Reviews tagging 'Pregnancy'

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

31 reviews

breedawnwriter's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Suicide, Cannibalism, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Rape, Vomit, and Pregnancy

jaynainjayna_16's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This book DESTROYED ME. Like Viola Davis snot falling down and all. I’m usually not a dystopian fan because the usual dystopian settings (sometimes the setting just doesn’t garner my attention), but this book’s setting was really interesting. Stated in the synopsis, it’s all set on a road and rarely deviates from it. This choice purposefully simplifies the story, creating suspense for the reader. There’s only so much that can happen on one singular road and to see what the man and boy encounter throughout their story is touching and jarring. Another interesting choice on Cormac McCarthy’s part is the lack of names in the story. The only time a name is used, we don’t know if it’s genuine, showing the lack of identity and distorted past the characters have. I’m trying not to spoil anything, but the last like 5-10 pages of the book tore me to pieces and I have to reread it again to get the full effect. Anyways, if you’re not a big fan of dystopian books like me, I suggest you give it a go, and maybe you’ll start liking the genre! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Trafficking, Cannibalism, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Blood and Excrement

proceduralbob'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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Rape, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, and Cannibalism

Minor: Pregnancy

cstein's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

• 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

Prescient, disturbing, and sad, occasionally funny, often beautiful, full of (human) nature and faith. Images that stick in your head. Not as completely bleak as I feared and not as violent as some of McCarthy's other works.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Chronic illness, Cursing, and Terminal illness

Minor: Ableism

caffeinecrow's review against another edition

dark sad slow-paced

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

1.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Pregnancy

perthalus's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

The Road speaks to me on many levels. To some extent I can compare it to my own life, especially due to how this was originally based on the author’s relationship with his son. I feel as if I am something in-between the father and the son. Carrying my fire through a grey and hopeless world, uncertain who is a good guy and who is a bad guy. Like the father and son I argue with myself about whether I’d be better off helping somebody or looking out for myself. It’s a cold ash-covered world.

The way the world is described, and the characters journey through it, feels like it draws from feelings of depression and anxiety, which I can definitely relate to. We get pages of hopeless grey landscapes full of death and destruction, only to have it broken up by an intimate moment, surrounded but also contained in those feelings. A glimpse of hope.

Every description and conversation feels real, and they never stop no matter how slow or quick the pace goes. It’s a constant, seemingly endless journey, yet every moment is to be savoured and held. The tension of reward and punishment is constantly pulling you to the following page, just to read about every night spent watching the road, every tin of pears and every secret door, because you can feel it.

Maybe I’m biased because of the person who recommended it to me, or because this is the first buddy read I’ve ever done, but this may be my favourite book I’ve read so far. It deserves every bit of praise it gets, it’s beautifully haunted, hopeless yet so incredibly hopeful.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death, Gore, Blood, Cannibalism, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal death, Rape, Slavery, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

linds_jacks's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death

Moderate: Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Cannibalism, and Murder

Minor: Suicide, Torture, and Pregnancy

The general dark/depressing tone of the book makes even minor mentions of disturbing topics potentially incredibly triggering.

luis0n7i's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Rape

bruinrocks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

What a fantastic novel. Very bleak and desolate. The description of the landscape is beautifully eerie and solitary. The relationship between the father and son is extremely well done, their bond is unbreakable. This novel has some really graphic moments, but, it shows the lengths humanity will go to in an apocalyptic event. Read at your own risk, but you surely won’t be disappointed. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Cannibalism, and Death of parent

Moderate: Child death

Minor: Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

sarah_ann_roth's review against another edition

challenging dark sad slow-paced

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

1.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Violence, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Slavery, Suicide, and Pregnancy