Cormac McCarthy’s “The Road” is a 2006 American novel about a father and his son attempting to survive in a bleak, post-apocalyptic landscape after an unspecified cataclysmic event wiped out most of civilization. Battling starvation, exposure and other survivors, this father-son duo fight tooth and nail to attempt to find any remnants of safety in a world that has lost all semblance of humanity.
McCarthy’s prose is sparce and haunting, perfectly reflecting the stark and unforgiving landscape that the characters traverse. The novel’s minimalist style creates an atmosphere of hopelessness and despair, which is only punctuated by moments of tenderness and love between the father and son.
This was my second time reading “The Road” and I enjoyed it even more than the first time. Even though I knew how the book ended, I still found myself sitting on the edge of my seat at the tense parts of the novel.
The book is entertaining as the characters trudge forward towards their inevitably sorrowful ending. “The Road” is not a light or uplifting read, but it is a moving and thought-provoking one and is an extremely compelling narrative in an otherwise desolate and grim novel. 10/10
