Reviews

I just…. I don’t love McCarthy’s writing style. It’s so difficult to read. I had to break out the dictionary so much and eventually just gave up on the fact that I don’t know many words he uses. I also struggle with his lack of quotations and the way dialogue is written. There were a few couplets of dialogue that quite literally didn’t make sense when it came to who the lines were attributed to.

I decided to read this book because I read All the Pretty Horses last year and didn’t like it but wanted to give McCarthy another chance and The Road seemed like a story I would like more. I do enjoy a post-apocalyptic haunt, so I thought this might be the McCarthy book to change my opinion.

I did love the the descriptions of the world and and how harrowing the world that McCarthy has imagined turned out to be. I was truly haunted by a lot of the imagery. His poetic writing style emphasized the despair of this post apocalyptic world. I also liked that we didn’t get a true backstory on how the world became this way, how long the world had been this way, or where the main characters came from. The atmosphere of this book was enjoyable because of it’s bleakness. There were many scenes that made my stomach turn. I liked that it made me feel things in this aspect.

I am on team kill your self rather than survive in an apocalypse. I am also not a parent (and have no aspirations to become one). I think because of that, I just wasn’t as compelled by the story as the popular opinion has me thinking I would be. I just struggled with the point of continuing to live in this world, especially in SUCH isolation.

The ending made me feel very conflicted. Could there have been more hope for the father if he hadn’t been so guarded? Would they have survived without him being so guarded? Damned if you do, damned if you don’t. It did end with a spark of hope, though that spark was small compared to the son’s broader despair.

I don’t know if I would recommend this book. It would really depend on the person and their preferences.

jorydotcom's review against another edition

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dark hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

courtney23's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

dwindch's review against another edition

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1.0

I did not like the book
why
I don't know
Okay
Did you like the book
No
Okay

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