The Road by Cormac McCarthy - Book Review

America’s been wasted by (what?) and a father and son, both nameless, travel across the desolated country to find the California coast and hopefully safety.

They have to walk through snow and woods; encountering the disheveled remains of a once prosperous nation, now destroyed, and the lost souls managing to hold onto their meager lives by whatever means necessary. 

The story is often brutal and unrelenting. It is a story about the strong bond between a father and son—even though, the entire book is a depressing lesson in rock bottom, for both humanity and America. The lunatics feel very real, always trying to rape, pillage or steal. 

It makes a person wonder what would become when anarchy rules. There is a greater meaning within this book than what is written on the paper.

This story is one of McCarthy’s best-written works. He writes without rules and regulations—he just tells the story as it needs to be told and pulls you along for the disturbing ride, one line at a time.

McCarthy paints a beautiful, unsettling picture of the destroyed country and one man’s desperate bid to keep his son alive. It is heartwarming, in the way it portrays how far a father is willing to go to save his son when all he wants to do is give up and die. 

The story is depressing, bleak, and constantly nerve-wracking; definitely a nail bitter, with scenes that summons feelings of fear and intense dread. By the end of the book, you feel pretty hopeless for the world, at large. Cormac’s beautiful and strong style shines within this book. 

He has a way of making you sympathize with the characters, even if there is nothing to sympathize for. Child of God is a great example and I give it a whopping 10/10.