The Road by Cormac McCarthy, 2.5 stars rounded up

[NancyJ]

I wanted to read this book for a long time, and I’m glad I did, even though I didn’t like it very much. The Road is about a nameless man and his son, walking through a desolate post apocalyptic landscape. They are hungry and cold, and they completely avoid other people. We don’t know what exactly happened to destroy the world, and we know only a little about what happened to this family for however many years since the event.

I read a few other post apocalyptic books in recent years, and I thought I’d be fine. But it took me two weeks to be able to get past one tough scene. Finally yesterday I got past it, and built up some momentum to get through the whole book. The story is very simple, the writing is spare, and the dialogue was sometimes meaningful, but repetitive. I liked some sections quite a bit, but I wanted something else to grab onto. I also got stuck on the things that they didn’t do. (view spoiler)[For instance, I think most people would try to form a group with other people for safety, companionship, and mutual aid, especially with a child in tow. (hide spoiler)]

A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World is a somewhat similar book that I enjoyed more.