All The Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
My wife encouraged me to read this, since I read and enjoy so much other McCarthy stuff: [b:Child of God|293625|Child of God|Cormac McCarthy|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320509467s/293625.jpg|389945], [b:Blood Meridian, or the Evening Redness in the West|394535|Blood Meridian, or the Evening Redness in the West|Cormac McCarthy|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1335231647s/394535.jpg|1065465], and of course [b:No Country for Old Men|12497|No Country for Old Men|Cormac McCarthy|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327927085s/12497.jpg|2996445]. The last being the natural analog here including some of the same language: "jackpot", "the gettin' place", etc. I can't help but compare, seeing the Western writer in both. The walking evil in No Country is a formless, wandering juggernaut wearing down the hero with its harsh visitations. The story held me when the two travellers meet Blevins and adventure together as an ill-matched trip, but the love story with Alejandra seemed to sudden, strong, and unbelievable. A key step in the story of the star-crossed lovers is a long monologue by the manipulating aunt (or is it grandmother?) which loses its impact in this audiobook where the narrator puts no effort into effecting a feminine voice. The escape, return, quest to return to the horst in the final act salvages the tale for me. I don't know that I want to continue on into the Border Trilogy, but I am glad I went this far "south of the border".
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