What if you were following a road, not knowing what you’d find, where you were going, or who you might meet? The earth as you once knew it has changed. It is cold, lifeless, and the sun shines no more. Everything is covered by the thick ash that remains after a sudden cataclysm which forever changes the lives of a father and his son.

Perhaps a world such as this is hard to imagine, but not when you begin to read novelist Cormac McCarthy’s Pulitzer Prize winning fiction novel The Road. His writing allows you to taste the dryness and feel the pang of hunger. It is filled with detail and flows like poetry. This is why it is so suspenseful and frightening. You can picture the post-apocalyptic world as if you were watching a film or even experiencing it first hand.

In fact, that’s just how The Road came about. McCarthy had a vision while visiting El Paso, Texas with his young son. He imagined the city in the future and pictured “fires on the hill” all the while thinking about his son, John Francis McCarthy, whom the novel is dedicated to.

What’s interesting about the story is that there are basically two characters. These characters are referred to as “the man” and “the boy.” I think that by choosing to leave them nameless helps you, the reader, connect with them more. They do not have names, but what matters most is that they have each other.

The father and son are on a journey across hell on earth with nothing but the clothes on their back, some canned food, and a pistol with just two bullets left. The only thing they can do is keep moving with the uncertainty if reaching their destination will mean safety or death.

Along the way they experience some ungodly encounters and horrific sights. Meanwhile the pair always remained “the good guys” when other survivors resorted to enslaving, stealing, murder, and cannibalism.

The man tries to protect his son with all of his being, but realizes he can’t shield him from seeing such traumatizing events. All he cares about is keeping him safe and alive any way he can. What father wouldn’t? At one point in the story he tells his son that “if you died, I would want to die too.” There is no greater love than a parent for their child.

The boy is forced to grow up and become wise upon his years. His childhood had been stripped from him and the father does what he can to try to bring a smile to his face. The boy is also always ready to help people they come across while journeying along the road. He is very caring and compassionate towards people in need and totally disregards that he himself is in need too. This really leads to some “awe” moments. Especially when he tells his dad “you drink some first papa, you eat” when they are both starving and sickly.

I feel that men and women alike will enjoy this book. Its different then any book I’ve ever read and I enjoyed the change. The story keeps you at the edge of your seat and it’s almost unbearable. Yet somehow McCarthy keeps you hopeful and even inspires you to have courage and keep hold of faith.

Ultimately, The Road tells an unforgettable tale of a father and son desperately struggling for survival. You’ll find yourself turning page after page because you just have to know that they’ll be alright. You’ll question the motives of others, but never doubt the love and courage of “the good guys” who will always “carry the fire.”