I remember seeing Cormac McCarthy on Oprah and he was talking about his young son (he had another son very late in life), how his relationship with his son was partially the inspiration for this book. I can imagine that him being an older father and knowing that he will possibly not see his son grow to adulthood really had him thinking about the world he would be leaving his son behind to live in. Would he be leaving him to an apocalypse or a global catastrophe?
Anyone reading this book will have difficulty with the subject matter. And if you're a parent, it will be even more difficult. But it is a book that must be read because the issues and situations in the book do need to be thought about and even discussed. Although a work of fiction, it is very plausible that something like this could happen. I believe that Mr. McCarthy also had this in mind when writing it...the world needs to think beyond our every day existence, if not for ourselves, than for our children and our future generations.
Beyond the message I feel is present here is also a very suspenseful novel that will have you on the edge of your seat through it's short 241 page count. It is also a poignant story about the love of a father for his son and how he will do whatever it takes to protect him and help him to survive. Yes, I'll admit that I cried some tears over this one.
Two words for you...read it!
About the book:
A searing, postapocalyptic novel destined to become Cormac McCarthy's masterpiece.
A father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. They sky is dark. Their destination is the coast, although they don't know what, if anything, awaits them there. They have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands that stalk the road, the clothes they are wearting, a cart of scavenged food—and each other.
The Road is the profoundly moving story of a journey. It boldly imagines a future in which no hope remains, but in which the father and his son, “each the other's world entire,” are sustained by love. Awesome in the totality of its vision, it is an unflinching meditation on the worst and the best that we are capable of: ultimate destructiveness, desperate tenacity, and the tenderness that keeps two people alive in the face of total devastation. (from Fantastic Fiction)
Happy Reading!
**FTC Disclaimer: I purchased this book with my own money.
