Here is the book I’m reading for book club this month.
Photo from amazon.com
Cormac McCarthy wrote this dark tale of a father and son’s journey through a post-apocalyptic America.
And man, is it dark.
This is the first book being read by a new book club being started by Tommie from 95.3 WAOR.
Tommie and others from the Michiana area will be meeting at the Hammes Notre Dame bookstore on Wednesday, January 28th at 7PM to discuss The Road.
Remember how I’ve mentioned before that I pick out books (sometimes) based on how the cover looks?
Yeah.
Wouldn’t have picked this one up with a ten-foot pole.
Not even out of curiosity.
So you’re probably wondering why I read it then.
(I work at the bookstore)
And I figured that I should at least give it a try before I dismiss it completely.
I tried it.
Don’t expect to see me in line when the movie comes out this year.
Even if Viggo Mortensen IS in it.
The Road does make you think.
1. What caused the state of the America the characters are now walking through?
2. What do the characters represent?
3. Are they even going to make it to their final destination?
4. What is their reasoning for going to that particular place?
I am still trying to answer these questions.
For me, The Road was not one of those can’t-put-down books.
It was more of a why-does-the-author-write-without-quotations-and-apostrophes-this-is-driving-me-insane kind of book. I had to put it down. Often. And gently, to avoid throwing it across the room. (because it would not do to make grammatical corrections in red pen on a library book).
I’ve heard McCarthy’s writing style described as “poetic.”
Okay.
Like e.e.cummings.
That’s what I thought of when I was reading.
But while I like e.e.cummings, I didn’t like that style in a novel.
The landscape was desolate. Grey.Silent. Cold. Damp.
Remember when the WTC came down?
The photos in People. Ash everywhere in NYC. Dazed people shuffling through the streets, covered in greyness.
That is the picture the characters in The Road painted for me.
I’ve been going over the reading guide questions since I finished the book. I’ll probably still be contemplating those questions when I get to the bookstore next week.
Has anyone else read this book? I’m open for discussion here. Feel free to leave your thoughts, insights or opinions.
