Blood Meridian: Review
Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy is an unforgiving, violent, brutal tale following the intertwined lives of a group of solders/bounty hunters/bandits in the desert southwest. The storytelling does put you right in the scene with the main characters. Sometimes that scene is hauntingly beautiful, as they travel to a variety of desolate, remote locales throughout what is now the southwestern US and northern Mexico. Most of the time, however, the characters are having brutal interactions with indigenous peoples, residents of towns they pass through, the law, and each other. The amount of blood, gore, and death portrayed is frankly astonishing and yet doesn't seem to have any value other than shock. The characters seem generally emotionless, rarely affected at the ongoing loses of friends and compatriots.
While the descriptions of deserts, mountains, and other scenery were vivid and detailed, the gruesome human toll seemed over the top and gratuitous. Perhaps the depiction of this historical era is accurate, but I find the best dramatic novels strike a balance between horror and hope, violence and compassion. This novel has very few positive moments, making it a tough read. McCarthy's The Road is also bleak, but it contains characters who are genuinely connected, and who have a plan and path to some form of happiness. Blood Meridian is nihilistic to a fault.
Rating:
- Recommend? No
- Buy as a gift? No
Last modified on 8 Jun 2024 by AO
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