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mortifiedpenguin92's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
thebobsphere's review against another edition
4.0
I think book synchronicity is fantastic! I just finished reading a disturbing book about the beauty and brutality of the British countryside and my next book is about the ugliness of the American south and is equally disturbing.
The main protagonist of Child of God is Lester Ballard and he, there is no other way to describe him, is a degenrate human being. Take all the bad qualities of the human race and they are all encapsulated in Lester Ballard. To actually describe the actions he performs throughout the book is something I’d rather the reader discover but I will say that it’s not pleasant.
Saying that, Cormac McCarthy is a master at this. He knows how to get into his character’s psyche and get a reaction from the reader. He did in Blood Meridian and also in All the Pretty Horses . McCarthy excels at bringing out the nastier side of people.
He also great at describing the environment his characters inhabit. In this case it’s a backwards town : The garbage man has nine daughters named from terms found in a medical dictionary, there are special needs children, racism exists, people steal, lie and cheat. Like Myers there are juxtapositons; along with all this ugliness there are digressions in which nature is the focus.
The book is presented as a series of three page vignettes but a plot of sorts does emerge as one keeps on reading and that’s definitely worth doing as McCarthy takes Lester Ballard’s actions to different territories: this is a man who has no moral compass whatsoever.
One thing it is worth noting: Child of God is McCarthy’s third novel. Although in later books his style got more refined, it’s interesting to see that even in the early days his themes about the dark side of the mind were fully formed. I won’t say that Child of God is a masterpiece but it’s a fine snapshot of great things to come.
The main protagonist of Child of God is Lester Ballard and he, there is no other way to describe him, is a degenrate human being. Take all the bad qualities of the human race and they are all encapsulated in Lester Ballard. To actually describe the actions he performs throughout the book is something I’d rather the reader discover but I will say that it’s not pleasant.
Saying that, Cormac McCarthy is a master at this. He knows how to get into his character’s psyche and get a reaction from the reader. He did in Blood Meridian and also in All the Pretty Horses . McCarthy excels at bringing out the nastier side of people.
He also great at describing the environment his characters inhabit. In this case it’s a backwards town : The garbage man has nine daughters named from terms found in a medical dictionary, there are special needs children, racism exists, people steal, lie and cheat. Like Myers there are juxtapositons; along with all this ugliness there are digressions in which nature is the focus.
The book is presented as a series of three page vignettes but a plot of sorts does emerge as one keeps on reading and that’s definitely worth doing as McCarthy takes Lester Ballard’s actions to different territories: this is a man who has no moral compass whatsoever.
One thing it is worth noting: Child of God is McCarthy’s third novel. Although in later books his style got more refined, it’s interesting to see that even in the early days his themes about the dark side of the mind were fully formed. I won’t say that Child of God is a masterpiece but it’s a fine snapshot of great things to come.
twotoes's review against another edition
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
The conversations of the other town folks are great.
ledimirnunez's review against another edition
5.0
Lester Ballard is unforgiving, weird, and amoral. I didn't know what to expect when I picked up Child of God, but this left me feeling how I felt when reading Lolita. Cormac McCarthy’s writing is so darn exquisite, but the story itself is demoralizing and scary.
McCarthy doesn’t use quotation marks, but you can still follow the dialogue and he somehow captures a vernacular that makes you feel you inhabit the world he creates, which if you did, be very careful around Lester Ballard.
Ballard, whom you hear about through hearsay, is labeled a sort of sociopathic outcast. You can tell he’s been through some things, and initially, I kind of wonder if I can trust the things people were saying about him. Sometimes people lie, they make up stories, and maybe he just went through some things. But what you see is how these stories about him begin to shatter the trust in a town, no one wants to be alone with him. His interactions are downright weird and spiral down to the grotesque. I’ll let you take the journey and meet Ballard for yourself, but what McCarthy did in this novel is nothing short of amazing.
It’s a short book, about 200 pages, total. I couldn’t put it down!
McCarthy doesn’t use quotation marks, but you can still follow the dialogue and he somehow captures a vernacular that makes you feel you inhabit the world he creates, which if you did, be very careful around Lester Ballard.
Ballard, whom you hear about through hearsay, is labeled a sort of sociopathic outcast. You can tell he’s been through some things, and initially, I kind of wonder if I can trust the things people were saying about him. Sometimes people lie, they make up stories, and maybe he just went through some things. But what you see is how these stories about him begin to shatter the trust in a town, no one wants to be alone with him. His interactions are downright weird and spiral down to the grotesque. I’ll let you take the journey and meet Ballard for yourself, but what McCarthy did in this novel is nothing short of amazing.
It’s a short book, about 200 pages, total. I couldn’t put it down!
kate_kd's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
darthxduder's review against another edition
challenging
dark
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? It's complicated
3.75
anders_t_powell's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25