No Countryfor Old Men

Oliver had never read McCarthy or seen the film and thought he would love it. He found the action-heavy opening and changing perspectives difficult, and eventually got used to the lack of punctuation, though he still felt the characters were a little surface-level and was confused by Wells's appearance and disappearance. He liked the limited connections between the characters, the picture of 1980s America, and the way Bell's opening sections gathered meaning as the story converged with the present.

What worked best?

Every chapter started with Bell; the more you know about the story, the more of it makes sense. Oliver also liked the interesting take on America in the 1980s.

What didn't work?

The lack of punctuation was challenging. Oliver wanted more backstory for the characters and found Wells's appearance and disappearance confusing.

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Nathan found it hard to follow when reading only a few days at a time. The writing style, long flow-on sentences and changing characters were challenging, though they became easier towards the end. He liked the plot and found Chigurh enigmatic, while the book's question about whether the world is getting worse or whether age simply makes it harder to tolerate felt especially resonant.

What worked best?

The reflections from Bell.

What didn't work?

The lack of punctuation and some of the long flow-on sentences.

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Eric really loved it, especially McCarthy's textured writing, vivid landscapes and the way the prose pulls the reader in without distracting attribution. He felt the book rewards a reread and creates a lived-in world, with the crafting scenes among the most interesting parts. He connected it to Blood Meridian through its themes of violence and its enigmatic figure of evil, and wondered why Moss takes the money when he is smart enough to know he cannot get away with it.

What worked best?

The coin-flip scene with Chigurh and the scene where he drinks the milk at Moss's house.

What didn't work?

The Chris Hansen scene with the hitchhiker.

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Matt also really liked it, finding the vivid prose engaging rather than being pushed away by the lack of punctuation. He spent an embarrassing amount of time not realising the characters had changed, and wondered whether the lack of attribution and unclear language reflects McCarthy thinking about language itself. The pole sequence hit close to home because of his call-centre experience, and he read Moss as misguided: attempts to do something good, like bringing water to the Mexican or looking after the girl, repeatedly get other people hurt.

What worked best?

The dream sequence at the end with the father.

What didn't work?

N/A

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Jacob had seen the film and loved both it and the book. The film supplied useful visual context, while the book's repeated references to the Vietnam War and Sheriff Bell's inner monologue added material the adaptation could not. He saw Anton as the embodiment of fate, moving through the novel as something that cannot really be stopped, even when he is hit by a car.

What worked best?

The opening scene of Anton killing the sheriff.

What didn't work?

The prose could be hard to follow.

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Josh really liked it and found the book's moral play compelling. He read it as asking whether the world is deterministic or whether people are punished and rewarded for their actions: Chigurh says there is no justice, while Moss is punished after choosing to give water and Bell is rewarded after running away from his men. Josh did not find the ambiguity of who was speaking necessary, but loved the prose and landscape imagery overall.

What worked best?

The morality play of the book.

What didn't work?

The prose and the ambiguity about who is saying what.

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Ed loved it and liked the simplicity of Cormac McCarthy's writing style. He also thought Ed Tom was a goated name.

What did you think of the book?

I loved it. I like the simplicity of Cormac McCarthy’s writing style. Ed Tom is a goated name

What worked best?

The lines translate so well to cinema that it’s no surprise the movie is so great. I loved a lot of the lines, personal fave was I’m fixin to do something dumber then hell

What didn't work?

Some of the decisions of the main character were silly, plus a lot of the self reflections of the sheriff were long.

If you could change one thing, what would it be?

Nothing, it’s hard to hate on anything in the book

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