by Cormac McCarthy. I was able to get a good dent into it, but I have to admit, I'm not that excited to continue reading. The story seems interesting enough, but I think I'm finding McCarthy's style a little tedious; I hope that changes.Generally, I prefer a more, for lack of a better word, direct prose, which simply describes the people or the situations, instead of a more 'flowery' showcase of the English language. This is why I like Hemingway and not Virginia Woolf. Blood Meridian uses a similar writing style to the Bible, both old-fashioned and monotonous. In addition to the language, McCarthy has also decided not to use any quotation marks for dialogue. I don't know why, but I find this very annoying. That's what they're there for, why not use them?
I'm also reading some non-fiction right now; Travels
by Michael Crichton. Yes, the same Michael Crichton
of Jurassic Park. It was written in 1988, and chronicles his journey from medical school in the 1960's to his life as a successful author, and his frequent travels around the world. This book has been working in the way I had originally intended non-fiction books to; I must read a chapter from Blood Meridian before I can read a chapter from Travels. It's a motivational tool.I will be reviewing Rabbit, Run on the radio this week. You can here me Wednesday morning at 7:40AM (MDT) on CBC Calgary. I'll also post the podcast here later in the week.
i will be the first to admit that McCarthy rambles and meanders with his prose, though I would hesitate to call it "flowery"--simply because he so often handles violence and pain.
ReplyDeleteMcCarthy doesn't include punctuation because, I think, he writes characters whose inner and outer lives are indistinguishable from one another.
It makes for an interesting device much of the time; though it leads to confusion, I'm sure he revels in that. Life is confusing.
I think you mean "Wright's not so tedious"... *rim shot*
ReplyDeleteGood point, 'flowery' might not have been the right word to describe someone's head being chopped off!
ReplyDeleteI'm getting more into it the more I read, so that's a good sign.
Flowery is kind of an appropriate word, as he does keep mentioning every single plant that anyone ever walks by. I've learned that I don't care at all about the flora of the Old West.
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