I started reading No Country For Old Men a few nights ago. Even though I haven't read all of his books I see myself as an ardent Cormac McCarthy fan. The first McCarthy book that I read was Blood Meridian and I was hooked. It was haunting and beautiful and gruesome all at once. I tried reading All The Pretty Horses several times, at least half a dozen but could never get very far into it. It just didn't move me in any way.  I read The Road and couldn't put it down until I was done. He did so much with so little. The Road was the first Cormac McCarthy book that Michael read and he liked it as well. In part because Michael is such a minimalist at heart and he was amazed at the story, a journey on a nameless road in a nameless place going who knows where.

I've had No Country on my shelf for months now. I bought it to re-sell. I saw the movie when it came out and I remember thinking that I might not be able to sit through it. I did but never did I think I'd read the book. And really, I didn't intend to. I just wanted to see what voice he used, as a writer. What was the point of view, the cadence. I was only going to read a few pages before going to bed. I closed the book after 29 pages. It was chilling and I thought to myself what a poor choice I'd made of books to read before going to sleep. And then yesterday at work the thought of that book came back to me out of the clear blue and all I wanted to do was race home to read more of it.

I did race home but didn't have time to read anymore until bedtime. Again with the horror, the suspense. What am I doing? I picked it up again this morning. Have I mentioned that I'm hooked? It's really good. I expected more of a pulp western, I've read some Louis L'amour back in the day but this was far from anything L'amour ever dreamed of writing.

Every time I put the book down I tell Michael, "I don't know if I'll be able to read the whole thing. It's really scary." We'll see. I feel that way though, that I can't possibly get through it but at the rate I'm going maybe I'll be done by the weekend. Unless I start having nightmares. Then I'll have to stop.

Comments

[Mary J]

I loved both "The Road" and "All the Pretty Horses."
I never read "Blood Meridian" or "No Country for Old Men," but I think I might have to add them to my To-be-read pile, which has grown to a daunting size :).