No Country For Old Men by Cormac McCarthy

No Country For Old Men
Cormac McCarthy

Genre: Adult Fiction
Publisher: Knopf (July 19, 2005)

Summary: Llewelyn Moss, hunting antelope near the Rio Grande, instead finds men shot dead, a load of heroin, and more than $2 million in cash. Packing the money out, he knows, will change everything. But only after two more men are murdered does a victim’s burning car lead Sheriff Bell to the carnage out in the desert, and he soon realizes how desperately Moss and his young wife need protection. One party in the failed transaction hires an ex–Special Forces officer to defend his interests against a mesmerizing freelancer, while on either side are men accustomed to spectacular violence and mayhem. 


My Review: Since I had seen the movie awhile back, the book felt exactly like a screen play. Void of quotation marks, the novel was slightly difficult to read in the beginning but quickly resolved itself by mid-story as I became familiar with the actions and current situation of each character.

I think McCarthy is an excellent story teller but due to the method in which the story is told, maybe be more of "you either love him or hate him" fashion. But because I appreciate the film so much, I fall somewhere in the middle.

So suppose you are not familiar with the movie. The book gives no back story and thrust you into the author's world. Llewelyn Moss is a hunter that stumbles across drug money in the desert. Deciding to take it, the entire premise to the story is that now, Moss is the hunted: by the sheriffs, two private hitmans and various drug cartel.

The author really doesn't concentrate on description of characters or develop them in any sense. It is simply their actions that you primarily focus on. The only one character that you seem to grasp, is Sheriff Bell. Intermittently, chapters dedicated to his history read like letters. It's interesting but probably overused by the time you get to the end of the story. (We get that he is cynical but has convictions, but too much of his backstory felt repetitive.)

For me, the true star of the novel (and film for that matter), is the hitman Anton Chigurh. I suppose the intention is to create a mystery around him, who does he work for... why is he the way he is... The reader can only speculate on these questions. But his actions speak of his oddity and ruthlessness. He is a dangerous killer, a psychologically disturbed individual. You cannot negotiate your way out. Calm and precise, he is unwavering which makes him terribly scare in the story.

Where I think McCarthy's style of writing excels is in the scene with Chigurh and the gas station attendant. Chigurh taunts him with simple questions and eventually ask him to call it on a game of heads or tails. As a reader, we can only assume that the coin toss is a matter of life or death. In one encounter, this unsuspecting individual's life will be changed forever. McCarthy's writing is subdued and simplistic, but that adds to the eeriness of the conversation and the overall tone of the scene. With respect to the character Chigurh (a hitman), this completely works.

I think in general, I liked the book but did not love it. Due to it's writing style, I actually prefer the film over the novel in this case. I think McCarthy's method of storytelling is one that should be individually explored because there are definitely aspects of greatness. It just may not be for everyone.