No. of pages: 307
Rating: 9/10
Synopsis: A father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. The sky is dark. Their destination is the coast, although they don't know what, if anything, awaits them there. They have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands that stalk the road, the clothes they are wearing, a cart of scavenged food—and each other.
Review: An apocolyptic event has happened, and the earth has burned. Few humans have managed to survive, but a man and his son have and are walking south in the hopes of out running the bitter cold in which they will not survive another winter. As they scavange their way through towns trying to find food and shelter, they have nothing but a gun with two bullets to protect themselves and their map to lead them south.
I decided to read this after watching and appreciating the film, and I'm so glad I did. The book is just as bleak, if not even more so than the film, and it really makes you think about what would happen if such a thing were to really occur. I found the lack of punctuation slightly strange, and it took a little while to get used to, but that and the lack of chapters lends to the feeling of endlessness, to the lack of hope the man must feel as the story evolves. While normally I wouldn't like such a book, for this particular story, it was absolutely perfect. I found it hard to put down, because it's just so gripping, the story of this man and boy trying to survive against all odds. I found the ending very sad, but in a way, it was hopeful too. I would absolutely recommend this, it's beautifully told, even if it's almost too hard to bear at times.
