A review by aburnss
The Road by Cormac McCarthy

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

 I initially picked up "The Road" as a recommendation from Lisa. I knew going in that it was a dark dystopian read, but I was still surprised with the depth of emotion the book evoked.

"The Road" follows a father and son as they make their way south following a road, amidst a horrifyingly bleak start to a post-apocalyptic winter. While we know little about what caused this ending of normal society, the characters are faced with a level of desolation that is difficult to comprehend.
The world is covered in ash with fires everywhere. The lack of sun and fires have killed nearly all vegetation and animal life. Humans have long been in starvation and the few remaining alive live in terror of roaming cannibalistic groups.


The desperate fight for survival and slow starvation as the book progresses is heart-wrenching. The author expertly demonstrates the fierce love between parent and child in the backdrop of the most bleak of circumstances imaginable. It is difficult to say I enjoyed reading this book, but it was so well written. The desperation and horror grew with each chapter.

The lack of quotations in the dialogue between characters was a masterful choice. Humans in this world had lost everything. Conversation was plagued with the constant lurking of death around the corner and the lack of quotations made the huge difference between normalcy and this horror all the more apparent. 

Several scenes stuck out to me.
The discovery of the locked cellar with emaciated humans tied up for slow consumption. The discovery of the underground bunker and excruciating decision / necessity to leave it. The orchard full of old dry apples and eating and drinking until bloated. The father's desperate instructions to his son on how to use the final bullet to kill himself if he were to be discovered. The naked abandonment of the thief on the road.. and the son's realization that they had indeed killed him.
Each as or more heart breaking than the last, this was not a good book to read before bed. 

This book puts the human condition into dramatic perspective. The issues that plague our minds frequently are so inconsequential compared to the bleak and dying world of "The Road". I won't be forgetting this story any time soon. The writing is beautiful, immersive, and perfectly builds a horrifying dystopia. I would recommend this read to anyone wanting to explore familial bonds in the most traumatic setting possible.
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