I found this and cities of the plain at the used book store but I need to find a used copy of all the pretty horses to match it and I can't find it anywhere. Is this a trilogy where you 100% need to read them in order or more of a losse trilogy?
In 2009 when I was 18 I was working in a waterstones book store and the manager randomly gave me a £15 gift card one day because some customer said I'd been really helpful or something. Anyway, I was poor and a cheap ass at the time so naturally I was looking for a way to maximize the value of this gift card. I picked up the border trilogy simply because it had three books in one for exactly £14.99. I had no idea who Cormac McCarthy was or anything about this book other than the back cover. I'd never read proper literature before and mostly stuck to genre fiction like horror or mysteries. These three books damn near changed my life. I read all the pretty horses first obviously. I didn't realize writers could even do the kinds of things he did in that novel. I've read (nearly) every McCarthy since and still to this day the Border trilogy for me is the very best of his work. The Crossing is fantastic.
Very similar experience to yours.
I love the contrasts between complete and utter bleak desolation and harrowing, natural beauty that the themes of these books revolve around.
Also I believe one of the dreams towards the end of TC foreshadows the ending of COTP
I wish I liked this. I thought it sucked. I see outerdark suggested as well, which I also found quite disappointing. You fricks better be right about Suttree.
>I see outerdark suggested as well, which I also found quite disappointing
Last third falls flat. Can't recommend anything between Orchard Keeper and Blood Meridian, they're all half-formed versions of one or the other (even Suttree despite finally picking up where Orchard Keeper left off and ends mostly on a a high). Child of God is short at least.
Its prose is not as striking as Blood Meridian but its a more emotional work. The ending is soul shattering. One of the finest endings in all of American literature.
The journey with the wolf The ending with the kicking of the dog
BM & Suttree are better books but The Crossing is spectacular for the hatred of fricking dirty snivelling me*icans it created in me.
No, but it's really good.
>gets popular on tiktok and youtube
>YEAH ACTUALLY I DON'T LIKE BLOOD MERIDIAN ANYMORE
Who are you kidding?
Everything is better than Slop Redditian.
It always was a shit book. Youtube grifters and tiktokers just gaslighted people into believing otherwise.
The road is worse
I never said I dislike Blood Meridian.
Outer Dark, Suttree and The Crossing are all better than BM. You could even argue for some of his other works as well. (BM is an amazing book btw)
By the time I reached the last few chapters, I was too emotionally drained to finish this one.
I’ve been saying this for years. It’s his best work
Nah, it's Suttree (tied with Blood Meridian).
Suttree is the correct answer
The Road is very better
Meds
The Road is exactly the same level of quality
I found this and cities of the plain at the used book store but I need to find a used copy of all the pretty horses to match it and I can't find it anywhere. Is this a trilogy where you 100% need to read them in order or more of a losse trilogy?
Loose
You need to read AtPH and The Crossing before Cities on the Plain. The order of the first 2 doesn't matter.
I wanted to kill myself after reading this. Especially after the “last crossing” into Mexico.
In 2009 when I was 18 I was working in a waterstones book store and the manager randomly gave me a £15 gift card one day because some customer said I'd been really helpful or something. Anyway, I was poor and a cheap ass at the time so naturally I was looking for a way to maximize the value of this gift card. I picked up the border trilogy simply because it had three books in one for exactly £14.99. I had no idea who Cormac McCarthy was or anything about this book other than the back cover. I'd never read proper literature before and mostly stuck to genre fiction like horror or mysteries. These three books damn near changed my life. I read all the pretty horses first obviously. I didn't realize writers could even do the kinds of things he did in that novel. I've read (nearly) every McCarthy since and still to this day the Border trilogy for me is the very best of his work. The Crossing is fantastic.
Very similar experience to yours.
I love the contrasts between complete and utter bleak desolation and harrowing, natural beauty that the themes of these books revolve around.
Also I believe one of the dreams towards the end of TC foreshadows the ending of COTP
I wish I liked this. I thought it sucked. I see outerdark suggested as well, which I also found quite disappointing. You fricks better be right about Suttree.
>I see outerdark suggested as well, which I also found quite disappointing
Last third falls flat. Can't recommend anything between Orchard Keeper and Blood Meridian, they're all half-formed versions of one or the other (even Suttree despite finally picking up where Orchard Keeper left off and ends mostly on a a high). Child of God is short at least.
Suttree and BM are the only notable works of McCarthy imo
if you don't like those, you don't like the author, no need to read anymore of his stuff
You got filtered.
Its prose is not as striking as Blood Meridian but its a more emotional work. The ending is soul shattering. One of the finest endings in all of American literature.
It's real gud, my second or third favorite Mac, I still got BM at one though
The journey with the wolf
The ending with the kicking of the dog
BM & Suttree are better books but The Crossing is spectacular for the hatred of fricking dirty snivelling me*icans it created in me.