Cormac McCarthy, R.I.P.

[12oclocktales]

Pulitzer Prize winner (The Road) Cormac McCarthy passed away yesterday, aged 89. One of America’s finest authors during the last 40 years, he was known for his emotionally powerful novels set mainly in Appalachia (Blood Meridian) and the Southwest (All the Pretty Horses, No Country for Old Men). He was also known for his reclusiveness and aversion to self-promotion, rarely giving interviews. Here’s a relevant quote from a rare interview given in 2009 to the WSJ: “My perfect day is sitting in a room with some blank paper. That’s heaven. That’s gold and anything else is just a waste of time.”

 

[SimonDoom]

First I'd heard this. I'm sorry to hear this. He was an amazing writer. He had an extremely dark vision of humanity and his books are filled with extreme violence but he had an extraordinarily inventive ability with words, one of the best I've ever encountered.

By the way, Blood Meridian isn't set in Appalachia, it's set in the West, around the US-Mexican border, based loosely on the real-life exploits of the Joel Glanton gang.

The character of the Judge in Blood Meridian is one of the most chilling, mysterious, and interesting villains I've ever encountered in fiction. If you haven't read it and you want to add to your list of "great American novels that you've read" I recommend it. Be forewarned that it's disturbing and truly strange.

 

[MrPixel]

I heard about McCarthy's passing last night on NPR.

By the way, Blood Meridian isn't set in Appalachia, it's set in the West, ...

Right. The MC was from Tennessee.

 

[12oclocktales]

By the way, Blood Meridian isn't set in Appalachia, it's set in the West, around the US-Mexican border, based loosely on the real-life exploits of the Joel Glanton gang.

My goof. I got it mixed up with the novel that came before this one, Suttree, set in Knoxville.

 

[SimonDoom]

My goof. I got it mixed up with the novel that came before this one, Suttree, set in Knoxville.

That one is on my to-read list. Haven't gotten around to it.