The great Cormac McCarthy died last week, leaving behind a canon of brilliant, challenging novels that will be long-remembered. So this week we’re sharing two episode remembering the man, discussing his work, and sharing what he means to us. In this first episode, David and Tim sit down to make a Mount Rushmore of McCarthy’s work and to discuss how his work will be remembered.
2 notes: 1 No Country was written as a screenplay that McCarthy couldn’t sell so he rewrote it as a novel. Irony abounds. 2. From Pretty Horses on you can’t surround without recognition of his main - naughtily hidden in clues - metaphor: The Bomb’s creation. J Brady Cole - as the pale rider - rides into it in that magisterial last paragraph of Pretty Horses; likewise it concludes The Crossing (the one I ‘d put on Rushmore); and it’s the obvious background to The Road. Like Anton Chigurh it’s the coming, implacable evil.
One more note: I wish someone would bring up James Agee as an even more direct predecessor than even Faulkner.
I’m adding my vote for doing The Road for Close Reads next year. I was actually planning on reading it this summer, but I’d love to do it with my fellow Close Readers!
I loved this episode! It out into words what I love about Cormac McCarthy. I've only read The Road, All the Pretty Horses and No Country for Old Men. I was thinking of Blood Meridian next since we own that one. We'll definitely have to get Suttree.
Loved this episode! I was introduced to McCarthy thanks to Close Reads and fell in love with All the Pretty Horses and then the whole border crossing trilogy. It’s like Tim said though, you kind of need a breather after his books sometimes! Now I know I’ve got to read Suttree next ❤️
2 notes: 1 No Country was written as a screenplay that McCarthy couldn’t sell so he rewrote it as a novel. Irony abounds. 2. From Pretty Horses on you can’t surround without recognition of his main - naughtily hidden in clues - metaphor: The Bomb’s creation. J Brady Cole - as the pale rider - rides into it in that magisterial last paragraph of Pretty Horses; likewise it concludes The Crossing (the one I ‘d put on Rushmore); and it’s the obvious background to The Road. Like Anton Chigurh it’s the coming, implacable evil.
One more note: I wish someone would bring up James Agee as an even more direct predecessor than even Faulkner.
I’m adding my vote for doing The Road for Close Reads next year. I was actually planning on reading it this summer, but I’d love to do it with my fellow Close Readers!
I loved this episode! It out into words what I love about Cormac McCarthy. I've only read The Road, All the Pretty Horses and No Country for Old Men. I was thinking of Blood Meridian next since we own that one. We'll definitely have to get Suttree.
Loved this episode! I was introduced to McCarthy thanks to Close Reads and fell in love with All the Pretty Horses and then the whole border crossing trilogy. It’s like Tim said though, you kind of need a breather after his books sometimes! Now I know I’ve got to read Suttree next ❤️
Suttree is incredible