I have to confess that I almost put this book down and went on to the next book in my To Be Read stack. It reminded me of "The Brief History of the Dead," which I found one of the best reads last year. But then I started to notice little touches in the writing and execution of the story like the way that the sparse prose was laid out on the page, and the overwhelming feeling that everything in this new world is black, white, and grey. Here's a brief rundown of the story line...a father and son are on a journey down a road after the world, as we know it, has been destroyed but for a very small number of people. Details of the who, what, where, and when are few and far between and this fact makes the story even more stark. In the end, I found this a great read but in a different way than Brief History...the two books would make quite an interesting comp lit discussion. ( )

http://straycarrierpigeon.com/2009/11... ( )

Maybe I missed the point... ( )

McCarthy's sparse sentence structure makes for quick and easy read. This is a good thing since the plot itself deals with the dark aspects of surviving in a post apocalyptic world and can seem quite depressing at times. The story of survival is a simple one and the father and son face fairly predictable story lines, but it is the greater theme of paternal caring and the hope that the next generation can redeem humanity that make this a compelling read. ( )

Escrito con una precisión y concisión admirables, el libro captura la atención casi desde la primera línea. Me gustaría ser capaz de escribir así. Esto inaugura lo que espero sea una fructífera relación con McCarthy.Crítica (en catalán) más completa en http://membrillu.blogspot.com/2007/10... ( )

Escrito con una precisión y concisión admirables, el libro captura la atención casi desde la primera línea. Me gustaría ser capaz de escribir así. Esto inaugura lo que espero sea una fructífera relación con McCarthy.Crítica (en catalán) más completa en http://membrillu.blogspot.com/2007/10... ( )

the most unforgettable book I've ever read
heartwrenching, yet not unbearably sad ( )

I was the only one in bookclub to not enjoy this book - awful, only got to page 60, how did it win prizes? ( )

I love Cormac McCarthy's style -- sparse descriptions, interesting word choice and sentence structure. This is probably my favorite. Although the story is very dark, and much is left to the reader's imagination, it's ultimately the story of a father's love. This is certainly not a "light read", but well worth every minute spent. ( )

“‘Remember that the things you put into your head are there forever.’ ‘You forget some things, don't you?’ ‘Yes, you forget what you want to remember, and you remember what you want to forget’.” This exchange from the book seems to have been the author’s guiding principle as he chose what to put on the page. Only giving your head a few choice images , the book’s sparseness was haunting, stripping everything to its bear roots. Faith, hope, and love do exist, though. These are on display against constant fear. McCarthy’s bleak picture of humanity is devastating, probably in large part because he describes a world without beauty, forcing the reader to cling to the man’s love for his son, the boy’s faith in his father, and their shared hope in the promise of the South. ( )

I liked it, but I also found the plot somewhat derivative of a lot of '70's sci-fi and apocalyptic stories. The writing is quite beautiful in a sparse way. ( )

I liked it, but I also found the plot somewhat derivative of a lot of '70's sci-fi and apocalyptic stories. The writing is quite beautiful in a sparse way. ( )

The Road is an almost impossibly good novel. To have constructed a premise so dark, to have created a world so bleak and yet so real—I can only imagine that many writers would have flinched and turned away. To have been the creator of a work of art like this one must have required not only an intellectual commitment to the story, but visceral exertions. The reader experiences an unnerving empathy for the man and the boy. The horrors they witness are discouragingly consonant with human nature, supposing a post-apocalyptic landscape where every resource has become scarce. Reading it, I would tense up and goad myself to work more with my hands, in case a day should come when knowledge-work becomes obsolete, and I have to fend tooth and nail for myself and my family. These are paranoiac fantasies, taken seriously only by a lunatic fringe; I recognize this, eight hours removed from turning The Road’s last page. McCarthy is a fluent provocateur of those unsavory emotions, which perhaps require release sometimes. You cannot read The Road and not ask yourself how much of your goodness is mere luxury, a resource that could be pilfered like your wealth. Reading it isn’t a pleasant experience. But The Road is a treasure.

This is a dark, scary novel about a man and his son traveling across the United States in a post-apocalyptic winter. It explores their relationship while they run from "bad guys" and search for food and try to stay alive, even though they don't know what there is to live for. ( )

This is my "Best book of the year" for 2009. I think this is almost a perfect novel, perfect length perfect charters, perfect , perfect , perfect. I am looking forward to reading more of Cormac in the future because this book is amazing! ( )

For a gripping father-son story, try The Road by Cormac McCarthy. I devoured this book in two days.

Perhaps "devoured" is a poor choice of words.

The story takes place in a post-apocalyptic world, with a man and his son traveling south for warmer temperatures and hope. Existing food supplies are mostly gone and the people have turned on each other. Survival is day-to-day and you can't trust the fellow travelers on the road. They are likely to take your stuff and eat you. Large parts of the remaining human population have turned to cannibalism.

For a GeekDad like me the book was a great combination of post-apocalypse survival and parenthood. But the book is tough on the heart. The survival of the father and son is often in jeopardy and there is constant sense of danger. On the other hand, there are the touching scenes of humanity and the little things that bring enjoyment sprinkled in the story.

There is a big screen adaptation of The Road scheduled for a Thanksgiving release. I'm not sure how well the movie can capture the great writing and emotional connection of the book.

I recommend putting The Road on your reading list. ( )

After hearing the junior class marvel over how much they loved The Road, I thought it would be a great novel to read as my component of our utopias and dystopias unit. They told me it was sad, but I had no idea what I was getting myself into.

The boy and his father are on a journey along the road, to move further south in search of where all of the rest of the “good people” are. The novel is filled with the interactions between the father, the boy, and the world at hand. This book pulled out every ounce of emotion I had in my soul, I felt as if I was walking down the road, pushing the shopping cart with them. While there are emotions ranging from loneliness to sadness pouring out of the pages of McCarthy’s book, the reader can still feel the strong love between the father and son.

Because of the nature of the book, the reader’s imagination is able to work freely. The man and his son are nameless, in nameless places, in an unknown year. Some years before the setting of the novel, a catastrophe struck earth, leaving a wasteland of a country. The reasons for the devastation are a mystery to the reader, but as I read further into the novel I came up with many ideas. While Cormac McCarthy does not give us a reason for the disaster, I tried to come up with different concepts that the wipeout could personify. I believe that one aspect of our society that The Road was trying to illuminate to the reader is the fear of the unknown and the things that we can’t control. I enjoyed reading The Road, though it was a struggle to keep my feelings in line. This novel had a huge impact on my emotions and my thoughts of the future. I highly recommend this book to everyone. ( )

"The Road" is definitely one of its kind. This novel describes the story of an unnamed father and son on a never-ending epic journey after an apocalyptic event. The setting takes place in the future in a mysterious location on the East Coast. Cormac McCarthy, the author of the skillfully crafted novel, uses very dark diction and it gives the book a mysterious atmosphere and tone, which is very intriguing to the reader.

The father and son of the story have an unbreakable bond because they have been through so much together. Their entire world has practically fallen apart, yet they are still trying to make the best out of their situation. Surviving in this completely new, futuristic world turns out to be quite the challenge for the duo. The two have to withstand cannibals, scrounge for food, and witness the horrors of the aftermath of the apocalypse.

The main character of "The Road", the son, is placed in a chaotic society that has no rules or order – this is shown as the dystopia throughout the novel. The son, who is very young, has to constantly worry about his safety and the safety of his father which means they have to hide, kill, and sacrifice everything they have for each other. The son is very mature and he takes every obstacle with a grain of salt.

This novel was definitely different from any other book that I’ve read – it doesn’t even have any chapters in it! I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a novel that makes them think. I thought it was very good, yet very slow at times, hence why I only gave it three stars. ( )

Sorry guys, I know he's all famous and respected, but I like it when people use quotation marks to indicate when people are speaking. And, more importantly, I don't find wandering through peril only to luck across life saving something or other at the very last moment time and again a very interesting plot device. Also, a disproportionate number of his metaphors and similes were painfully heavy handed. Like 10th grade goth in love heavy handed. ( )

A piercingly bleak outlook on a post-apocalyptic America brilliantly and expertly maintained for the books entirety by Cormac McCarthy. Not an author I'd read before so I may now go on to tackle one of his Westerns - not a genre I would ever have imagined me reading. A highlight of "The Road" for me was the eating of the can of pineapple. It certainly made me enjoy and savour my next experience of tinned fruit. ( )

Amazing prose. This post-apocalyptic story is dark but beautiful. Stealing across this horrific landscape an unnamed man and his emaciated son, a boy probably around the age of ten. It is the story of the love the father feels for his son, a love as deep and acute as his grief. ( )

Brilliant but horrible, I read this in one sitting because I knew if I put it down I would never have the courage to take it up again. ( )

A strangely compelling read: you want to know how it comes out even though you feel sure it won't be any kind of a happy ending. Truly harrowing in places, but never gratuitous. An oddly satisfying read.

Overall, I thought The Road was a heart wrenching story which I was never able to put down. The story about the man and the son was moving; their tale of their journey across the post-apocalyptic world was something which I have never read before, mixing together a colorful rainbow of emotions - happiness, sadness, depression, desperation, frustration, loneliness, and many more. The only thing which I dislike about the book was that the reader never learned more about the "world": what actually happened? Yet despite this, The Book was an outstanding book... ( )

In a world with barely any food and drinkable water, a man and boy must use each other to stay alive. The Road is a story that tests the limits of humanity in a shattered world. The man and the boy must find hope to keep moving through the ashen distant land. Each day it gets harder with attacks from cannibals and the decrease of supplies. The Road is a good book that suggests what makes us who we are and the decisions we make.