Books>Movies

I bought Cormac McCarthy's "The Road" the other day. I have never read any of Mr. McCarthy's other novels ("No Country For Old Men," "All The Pretty Horses"), but the book flap hooked me.

DIGRESSION
I don't generally read fiction but every so often it is a nice distraction. I had begun three nonfiction books before I decided I needed a distraction. I call my tendency nonfunktion. It's when I start several nonfiction books but get stuck (in a funk) before I can finish. Usually a good fiction can kick out the funk. (In case anyone cares, I was reading a biography of the "number"/idea zero, "The Mother Tongue" by Bill Bryson and "The Education Of Henry Adams" by Henry Adams.)

BACK ON TOPIC
"The Road" revolves around an unnamed father and son who are trying to survive against all hope following nuclear war. I won't describe more of the novel other than to say that it is extremely bleak (so far) and horrifyingly realistic (as far as my notions of nuclear fallout go). The story is rather relevant following a certain tyrant's recent nuclear testing.

It is like finding a pearl in a mollusk when you run across a book that make you feel strong emotions. I've never read any Stephen King or R.L. Stine (ha) so I'm not used to feeling fear when I read a book. Oftentimes I have felt tension, but reading "The Road" before bed last night completely wore me out. The descriptions and horrors were so palpable I had trouble turning out the light. I'm still thinking about it today -- a lot -- and I haven't even finished it.

I can't fully endorse the book until I've finished it, but if you have a strong stomach and are in the mood to be totally depressed, give "The Road" a turn.

Full Beauchamp endorsement: "Gilead" -- Marilynne Robinson; "Devil In White City" -- Erik Larson; "Short History Of Nearly Everything" -- Bill Bryson.

Update
In the time between the original post and this update (Oct. 27), I have finished "The Road" and McCarthy's "No Country For Old Men." I've also begun "All The Pretty Horses."

Simply put, "The Road" is a masterpiece. It is absolutely required reading. McCarthy can be maddening; he doesn't use puncuation unless meaning would be lost by its exclusion, and it can be difficult to determine who is talking as he uses a running dialogue. He doesn't write down what his characters are thinking apaart from what they say and how they do something. Hence, it is sometimes confusing to understand their intentions and motivations. Still, this is probably the most important book I've read in the last decade (and I'm only 25).

Read it. Experience it. Don't let me oversell it.

(Too late)