Another Book Review

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
A fairly easy read as far as the prose itself goes. The strange little quirks like omitted apostrophes and the use of pronouns in place of character names were only a mild distraction. After the first chapter or so, I was more concerned with the story than the presentation.

First, I should admit I enjoy reading post-apocalyptic fiction. Always have, so I'm a bit predisposed to favor the genre as long as I can buy into what the author is trying to sell me.

This author's post-apocalyptic vision was disturbing only because it is easy to imagine humanity sinking to such feral behavior when the very fabric of civilization has been unraveled and survival is all that is left. Distrusting the generosity and humanity of others, as the father so clearly did, could become second nature. I certainly didn't see his behavior as overly paranoid when enough evidence was presented to support it.

Be warned...spoiler alert!

The ending, though. That's the reason this story got a 3 out of 5 star rating. While I didn't mind the fact that child ended up in good hands, it was so unexpected that it had the flavor of a dues ex machina. The idea that the child's "good guys" had been following them, waiting on the father to die, felt a bit contrived as the reader had seen no evidence of "good guys" anywhere along the road. No hints, no messages, no overtures.

View all my reviews >>

Comments

They saved the finger..

This was supposed to be an easy, carefree weekend. One of those rare weekends where spontaneity is possible because plans were not made ahead of time. We could lounge on the couch, work on our hobbies, or even do a little shopping. And, no, I'm not referring to the necessary evil of grocery shopping, but the much more enjoyable version where you get to buy things that actually make you happy. Because the oldest boy needed some pants and the youngest could use a new pair of shoes, I decided to head into the city to do some shopping at Kohl's. Of course, my decision to shop there was not quite so altruistic. Mama needed a new bathing suit! So, I pack the kids up and head into the city. The youngest picks out his shoes . The oldest tries on a few pairs of jeans and ends up with two in the basket. Did I mention we have to shop in the men's department now? That he's wearing size 29? My baby is growing up! Then it was Mom's ...

Looking for Willing Victims

I've decided I'd like to expand my photography skills and experience. This means I need willing models. So far I've got a couple of people who might be willing to let me practice on them. I'm excited but nervous. I want so badly to take amazing pictures and give them each something they like. Shoot #1: Mom wants me to take Christmas pictures of her three daughters. I'm very excited, but I also want a lovely background. I was thinking of taking them to a park or some other such setting where there's a lot of pines. The problem is that Fall has just arrived and these are supposed to be Christmas pictures. Any suggestions? Shoot #2: A senior. I think I'm okay on this one. She wants fall colors in her pictures, so I just need to wait for the trees to do their thing. Then its a matter of finding the right location. Now here's my real delimna: Where do I upload them so they can be printed to look like professional pictures? Rounded corners and im...

Camping with Little Boys

Our first travel trailer. I don't remember camping much with my family as a kid. This is likely because we always had the same vacation destination: a family plot in Baldwin, MI. There was no cabin there. Instead, there were two structures: a small, silver camper and an old single-wide trailer. The silver camper is gone but the single-wide still sits there and is used by extended family members to this day. It wasn't until I was a teenager that my step-mom and dad bought a pop-up trailer and we started camping elsewhere in the state. My memory isn't the greatest, but I'm almost certain they got the pop-up after I started dating Ken. Eventually, my parents upgraded to a fifth wheel that my dad still pulls around to various nearby camping spots. Ken, by contrast, didn't have a set vacation destination growing up. His family camped. They started out with a truck-bed camper, I believe, and eventually upgraded to a fifth wheel. Ken and I vacationed both in Baldwin an...

Castle in the Clouds

Search This Blog