in the story. Not only that but McCarthy I guess expects his audience to know all about deep sea diving before reading this. His long, wordy descriptions of the entire process without actually EXPLAINING what any of this means is wrote ONLY for people who know the process. Everyone else? Good luck making any sense out of the long, drawn out, sleep inducing chapters.
The last third of this book was so bad and hard to get through that I dropped it from 3 stars to 2 stars rating. I’m so glad this one is done!
Oh, and a side note: how many times can an author use the word “Jesus!” as a reaction from a character? McCarthy must have some type of record here.
Use something else, McCarthy! JESUS!
balbert1525's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
cody240fc's review against another edition
5.0
They say great literature is inexhaustible. I would say that applies to McCarthy. Here, he revisits similar themes from his previous work, but everything still seems so fresh because, well, it's McCarthy and his talent and his prose provoke wonder.
McCarthy appears to be in a particularly reflective mood. Given his age, this is unsurprising. This is a dialogue driven novel, and what plot there is only serves as fodder for the discussions of the characters. That is not to say that 'The Passenger' is boring. Far from it. Characters such as Western, Long John Sheddan, Borman, Royal, and Alicia are quote maestros that force you to slow your reading pace. They are funny, they are sad, and they are memorable. Some of McCarthy's best characters are here.
To avoid the tl;dr pitfall, some brief thematic highlights:
Regret. Every line is a broken line, you can't go back and fix everything. Life is a struggle to avoid regrets. A life isn't lived without grief, but a life can't be fully lived if it is full of regret.
Belief. The need for belief in good. There would be only hopelessness without it.
Forgiveness. Timeline of forgiveness is much shorter than that for revenge.
Faith. God's goodness appears in strange places. Keep an open mind. A Godless life does not prepare for a Godless death.
Fear. Is it something that can be overcome or only dealt with? Fear is always there, waiting for you.
Suffering vs misery. Suffering is part of the human condition. Misery is a mindset one adopts. You can't escape suffering, but you can avoid misery.
And there is much, much more. I have not yet nailed down the significance of the passenger, or who he or she is. Maybe the answer will be found in 'Stella Maris'. Maybe it will become evident with future re-reads.
Any reader who requires a good amount of plot in their fiction will be left disappointed. If you can appreciate thematic discussions, coupled with great characters, dialogue, and wonderful prose, then McCarthy is for you, and you will love 'The Passenger'. A proper rating cannot be given until 'Stella Maris' has been read, so take this with a grain of salt for now. But it is quintessential McCarthy. One of his books that I will be returning to again and again over the years.
McCarthy appears to be in a particularly reflective mood. Given his age, this is unsurprising. This is a dialogue driven novel, and what plot there is only serves as fodder for the discussions of the characters. That is not to say that 'The Passenger' is boring. Far from it. Characters such as Western, Long John Sheddan, Borman, Royal, and Alicia are quote maestros that force you to slow your reading pace. They are funny, they are sad, and they are memorable. Some of McCarthy's best characters are here.
To avoid the tl;dr pitfall, some brief thematic highlights:
Regret. Every line is a broken line, you can't go back and fix everything. Life is a struggle to avoid regrets. A life isn't lived without grief, but a life can't be fully lived if it is full of regret.
Belief. The need for belief in good. There would be only hopelessness without it.
Forgiveness. Timeline of forgiveness is much shorter than that for revenge.
Faith. God's goodness appears in strange places. Keep an open mind. A Godless life does not prepare for a Godless death.
Fear. Is it something that can be overcome or only dealt with? Fear is always there, waiting for you.
Suffering vs misery. Suffering is part of the human condition. Misery is a mindset one adopts. You can't escape suffering, but you can avoid misery.
And there is much, much more. I have not yet nailed down the significance of the passenger, or who he or she is. Maybe the answer will be found in 'Stella Maris'. Maybe it will become evident with future re-reads.
Any reader who requires a good amount of plot in their fiction will be left disappointed. If you can appreciate thematic discussions, coupled with great characters, dialogue, and wonderful prose, then McCarthy is for you, and you will love 'The Passenger'. A proper rating cannot be given until 'Stella Maris' has been read, so take this with a grain of salt for now. But it is quintessential McCarthy. One of his books that I will be returning to again and again over the years.
erinjp123's review against another edition
3.0
I'm sure people will love this and I might if I read it differently and not over thanksgiving. Heavy as to be expected but like for what? I dont know maybe I like the idea of Cormac McCarthy but not actually the reading of Cormac McCarthy.
Merged review:
I'm sure people will love this and I might if I read it differently and not over thanksgiving. Heavy as to be expected but like for what? I dont know maybe I like the idea of Cormac McCarthy but not actually the reading of Cormac McCarthy.
Merged review:
I'm sure people will love this and I might if I read it differently and not over thanksgiving. Heavy as to be expected but like for what? I dont know maybe I like the idea of Cormac McCarthy but not actually the reading of Cormac McCarthy.
Merged review:
I'm sure people will love this and I might if I read it differently and not over thanksgiving. Heavy as to be expected but like for what? I dont know maybe I like the idea of Cormac McCarthy but not actually the reading of Cormac McCarthy.
Merged review:
I'm sure people will love this and I might if I read it differently and not over thanksgiving. Heavy as to be expected but like for what? I dont know maybe I like the idea of Cormac McCarthy but not actually the reading of Cormac McCarthy.
fisherdodson's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is probably the most sad piece of media I've ever consumed. And I make it a hobby to consume sad media.
crsgreene's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jjyoungs's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5