Scan barcode
erebus53's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
My overall impression of this book was that it was like a zombie apocalypse story, minus the trees and the zombies. In a non-descript North America that has been razed by fire, a man and his boy walk south in the hopes that they will get to warmer weather, and find it easier to survive. The main characters are known simply as the man, and the boy. This sort of increases the feeling of the bleakness, because for the most part, people are few and far between, and so you don't need a whole heap of names to disambiguate people.. and those names you do get from people are arbitrary and fairly meaningless.
Obviously this is a story of survival, and the balance of grief, hope and faith. As they travel down a highway they have to overcome obstacles both physical and emotional. The narrative is a mix of procedural descriptions, and poetic prose. It almost feels like the pretty bits are mismatched to the story, but I figure you have to have some fancy bits for your essays about the Literature (crozzled means with dark crispy bits on the outside.. like bacon). Typically the poetic observations are those of the end of day; musings that find one just before sleep after a long day of slogging through the countryside. It might help to have a dictionary nearby, because you don't get a Pulitzer by only using common words. There is a harsh poetic beauty to describing a highway full of burnt out cars whose occupants were scorched inside as they tried to flee the firestorms.
Ten thousand dreams ensepulchred within their crozzled hearts.
I really loved the descriptions of coming upon windfall resources, and in my own mind, I would have stopped my journey if I found plenty of resources.. or at least had a breather. Maybe I'm too risk averse to survive the holocaust of a continent. From what happens it doesn't look like radiation is a part of it, so this is a different take on things than other apocalyptic stories like Mad Max.
It was certainly an interesting read.
Graphic: Abandonment, Kidnapping, Animal death, Death, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Terminal illness, Child death, Gun violence, Murder, Body horror, Physical abuse, Stalking, Violence, Vomit, Blood, Cannibalism, Chronic illness, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Torture
mildlypretentiousreader's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
—————————————————————
A slow-paced book, The Road by Cormac McCarthy tells the desolate and cumbersome story of a father (“The Man” ) and his son (“The Boy”) as they travel through a post-apocalyptic United States of America. Their world is severely limited by their grim circumstances. Harsh living conditions, starvation, the threat of animals, the inhumanity of other people. Society is now rampant with thieves, bandits, cannibals, and the like who will do virtually anything to stay alive. Because of the harsh and untrustworthy nature of nearly everyone in the USA, the Man copes with this reality by trusting and helping no one he and his son come across. Although harsh, considering the circumstances, the Man feels this is necessary. If push comes to shove,
Graphic: Cannibalism, Grief, Vomit, War, Abandonment, Animal death, Gore, Animal cruelty, Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, and Violence
tr4shc4n's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, Gun violence, Gore, Death of parent, Death, Abandonment, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
revolution666's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Cannibalism, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Abandonment, Torture, Murder, Gun violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, and Terminal illness
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Cursing, Gore, Rape, War, Pregnancy, Grief, and Animal death
babarabab's review against another edition
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Chronic illness, Abandonment, Death, Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Cannibalism, and Gun violence
lindsayerin's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Abandonment, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Gore, Murder, and Suicide
Minor: Trafficking, Slavery, and Fire/Fire injury
random19379's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Slavery, Violence, Sexual violence, Murder, Suicide, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Moderate: Racial slurs and Ableism
cstein's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Murder, Pedophilia, Child death, Confinement, Medical content, Violence, Cannibalism, Torture, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, Chronic illness, and Terminal illness
Minor: Ableism
geejee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Body horror, Cannibalism, and Child death
Moderate: Abandonment and Suicide
luis0n7i's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Death, Grief, Gun violence, Pregnancy, Trafficking, Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child death, Chronic illness, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Violence
Minor: Rape