Cormac McCarthy - Outer Dark

If I ever received an invitation to stay at the house of Cormac McCarthy, I'd probably accept it. However, I'd likely pull the dresser in front of the bedroom door before calling it a day; there are some truly sinister things rattling around in that man's head, as Outer Dark so clearly demonstrates.

Like Child of God, this book follows the adventures of a simpleton (Culla Holme, in this case) as he tries to make some sense of life in a dark little corner of the Appalachians. The difference is that, unlike Lester Ballard of the other book, Holme isn't so much a villain as an anti-hero, a fella whose greatest crime was to leave the baby boy he sired with his sister Rinthy (remember the setting- that kind of thing does go on there) out in the woods to die.

The bulk of Outer Dark follows Rinthy's search for the child she knows is still alive, and Culla's search for her. While she runs into a cast of characters both decent and otherwise (none of which manage to distract her from her quest), Culla flits from town to town, looking for his sis/main squeeze and trying to find a decent meal. Meanwhile, three incredibly savage and mysterious killers stalk the countryside, laying waste to just about anyone and everything that crosses their path.

With the trio of evil dudes lurking in the background (and the knowledge that Culla, Rinthy, or both will ultimately end up encountering them), Cormac builds a story that has a cloud of menace thicker than molasses hovering overhead. Using a combination of simplistic dialogue and occasionally flowery language, McCarthy pulls the reader into the proceedings while also maintaining the safe distance of a smart narrator. In fact, the whole book feels like something complex and possibly profound masquerading in the dirty rags of a hill dweller.

Like Child (the only other Cormac book I've read thus far), the ending is puzzling. Without giving it all away, let's just say that Culla is faced with a choice, the outcome of which is absolutely brutal. Where it goes from there (in the last five pages or so) is confusing, anti-climactic, and likely to disturb anybody who requires the token happy ending. Cormac is obviously a dark and pessimistic man at heart, and if I wasn't exactly the same, I'd probably feel cheated by the way he wrapped things up.

At less than two hundred fifty pages, this is a pretty swift read. If you get involved in the proceedings, it'll fly by faster, and I was absolutely dying to know how it would all resolve (or not). The atmosphere is thick and queasy, the sense of dread quite palpable, and the plot oddly realistic despite being somehow fantastic at the same time. If you like Southern fiction that throws the horrors of existence in one's face, then Outer Dark will leave you cold and disturbed in the most satisfying way.


Child of God http://www.epinions.com/content_314724028036