Creative Writing

Creative Writing
Book Review
      The Road.
      The Road, by Cormac McCarthy, follows a father and son through the hardships and pain of a hopeless post-apocalyptic world. Their names are never mentioned you just know them as two people struggling to survive this otherwise inhumane catastrophe. An unexplained disaster has left the world gray. Clouds always cover the sun, most species have died off, and plants do not and cannot grow. Human civilization has been turned into factions of criminals and cannibals. All that are left are only trying to survive to see the next day in hopes of the world returning to its original state. The boy’s mother died at some point during the beginning of the catastrophe. For fear of being raped and or eaten the mother committed suicide soon after the boy was born leaving the father the burden of keeping himself and his son alive. Their journey begins in the southeastern part of the United States. The father knows him and his son cannot survive another winter in the current conditions they have been facing. They set out to travel to the warmer climates of the more southern regions in the country. They travel mainly on highways as quickly as possible in order to keep away from any one who passes their way. The father knows not to trust anyone on the road and tries to instill this trait within his son, however the boy insists on helping anyone they come across. The father is a skilled man in firearms, travel, machinery, woodcraft, and human biology. He carries a pistol with two bullets for himself and his son if the situation ever arises, he explains to his son to kill himself rather than be captured. Through the travels they encounter many unimaginable things, for example a headless baby being cooked over a fire, and traveler being held prisoner for food. To add to the “no hope” theme of this book the father coughs up blood every morning, and realizes he is dying. Through out the book they realize that all they have in the world... [continues]

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