tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3854757878784277532.post2222817275543597171..comments2023-04-13T05:47:19.488-05:00Comments on New York Times Notable Book Challenge: The Road -- Dewey's reviewSycorax Pinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07734754573631273474noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3854757878784277532.post-33052322799489927882007-07-02T14:19:00.000-05:002007-07-02T14:19:00.000-05:00That makes sense, Ariel. It is just the kind of en...That makes sense, Ariel. It is just the kind of ending the father gives his stories. <BR/><BR/>This does feel like a book that you need to read more than once, doesn't it? I know that I want to read more of McCarthy and then come back to this another time. Wendy, you call it a simple story with a lot of depth woven in, and it reminds me a bit of The Stranger in that respect.Deweyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00395712971920800717noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3854757878784277532.post-52579857454739317072007-07-02T07:49:00.000-05:002007-07-02T07:49:00.000-05:00First of all - great review here, Dew! I love when...First of all - great review here, Dew! I love when people can have some disagreement on certain aspects of a book - for me, it improves my understanding and appreciation of the story. To think someone would get nasty about someone else's book review is just...well, silly! It never ceases to amaze me the petty things people will write in comments on blogs.<BR/><BR/>Ariel, that is an interesting take on the ending! I intend to re-read this book at some point and I've been making notes of the ideas set forth so I can pay closer attention. But, you are right that it would explain some of the changes in 'voice' in the novel. <BR/><BR/>For such a simple little story, there is a lot of depth and complexity woven throughout.Wendyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14332796775305098552noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3854757878784277532.post-24624464250503567652007-07-01T21:20:00.000-05:002007-07-01T21:20:00.000-05:00I thought your review was great, Dewey - far too w...I thought your review was great, Dewey - far too witty to ever be pedantic.<BR/><BR/>On the question of the ending (SPOILERS AHEAD) - I have an increasingly firm conviction (discussed in the comments elsewhere on this blog) that the novel is in fact the father's tale, told to help the boy come to terms with the reality of their struggle and the possibility of his death... a happy ending of the sort that (if I remember correctly) the father tends to in his stories and the boy shies away from. This very loose theory is based on oddities of narrative voice in the novel, which we have discussed elsewhere as well. But I think that it might account for the "deus ex machina" quality of the ending, which I also found quite unsettling - it feels like a forced act of fiction-making because it IS a forced act of fiction-making (on the father's part).Sycorax Pinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07734754573631273474noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3854757878784277532.post-76823868140405372632007-07-01T17:14:00.000-05:002007-07-01T17:14:00.000-05:00Well, I was right! Someone who clicked through to ...Well, I was right! Someone who clicked through to my blog from this one left a comment calling me a pedant for only liking this book instead of loving it. <BR/><BR/>Which is interesting, because I'm reading the chapter in So Many Books, So Little Time called "Eating Crow" in which she talks about the heartbreak of loving a book a friend hates or hating a book a friend likes. And I don't get that at all. I have friends who love celery and hate dark chocolate, and that's somehow not a threat to our friendship.<BR/><BR/>But I understand even less the choice to let oneself become offended when complete strangers have a different opinion about books (or movies or TV shows or how to make orange juice, a debate I recently saw become ugly on one blog).Deweyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00395712971920800717noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3854757878784277532.post-64981577060830121682007-06-29T15:43:00.000-05:002007-06-29T15:43:00.000-05:00I agree, Sally! Even if it's one of my favorites e...I agree, Sally! Even if it's one of my favorites ever and someone completely trashes it, I don't take it personally. But I've seen people who do, so I'm wary!Deweyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00395712971920800717noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3854757878784277532.post-28882612288300425592007-06-29T07:01:00.000-05:002007-06-29T07:01:00.000-05:00I loved your review - it was very well thought out...I loved your review - it was very well thought out and articulate. You brought out some facts that never occurred to me - the most significant being the difference in grammar before being well fed and after. I feel almost ashamed for not picking up on that.<BR/><BR/>I never hold anything against anyone when it comes to books - we are all too different and too much of an individual to agree about everything willy nilly. You have given a wonderful argument and I am in complete awe of your talent :)sally906https://www.blogger.com/profile/01647197864774660387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3854757878784277532.post-37247611762817873392007-06-28T14:09:00.000-05:002007-06-28T14:09:00.000-05:00Thanks for sharing the Oprah interview. I loved t...Thanks for sharing the Oprah interview. I loved that. :)Joyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00832231139076878401noreply@blogger.com