The Road is the first Cormac McCarthy book I've ever read, but it's definitely a damn fine read that has not failed to impress me in the slightest. McCarthy has a somewhat older style of writing and isn't afraid to allow his narrative time to dwell on events or give the reader time to ponder. Much of the action in The Road can almost be described as mundane in a sense, but the ever present dread of the current circumstances (a dead, post-apocalyptic America) turns each corner or encounter into a potential fight against death, regardless of the actual circumstances. This is ever so magnified by the interaction between the two main characters, consisting of a man and his son. The child has a tendency to see things in a fearful light (sometimes justly so) and his uneasy conversations with his father in times of potential crisis magnifies the reader's own apprehension when the story turns tense. McCarthy uses this technique time and again to incredible effect and due to the unique events of each encounter, it never feels dull or repetitive.
Having read The Road and seen Joel and Ethan Cohen's adaptation of McCarthy's No Country For Old Men, I begin to see some of the attraction the Cohen brothers had for the use of space and time in Cormac's books. But while the Cohens achieved mixed results in the medium of film, McCarthy's ability to linger on details and create a sense of tension, awe or morbidity is only a strength in the medium of literature. I can also see the Coen's attraction to McCarthy's style of dialog, which was quite laconic in The Road.
The structure of the novel is perfect; The Road literally takes place on the road through the wasted country side. Though the characters stay at various locations throughout the book, the story maintains the momentum of the journey, even beyond the final page. The focus never leaves the two protagonists and little is known beyond their experiences; the reader isn't even told when the cataclysm hit America or what kind of apocalypse it was (though the ever-present rain-of-ash and bitter cold described in the book strongly suggests some kind of nuclear devastation or meteor impact). As such, like the back cover of the book describes, the two characters are each other's world entire, with only a few spoken tales related between them or the odd flashback of the man remembering his wife. The strength of the love these two have for each other and the closeness they share is palpable throughout the novel. The story is at times heartbreaking, exhilarating and incredibly funny. I can particularly understand the attraction this book may have for new parents or parents of young children, as the boy's dialog can be incredibly humorous in that charming way children speak of the world before fully understanding it.
Enhancing the desolate setting is McCarthy's amazing use of the printed medium. The Road is a full but lean 287 pages with no chapter breaks. This choice of structure beautifully merges with the perpetual travel of the narrative; the journey never stops and thus neither does the book. This structure also makes Cormac's book nearly impossible to set down. Further adding flavor to the style is the informal dialog. McCarthy never utilizes quotations marks to distinguish spoken dialog, achieving a two-fold effect which communicates to the reader this post-apocalyptic world has lost all pretense of formality while also heightening the sense of intimacy between the father and son. The two never even refer to the other by name and remain anonymous.
To some, my description of Cormac's writing may make The Road sound like a loquacious, difficult read. Nothing could be farther from the truth. McCarthy's writing is exquisite in it's accessibility without losing any depth. The dialog may lack traditional speech punctuation, but because there is so little spoken in the book, the reader pays close attention to what little is said. The dialog is also terse for most of the book, so the reader never finds themselves lost due to extended speeches. To my mind, this book may very well set the standard as one of the most dense, yet easily readable fictional books to be published in our decade.
Am I overstating the book? I do have a tendency to do so, but it's just such a joy to experience something when it works on nearly every level and strikes a chord with me as my kind of story. And while this book may tickle the sci-fi fan within me, this is just the kind of book that can appeal to everyone, male and female alike. I'd recommend this book to my younger college buddies as well as my parents and everyone in between with equal confidence.
Now having read the book, I am incredibly curious about the upcoming film adaptation of The Road. Not only does Viggo Mortensen feel like very smart casting for this role, but I am also familiar with the Australian director of The Road, John Hillcoat, through his 2005 film The Proposition. While that film ultimately lacked a sharpness in the editing, the film was a success on nearly every other level from performances to cinematography to style, firmly establishing Hillcoat as a talent worth watching. In particular, The Proposition had atmosphere to burn and anyone who has watched that film and read The Road can see an obvious parallel between the amazing way in which the expansive, barren setting of these two stories is described. To say I believe Hillcoat is a brilliant choice to direct this film adaptation of The Road is an understatement. It makes me very eager to see the result and very hopeful as well (which we all know doesn't happen often with Hollywood films)
