From the back cover:

A father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. The sky is dark. Their destination is the coast, although they don’t know what, if anything, awaits them there. They have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands that stalk the road, the clothes they are wearing, a cart of scavenged food -- and each other.

This is the fourth Cormac McCarthy book I have reviewed this year. Unlike his other books, this tale has more heart-warmth than usual. And yet still The Road is bleak at times. The main thread in the tale is the father’s unconditional love for his son. I was quite amazed by their resolve to continue on the road in such dire circumstances. McCarthy does not directly explain the state of the world in The Road. All the reader knows is that the Earth has been burned; floating ash exists on most of the pages of the book. But how did this happen? The roving groups of “lawless bands” consist of cannibals, rapists, torturers and thieves. Don’t expect to have a lot of happiness hit you while reading this book, but I would highly recommend it. In fact, from what I have read so far, I think this would be the best book to start reading out of the McCarthy collection.