No Country for Old Men (Vintage International)

Man finds lots of money. Man runs, is pursued. Many casualties ensue. I came to McCarthy by way of The Road (Oprah's Book Club) , which was one of the most profoundly moving things I've read in fifteen years; I find myself thinking of that book and its setting, questions and issues almost daily. Through it I became aware of McCarthy's other work, and was eager to get to it. Then came the Coen brothers' brilliant No Country for Old Men , and I had to move this up in the reading queue. I did save the film until after I was done with the book, and I'm glad I did; this is better. As in The Road, there are many unanswered questions about aspects of the story off the main narrative line--who did what, where characters and events came from, where they go, what happens next, etc. They are tantalizing, an aspect I have found that keeps McCarthy's work in my head, sorting through the unexplained, wondering in which way these superfluous stories could have gone. They are a great hook, providing tangential snippets of context to a circuitous, unpredictable yet headlong single story line. This story is deceptive, beginning as a very west Texas noir tale of adventure. I was reminded of James Dickey's magnificent DELIVERANCE (BLOOMSBURY FILM CLASSICS S.) . But while Deliverance was Dickey's rumination on what exactly it means to be a man in the age of the office job, Lay Z Boy recliners and strip malls, McCarthy posits a much more simple question: are you ready to be a man when the time comes? When Life--with that capital L--comes at you and delivers unbidden the horrific, tragic or sublimely blissful, will you be ready? Can you make yourself ready; is there any way to prepare? And if you think you're ready, are you really? McCarthy asks: what have you done, and in the same breath, what have you not done? What have you overlooked, and what--this is crucial--happens to you and others depending on how ready you are? What are you prepared to do? How far will you go? Being ready means being prepared to act instantly, outside of cultural and societal norms, against your upbringing and your education, at the most basic level, not unthinkingly, but unflinchingly and uncompromisingly. Can you strip it all away, and if you do what does that make you? Can you come back? This is where a man can lose his soul. Both The Road and this work make it clear that there is a point where a man chooses to keep or forfeit his humanity, his dignity, when he chooses decency over barbarism. McCarthy's exploration shows that when the choice--made consciously--is for dignity and righteousness, ultimately it is self-destructive. McCarthy's work has a place for those who hold on to that uniquely human core of decency, who see what really needs to be done, the ugly and brutal which may need to be done for survival, and in essence condemn themselves, usually wittingly, by remaining true to decency and the care/service of others. Death is coming for us all, only a matter of time, so why not take a stand and choose your time and place, and do it with a self-determined honor, with a clean slate? There may be a reckoning--that's really as far as I see McCarthy going down that road of Good v. Evil, God v. Satan--but if there is, these decisions will tip that scale, and for those that remain behind you live on as an example of the right choice. The book's style is sparse, matching the desert and scrubland the story inhabits. McCarthy's narrative convention of not using quotations is here, but is neither a distraction nor does it lend to confusion. The narrative structure is essentially cinematic, with the sheriff-narrator providing a voiceover context, the real depth of the story, and the chapters often moving in parallel. The dialog flows as easily and effortlessly as Elmore Leonard's best, and there is no question as to what is happening in the narrative. Surprisingly, the "action," the main story, was done well before the book was. The bulk of the book and the story of money, guns and blood exists as the extended setup for one man's rumination on life's purpose, the existence of God, and what it means to be true to yourself, those you love, and those you serve. This is the last 40-odd pages of the book, and where the deepest contemplation lies. There is a lot going on here, with a lot of to my reading earnest exploration of a man's purpose, his honor, his character, and ultimately his identity. Is God out there? And if he is, and if he's the kind of guy we've all been told he is, how is it that life plays out in these ways? Bottom line: This is no happy, light and frothy, stereotypically inane TV-style read of a luckless loner who makes good after some minor tribulation. The story is stark and dark, violent and unflinching, just as life is. McCarthy poses a pessimistic vision of where we are and where we are headed, and explores whether the noble choice of decency and selflessness is tenable, even though it seems to be suicidal.

Story about an older sheriff, trying to solve a case of murder in the southern desert of Texas. Pretty much the title refers to how things had changed in the U.S. for the older sheriff and the older folks who comes in contact with. He deals with this unsolved case where dope money is stolen from a deal gone bad in the back desert country where several folks are dead. The other is the story of the local guy, a Vietnam Vet, who was out hunting and came upon this scene first, found everyone dead or dying, and then too the money. What ensues is a socialpath killer, Chigurh, hunting him down from as far away as Eagle Pass, Texas to near El Paso. Chigurh is what makes the book good, and more readable. The harder part of the read was the lack of quotations that McCarthy uses, which is intentional. At times, had to re-read sections to figure out who was talking. Also looked up when this was supposed to have taken place, and it was 1980. If you don't like violence, avoid this book. Every couple of chapters, Sheriff Bell, has a section italicized where is posting his own thoughts, like a diary. Had seen the movie first, and it was easier to visualize them while reading the book and hearing there voices.

When I first read `The Road' I was astounded at how much of an emotional impact it had on me. It made me think about things I never expected it to and made me care in a way I wasn't used to. It made me realize that I needed to read everything Cormac McCarthy had written and fast. Sadly, I didn't act upon that instinct quick enough. In fact I just picked up `No Country for Old Men' the other day to sit down a give it a try; but I didn't have to try. In fact `No Country for Old Men' is the easiest read I've ever encountered. I didn't put the book down, not once, and read it in one straight sitting. It's a good thing I had nothing to do Saturday because when you stay up all night to read a novel you end up useless the next day. `No Country for Old Men' has a lot going for it. McCarthy's writing style is easy to adapt to. He writes in a fashion that's easy to understand, not to wordy, not overly descriptive yet he never fails to leave the reader without a sound sense of what is taking place. One thing I fell in love with was the way he adapted his writing style to the people and places he was introducing. The novel takes place in the dusty plains of Texas and so the sentence structure is that of a Texan, incomplete and grammatically incorrect. This is not an insult; I live in Texas, I know how they talk. It's funny because I read some of this novel aloud to my daughter (not the bloody parts) and my wife noticed that I read in a deep southern accent. The wording is so absorbing you start thinking in a drawl. That, my friends, is impressive. Cormac's masterpiece follows a few characters whose lives interconnect thanks to some drug money and an unfortunate decision. Llewelyn Moss is a simple man, a war (Vietnam) vet who lives a simple life with his young wife Carla Jean. His life gets plenty complicated when he stumbles upon some dead bodies and a case full of cash. He takes the money and runs, but soon realizes that he can't stop running; he's being hunted by two parties, both after the money. Psychopathic killer Anton Chigurh is hot on Moss' tail, breathing down his neck so-to-speak, while Sheriff Bell is desperately trying to locate Moss before it is too late. Caught in the middle of it all is Moss' wife, an emotionally moving casualty of this `war'. Each chapter of `No Country for Old Men' is opened with Sheriff Bell's thoughts on the current state of affairs. As the body count rises and the reasoning behind it all fades into a dark blur he contemplates why things have gotten so bad. He reasons on the way things were growing up and how much worse they have gotten and he sheds so much light on the purpose behind these pages. He comes to the realization that he is just too old for this; that his morals are so different from the morals crowding society today and that to try and understand it will only drag you down. He realizes first hand that this is no country for old men. Each character though adds layers to McCarthy's prose, not just Bell. One profound character is that of Chigurh whose sense of justice and loyalty is tainted by his savage lust for blood. The dialog within this novel is so strong in it's subtlety that it carries his characters to levels beyond them. When Anton first explains the significance of his coin toss we are captivated by his logic; and his final, devastating scene with Moss' wife Carla Jean we are moved so deeply by the entire encounter. Scenes of these conversations permeate the novel and take on lives of their own. A particular scene with Llewelyn and a young hitchhiker bring similar feelings of warmth and sympathy. Each blood-soaked page leads us to a further understanding of Cormac's message and as the novel comes to a dramatic close we feel as though we can relate to Bell and his longer for yesteryear. Times have certainly changed and definitely not for the better. Soon, very soon, this will be no country for young men, for any man for that matter. Soon, very soon, all hope will be lost.

I have read many novels by Cormac McCarthy and this is the latest, after a gap of a few years since reading 'The Road'. This novel is a relatively recent work and is probably better known in it's cinematic version, adapted by the marvellous Coen brothers, which was rightly garnered with all the top Oscars in 2008 and which I saw before reading the book. This excellent novel sits in the comparatively short section of McCarthy's works, (unusually) has several clearly defined sub-plots and will be far more 'accessible' to most as whilst it has the core identifiable characteristics of McCarthy's writing style, it largely omits the use of lengthy sections of foreign language and unpunctuated sentences for which he is 'better known' in earlier works. I read this book after seeing the fantastic film 'version' (and I use that term entirely intentionally) and was struck with how markedly the tone of each differed - there is a huge opportunity to be 'distracted' by the compelling action which occurs in the story (and which, necessarily, drives the film presentation) and hence miss what I believe is the true plot behind McCarthy's prose. This difference is perfectly demonstrated when you read the (intentionally vague) story introduction printed on the back of the book and quoted in the Amazon description, repeated below : "Llewelyn Moss, hunting antelope near the Rio Grande, stumbles upon a transaction gone horribly wrong. Finding bullet-ridden bodies, several kilos of heroin, and a caseload of cash, he faces a choice - leave the scene as he found it, or cut the money and run. Choosing the latter, he knows, will change everything. And so begins a terrifying chain of events, in which each participant seems determined to answer the question that one asks another: how does a man decide in what order to abandon his life ?" It emphasises my point since it omits any mention of who I believe are the true main characters of this tale : the 'hitman' (Anton Chigurh) and Sheriff (Tom Bell) 'pursuers', with the latter being the less colourful but actually more 'dominant' of the two; this story nevertheless does have 3 important threads.... And I think my point is proven since we are first presented with some musings of an as yet unknown character, THEN introduced to the soon-to-be pursuer Chigurh - as he deals with the aftermath of his handiwork which then get Moss involved (so it is he that is actually introduced last of the 3). So, those first few pages already show us perfectly how things are on different levels, since the book is partly written in firsthand, italicised, chapters to give us the thoughts of Sheriff Bell (who is that initially unknown character) but also/predominantly in thirdhand, as events are described to us and we are let into the minds of Moss and the eventual pursuer (a VERY unpleasant place to go !); but crucially the thoughts of Moss are stated to us, whereas we can only learn about whatever thoughts the enigmatic/ruthless/weird pursuer might have through his verbal exchanges with others..... This story is clearly actually about the Sheriff, with the hugely dominant plot being something of a MacGuffin - the weighty sections of the book are given over to Bell airing his thoughts to us. So, I believe that this work has to be considered in terms of both 'what happens' (emphasised in the film) AND 'what is it about' (emphasised in the book), as the answers to those 2 questions are quite different. Both are hugely compelling and, largely, attractive considerations as much of what occurs is so gripping and the 3 main personalities so incredibly intriguing. You will try and sympathise/understand the Sheriff, root for Moss and (certainly in my case) be completely, totally and utterly captivated by the chilling nature of the odious Chigurh as each follows their path through that 'MacGuffin' series of events. It is easy to see why the Coens snapped-up the opportunity to adapt this literary masterpiece for the screen. The contrast in presentation 'emphasis' is understandable, since the film would be rather droll for many if it contained ALL the musings of Sheriff Bell which feature so prominently in the book. The reason I have included so many references to the film is not just that I don't want to reveal too much about this superb overall story written by McCarthy to spoil things for you. It's also because if you enjoy this book as much as I did, and are similarly captivated by some of the most intriguing characters you will ever read about, then experiencing them in the superb film portrayals will enhance your experience all the more.

Un par de cineastas tan geniales como los hermanos Coen no pudieron encontrar cómo mejorar la narrativa y grabaron la adaptación casi cuadro por cuadro, con el diálogo casi sin alterar, eso habla mucho de la calidad de éste libro.

Como todo lo.d Mccarthy, una joya. Esta vez con una prosa simple y diáfana. Lo más intenso, sus últimas líneas. Maravilla.

Pour les cours. Au top

Cormac McCarthy è forse uno dei più grandi scrittori viventi! Da Premio Nobel per la letteratura!