Fiction

The Passenger

The Passenger

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  • Create Date：2022-10-12 09:52:41
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：Cormac McCarthy
  • ISBN：033053551X
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Summary

1980， PASS CHRISTIAN， MISSISSIPPI: It is three in the morning when Bobby Western zips the jacket of his wetsuit and plunges from the boat deck into darkness。 His divelight illuminates the sunken jet， nine bodies still buckled in their seats， hair floating， eyes devoid of speculation。 Missing from the crash site are the pilot’s flightbag， the plane’s black box， and the tenth passenger。 But how？ A collateral witness to machinations that can only bring him harm， Western is shadowed in body and spirit – by men with badges; by the ghost of his father， inventor of the bomb that melted glass and flesh in Hiroshima; and by his sister， the love and ruin of his soul。

Traversing the American South， from the garrulous bar rooms of New Orleans to an abandoned oil rig off the Florida coast， The Passenger is a breathtaking novel of morality and science， the legacy of sin， and the madness that is human consciousness。

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Reviews

Adrianne B。 ，

I CAN'T WAIT to read this book！I live on the MS Gulf Coast， about 45 miles east of where the book's events take place; I want to see how the author paints the city and the area in general！I hope Robin Roberts reads this; she's from the Pass （as we locals call Pass Christian）！ I CAN'T WAIT to read this book！I live on the MS Gulf Coast， about 45 miles east of where the book's events take place; I want to see how the author paints the city and the area in general！I hope Robin Roberts reads this; she's from the Pass （as we locals call Pass Christian）！ 。。。more

Nikki ，

The premise of this book is fascinating。 A salvage diver， Bobby， and his partner discover a plane with the black box and one passenger missing。 Shortly thereafter， federal agents appear to question Bobby， trash his place， and threaten him。 His partner is killed on another dive， and Bobby hits the road to avoid suffering the same fate。The other story that run through the book is about his genius sister who struggled with mental illness before succumbing to suicide。 We are pulled inside her halluc The premise of this book is fascinating。 A salvage diver， Bobby， and his partner discover a plane with the black box and one passenger missing。 Shortly thereafter， federal agents appear to question Bobby， trash his place， and threaten him。 His partner is killed on another dive， and Bobby hits the road to avoid suffering the same fate。The other story that run through the book is about his genius sister who struggled with mental illness before succumbing to suicide。 We are pulled inside her hallucinations which feature The Thalidomide Kid who has severe birth defects from in-utero exposure to the drug。 He and Alicia have long， somewhat adversarial conversations。As their stories unfold， we learn more and more about the forbidden romance between the siblings that haunts Bobby， as does his father's part in the creation of the nuclear bombs used in World War II。 Bobby becomes a recluse， his mind filled with his regrets， grief， and pain。 The actual missing plane passenger is a distant part of the story while at the same time being what drives Bobby to seclusion。 This book is overly long， and the passages with Alicia and Thalidomide Kid are excruciatingly so。 We do get a window into her mind， but the scenes are lengthy conversations with no point and they become tedious。The overall tone of this book is sadness， not unexpected from McCarthy。 While "The Passenger" leaves us hanging until the release of "Stella Maris"， I have to wonder if it will also be long-winded or worth the time investment。 I will read it but with lowered expectation。 In sum， a compelling premise that needs at least one hundred pages cut。 。。。more

Drew ，

At times frustrating （jokes that fall flat， in particular） but always inspiring thought。 The least necessary scenes are often the most fun to read （not sure why the Kennedy assassination conspiracy theory is included; maybe it will make sense upon a second reading）。 It is difficult to read this book without thinking how it fits in with the rest of McCarthy’s oeuvre—the way he uses words， the way he writes sentences， the bleakness of some scenes—and also how it differs—writing a woman as a major At times frustrating （jokes that fall flat， in particular） but always inspiring thought。 The least necessary scenes are often the most fun to read （not sure why the Kennedy assassination conspiracy theory is included; maybe it will make sense upon a second reading）。 It is difficult to read this book without thinking how it fits in with the rest of McCarthy’s oeuvre—the way he uses words， the way he writes sentences， the bleakness of some scenes—and also how it differs—writing a woman as a major character; also， it’s not a spoiler to say that hallucinations fit into the story in ways unimaginable in， say， All the Pretty Horses or Suttree。 A privilege to read this before it is published。 I sent snippets to friends to inspire jealousy and also because I had to share bits of dialogue that could only come from the pen of this writer。 。。。more

Wesley Harden ，

Extraordinary。 I have been thrown into a deep state of vacuous catharsis。 This novel embodies the idea of what the French would call， “l’appel du vide”。

Quinn ，

Living inside Cormac McCarthy’s mind while reading The Passenger is a fascinating exploration of grief that prompts questions about living with the past。 It’s about how to live a human life at all when that life is flawed， skewed by individual perception of reality， and tainted by experience。The plot is a framework for McCarthy’s main character， Western， to experience the hard-won ruminations on life from a motley crew of characters who reside in New Orleans。 The descriptions of the city are lus Living inside Cormac McCarthy’s mind while reading The Passenger is a fascinating exploration of grief that prompts questions about living with the past。 It’s about how to live a human life at all when that life is flawed， skewed by individual perception of reality， and tainted by experience。The plot is a framework for McCarthy’s main character， Western， to experience the hard-won ruminations on life from a motley crew of characters who reside in New Orleans。 The descriptions of the city are lush。 The characters pop off the page with their rough edges and direct assertions that fail to save them from their fallibility。McCarthy takes the reader in one direction only to pull back and redirect attention to Western’s sister and her perception of reality through mental illness。 He takes Western forward only to pull him back into his past。 There are people pursuing Western as he struggles to navigate the murky depths of past and present， sometimes one step ahead， sometimes too far behind。 Everyone will come away from The Passenger with their own interpretations of what it all means and that’s what makes Cormac McCarthy a legendary writer。 。。。more

Taylor Jones ，

Okay。 I'm done。 This book is fantastic。 If you're a fan of McCarthy the odds are you'll love it but for those who have not read him be prepared， this is not an easy read。 Difficulty aside， the complexity and depth of this novel are very enjoyable。 I'd hazard a guess that CM sees death coming which gives his writing a clarity and potency that is hard to describe other than "hard earned wisdom"。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。I'm Okay。 I'm done。 This book is fantastic。 If you're a fan of McCarthy the odds are you'll love it but for those who have not read him be prepared， this is not an easy read。 Difficulty aside， the complexity and depth of this novel are very enjoyable。 I'd hazard a guess that CM sees death coming which gives his writing a clarity and potency that is hard to describe other than "hard earned wisdom"。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。I'm in the last stretch of this （no rating yet） and all I can do is speculate。。。something along the line of。。。when you get old， like in your 80's （CM is 89） you sometimes， not always， get the wisdom in your bones and it rattles and pesters you because you know what it is but you cannot tell anyone what it is because you have to "live" your way into it。Trauma is nonlinear and Bobby Western is stuck in a perpetual retelling of family trauma。 The depth of this book is absurd。 I would liken the experience of reading The Passenger to something like trying to tell another human what living your life is like and all you have is approximation and narrative but you cannot close the gap completely and， fortunately that is the point。More to come when I'm done。 And then Stella Maris！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！ 。。。more

Darryl Suite ，

Prob 3。5 // Okay， I am finally finished。 I’m going to need a bit of time to digest。 McCarthy did not give a f*ck with this: I imagine his mindset was “if you can’t keep up， that’s on you。” This is nothing like what the plot summary on the back of the book would suggest: so scrap those expectations。 I can’t think of which past McCarthy book this most resembles （and I’ve read most）， it is its own thing， for sure。 My instinct wants to say that although it is ambitious， adventurous， and more surreal Prob 3。5 // Okay， I am finally finished。 I’m going to need a bit of time to digest。 McCarthy did not give a f*ck with this: I imagine his mindset was “if you can’t keep up， that’s on you。” This is nothing like what the plot summary on the back of the book would suggest: so scrap those expectations。 I can’t think of which past McCarthy book this most resembles （and I’ve read most）， it is its own thing， for sure。 My instinct wants to say that although it is ambitious， adventurous， and more surreal （yes！！） than we’re used to， it’s also a bit messy and unfocused， but I feel like people will love this one just because it’s McCarthy （that’s life）。 A lot of people won’t like this。 Am I one of them？ I don’t know yet， but the book did intrigue me for the most part， until the last third， which did lose me （detailed string theory， anyone？）。 Gimme time。 。。。more

Yesno S ，

Really satisfying。

Aaron Myles ，

I'd be hard pressed to think of an author that writes dialogue better than McCarthy。 There's an awful lot of trademark themes and style to this but with so many fresh ideas that just makes it read different to much of what's come before。An explosive return for my favourite author。 I'd be hard pressed to think of an author that writes dialogue better than McCarthy。 There's an awful lot of trademark themes and style to this but with so many fresh ideas that just makes it read different to much of what's come before。An explosive return for my favourite author。 。。。more

Nancy Mijangos ，

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review。 A novel about a young man whose life is spent dealing with unfathomable loss。

Corner Book ，

Masterpiece。

Alyssa Lentz ，

This is a contemplative book that follows a grieving man trying to make sense of his own life and the life of his family。 It was disorienting at first， because you definitely get the impression that you are reading half of a duo。 But it is decidedly character-focused and progresses mostly through meandering conversations， but I found myself hooked and turning the pages。 I will definitely be picking up Stella Maris when it comes out to see how all the pieces fit together。 Would recommend to reade This is a contemplative book that follows a grieving man trying to make sense of his own life and the life of his family。 It was disorienting at first， because you definitely get the impression that you are reading half of a duo。 But it is decidedly character-focused and progresses mostly through meandering conversations， but I found myself hooked and turning the pages。 I will definitely be picking up Stella Maris when it comes out to see how all the pieces fit together。 Would recommend to readers who are looking for ambitious books and are looking to explore themes of grief and legacy。Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more

Christian Hamilton ，

“The Passenger” is the first book by the legendary Cormac McCarthy in over a decade。 McCarthy should rightfully be considered the Great American Author， and his books have all spoken to me in different ways。 I consider “Blood Meridian” to be my favorite book - and perhaps one of the best books ever written。 Having been able to obtain early copies of “The Passenger” and “Stella Maris”， I was thrilled to read these books - and in fact， threw aside a pile of to-reads to get here。 Yet， after finishi “The Passenger” is the first book by the legendary Cormac McCarthy in over a decade。 McCarthy should rightfully be considered the Great American Author， and his books have all spoken to me in different ways。 I consider “Blood Meridian” to be my favorite book - and perhaps one of the best books ever written。 Having been able to obtain early copies of “The Passenger” and “Stella Maris”， I was thrilled to read these books - and in fact， threw aside a pile of to-reads to get here。 Yet， after finishing the first of the two novels， I feel multiple conflicting emotions - joy， frustration， contentment， and impatience。 “The Passenger” follows diver Bobby Western as he discovers a sunken jet， a missing black box， and more importantly， a missing passenger。 To a lesser degree， the story also follows his sister， Alicia Western， as she deals with a “cohort” of characters she suffers with due to her schizophrenia。 Like all McCarthy books beforehand， the prose alternates between simple and complicated， harsh and angelic。 When you read McCarthy， you read him for his writing。 And it does not disappoint。So why the 4？ The main plot， following Bobby’s discovery， ultimately seems to diffuse into philosophy and psychobabble。 Without spoilers， I saw no real resolution to both plots， and I wonder， at the end， if the missing passenger is supposed to be us - the readers。 We’re just along for the ride， and may have fallen off along the way。 “The Passenger” is a book of careful symmetry。 It lacks the bravado of “All the Pretty Horses” and the violence of “Blood Meridian。” It avoids the desolate beauty of “The Road” and the actual promulgation of forbidden love in “Outer Dark。”Instead， it weaves a careful and safe path - as far as McCarthy is concerned - toward conclusion。 The cast of characters is as memorable as those found in “Suttree”， and some of the philosophy echoes that transcribed in “The Crossing。” Yet， I only wish we were provided with more plot。 Perhaps when I read “Stella Maris”， we’ll see many of our questions answered。 McCarthy states later in the novel， “The problem is that what drives the tale will not survive the tale。” I think this could be considered a meta commentary for the book as a whole。 Is it McCarthy’s best work？ No， not by far。 In fact， it is likely one of his weakest。 But that’s not saying much when every book he’s written is a masterpiece。 Is it an absolute giant of modern fiction？ Is there even any question？ 。。。more

Ryan ，

3。5 so far。 Definitely a weird one from McCarthy。 Going to hold off any reviews until I finish the second book。

Todd ，

Such a huge disappointment-- I love McCarthy， but this one left me underwhelmed。 I will read "Stella Maris"， the follow-up， but I must admit I'm hardly in a rush to do so。 Such a huge disappointment-- I love McCarthy， but this one left me underwhelmed。 I will read "Stella Maris"， the follow-up， but I must admit I'm hardly in a rush to do so。 。。。more

John Guffey ，

I received this book in advance and was asked to provide a review。 I enjoy Cormac McCarthy’s writing and his style a lot。 Many parts of this book were great。 McCarthy can do dark， humor， craft a plot， draw you in， repulse you， and then some。 This book has all of that。 However， this one was too short on narrative and too heavy on one of McCarthy’s favorite devices: the philosophical stranger meeting a main character。 Like I said， I enjoyed many of these interactions but it was just too much throu I received this book in advance and was asked to provide a review。 I enjoy Cormac McCarthy’s writing and his style a lot。 Many parts of this book were great。 McCarthy can do dark， humor， craft a plot， draw you in， repulse you， and then some。 This book has all of that。 However， this one was too short on narrative and too heavy on one of McCarthy’s favorite devices: the philosophical stranger meeting a main character。 Like I said， I enjoyed many of these interactions but it was just too much through the course of the book。 You also can never expect much resolution with Cormac and you’ll have to wait and see on this one。 。。。more

Diane Ferbrache ，

The first chapter is intriguing and sets the stage for a mystery/suspense story。 Then it gets confusing and just plain weird。I loved McCarthy's previous works， All the Pretty Horses and The Road。 His writing is so wonderful and unusual and captivating， but this one is just confusing。 Perhaps the issue is that it's volume one of a two book series， and perhaps （with perseverance） had I kept reading I would have come to love it。 I gave it a shot （up to about 25%）， but I have way too many books on m The first chapter is intriguing and sets the stage for a mystery/suspense story。 Then it gets confusing and just plain weird。I loved McCarthy's previous works， All the Pretty Horses and The Road。 His writing is so wonderful and unusual and captivating， but this one is just confusing。 Perhaps the issue is that it's volume one of a two book series， and perhaps （with perseverance） had I kept reading I would have come to love it。 I gave it a shot （up to about 25%）， but I have way too many books on my "too read" list and I found myself just putting this one down far too often。The story begins with Western， a salvage diver who is sent to explore a sunken airplane。 He and his partner find the plane and its passengers at the bottom of the sea， all bodies still strapped in except one。 And the "black box" is missing。 What happened？ Where did they go？ I was definitely interested。 The problem is that McCarthy doesn't stay with that story， but switches times and places with every chapter and the other main storyline is definitely odd， to say the least。 In fact， some will find it offensive since the main characters include a "thalidomide baby" with "flippers' and several carnival characters from a sideshow -- use your imagination。 I just didn't get it！ McCarthy is a modern genius with a unique writing style （punctuation， dialogue style， lyrical prose）， so perhaps given the time and effort， this one would have captured my attention。 Perhaps I'll give it another try at a later date， and perhaps taken as a whole （with volume 2） it all makes sense。 It is definitely NOT for the average reader。 。。。more

Ted Zarek ，

This was tough， McCarthy makes nothing about his writing easy - and this reads like he sat down with David Lynch and William Faulkner， to give you an idea of how difficult it is at times - and it was about half way through that I realized the story wasn’t the point。 This isn’t a mystery or science fiction， it’s just a series of conversations no different from what you might here at a bar or a college lecture （at least， at one time）。Despite the description of the book， and the set up at the begin This was tough， McCarthy makes nothing about his writing easy - and this reads like he sat down with David Lynch and William Faulkner， to give you an idea of how difficult it is at times - and it was about half way through that I realized the story wasn’t the point。 This isn’t a mystery or science fiction， it’s just a series of conversations no different from what you might here at a bar or a college lecture （at least， at one time）。Despite the description of the book， and the set up at the beginning， the story element involving the “missing passenger” isn’t important。 And there’s no real resolution to that problem （though maybe there’s a bigger metaphor there to the rest of the story; I’ll have to think on that）。 Rather， we just follow Western as he encounters bizarre people and deals with challenges to his way of life， whether that’s G-men or his own grief and guilt。 And throughout this， we get amazing descriptions of the places Western travels， places that somehow feel real and like a dream。 And the people discuss everything from their dreams to complex physics and history。Interspersed is what teases his part two， Stella Maris， as we get glimpses at the conversations between Western’s sister - perhaps his biggest guilt - and the voices she has to live with。 。。。more

JDL ，

I don't want to judge this one fully without having read Stella Maris， but I can tell already that while The Passenger contains many callbacks and parallels to his older works， it is still a unique work in his oeuvre and one which is more experimental than his previous novels。 There's a lot to unpack in its 383 pages， and it is definitely a bit harder to follow than his other works for certain reasons。 However it does not disappoint; I was enthralled by McCarthy's writing yet again。 I won't say I don't want to judge this one fully without having read Stella Maris， but I can tell already that while The Passenger contains many callbacks and parallels to his older works， it is still a unique work in his oeuvre and one which is more experimental than his previous novels。 There's a lot to unpack in its 383 pages， and it is definitely a bit harder to follow than his other works for certain reasons。 However it does not disappoint; I was enthralled by McCarthy's writing yet again。 I won't say much more so as not to spoil it but this is probably the most exciting new book（s） to be released in recent memory and I feel incredibly lucky to have been able to read it early！ 。。。more

Janelle Janson ，

I am a long time fan of McCarthy’s work。 His writing style just works for me。 Review to come。

Corey ，

There is no better prose stylist alive today。 He writes the way God would write if he were a human being。 His dialogs are things of important beauty。 And this new novel is his wildest: it includes the terrible ghostly legacy of the atom bomb， fantasy circus performers， a submerged airplane with one passenger missing， a theory about JFK's assassination， and a man's love for his deceased sister， among other hallucinations of the spirit。 Next I will read its coda， published simultaneously， Stella M There is no better prose stylist alive today。 He writes the way God would write if he were a human being。 His dialogs are things of important beauty。 And this new novel is his wildest: it includes the terrible ghostly legacy of the atom bomb， fantasy circus performers， a submerged airplane with one passenger missing， a theory about JFK's assassination， and a man's love for his deceased sister， among other hallucinations of the spirit。 Next I will read its coda， published simultaneously， Stella Maris。 。。。more

Christine ，

[Copy gifted by the publisher]READ IF YOU LIKE。。。• Philosophical and existential musings• Solitary， lonely protagonists• Winding， open-ended storiesI THOUGHT IT WAS。。。An interesting literary meander， less story and more an exploration of guilt， grief， and the purpose of life。 It's centered on Bobby Western， deep sea diver， mathematical genius， son of the man who worked on the atomic bomb， and in love with his sister， who passed away 10 years ago。 After working on an exceedingly strange dive job， [Copy gifted by the publisher]READ IF YOU LIKE。。。• Philosophical and existential musings• Solitary， lonely protagonists• Winding， open-ended storiesI THOUGHT IT WAS。。。An interesting literary meander， less story and more an exploration of guilt， grief， and the purpose of life。 It's centered on Bobby Western， deep sea diver， mathematical genius， son of the man who worked on the atomic bomb， and in love with his sister， who passed away 10 years ago。 After working on an exceedingly strange dive job， some form of authority is now after him and it forces him to make some hard decisions about his life。You'll either love or hate how McCarthy approached this novel， in both style and form。 I think I was surprised by how drawn in I was by the deep， dense conversations that took place between Western and various colorful characters that make up his social circle。 It's possible for them to go completely over your head， but it's also possible for you to be completely taken off guard by the truth of one， immaculately composed sentence。McCarthy is the master of fleshing out characters just through dialogue and he does so here repeatedly。 He's also the master of keeping you on edge， letting you know something is off without saying it。 He intersperses the hallucinations of Western's sister， Alicia， in with Western's story and I hope that Stella Maris， this book's companion novel， dives further into her mind， troubled life， and singular genius。 。。。more

Daniel McNulty ，

The Passenger， along with Stella Maris， is a masterpiece！ Next to Blood Meridian， although completely different in many ways， this may be McCarthy's best and most transparent novel-it lays his philosophy all on the table for the reader while maintaining a sense of mystery。 Although 100% McCarthy， there are elements of William S。 Burroughs and Dostoevsky， with Stella Maris （much of which comes directly from an article McCarthy wrote on language and the unconscious in 2017 for Nautilus） serving as The Passenger， along with Stella Maris， is a masterpiece！ Next to Blood Meridian， although completely different in many ways， this may be McCarthy's best and most transparent novel-it lays his philosophy all on the table for the reader while maintaining a sense of mystery。 Although 100% McCarthy， there are elements of William S。 Burroughs and Dostoevsky， with Stella Maris （much of which comes directly from an article McCarthy wrote on language and the unconscious in 2017 for Nautilus） serving as his Grand Inquisitor moment。 This book made me want to go back and read all of McCarthy to look for what I've missed in the past and I'll definitely be revisiting this one for many years to come。 。。。more

Joe ，

A masterpiece。

Tim Kearns ，

I will only say that Cormac McCarthy has delivered a novel that will be read and re-read for years and years and years， it's just that damn good。 I will only say that Cormac McCarthy has delivered a novel that will be read and re-read for years and years and years， it's just that damn good。 。。。more

Brian Wraight ，

Light on story despite a promising setup in the opening chapters。 Heavy on long conversations between our main character and his vague acquaintances。 Some of the chapters feel like vintage McCarthy。 Others feel like he’s trying on new clothes that don’t quite fit。 I’m not sure if this is his weakest book or if I was just hoping for something different， but one thing is certain: He makes the most of the unlimited possibilities that the novelistic form offers。 Also， I get the feeling that this is Light on story despite a promising setup in the opening chapters。 Heavy on long conversations between our main character and his vague acquaintances。 Some of the chapters feel like vintage McCarthy。 Others feel like he’s trying on new clothes that don’t quite fit。 I’m not sure if this is his weakest book or if I was just hoping for something different， but one thing is certain: He makes the most of the unlimited possibilities that the novelistic form offers。 Also， I get the feeling that this is his most personal novel to date… 。。。more

Elisabeth ，

I had to work way too hard to get through this mere 290 page book and much of the reading was not enjoyable。 I'll still read Stella Maris in hopes of a great epiphany， though I somewhat doubt it。 I had to work way too hard to get through this mere 290 page book and much of the reading was not enjoyable。 I'll still read Stella Maris in hopes of a great epiphany， though I somewhat doubt it。 。。。more

Tom Mooney ，

What an absolute privilege to get to read this a few months ahead of publication。 It was perhaps the best day I've had as a bookseller when this arrived in the post。It's seven years or more since I last read McCarthy。 I had read The Road the year before and then devoured his entire catalogue in the space of 12 months。 I never imagined in my wildest dreams that I'd get to read new book of his。 I assumed that ship had sailed。 So， alongside obvious excitement， I had some trepidation going into this What an absolute privilege to get to read this a few months ahead of publication。 It was perhaps the best day I've had as a bookseller when this arrived in the post。It's seven years or more since I last read McCarthy。 I had read The Road the year before and then devoured his entire catalogue in the space of 12 months。 I never imagined in my wildest dreams that I'd get to read new book of his。 I assumed that ship had sailed。 So， alongside obvious excitement， I had some trepidation going into this; I am not the same reader I was seven years ago。 I'm less patient， more reliant on plot， lazier。 But I needn't have feared。 Yes， this is more challenging than most of what I read these days but it was very much worth the effort。It's a difficult book to summarise as there are several complex things going on。 I won't even try。 All I'll say is that The Passenger is a deeply felt， sad book about a man haunted by his sister's suicide and the appalling legacy of his father， trying to make sense if his life。 It is softer than McCarthy's earlier work and more humane and reflective。 There is humour， too， though much of it is of the dark variety。Anyway， who cares what I think。 It's a goddam new Cormac McCarthy for Christ's sake。 。。。more

karen ，

。。。more

Jonathan ，

“Real trouble doesn’t begin in a society until boredom has become its most general feature。 Boredom will drive even quiet minded people down paths they’d never imagined。”。“Every remedy for loneliness only postpones it。”。Cormac McCarthy needs no introduction as a world renown writer， his works have been hailed for decades and he is known as one of the greatest living authors， all the accolades could never prepare you for what he has created with “The Passenger”。 McCarthy’s first book in sixteen y “Real trouble doesn’t begin in a society until boredom has become its most general feature。 Boredom will drive even quiet minded people down paths they’d never imagined。”。“Every remedy for loneliness only postpones it。”。Cormac McCarthy needs no introduction as a world renown writer， his works have been hailed for decades and he is known as one of the greatest living authors， all the accolades could never prepare you for what he has created with “The Passenger”。 McCarthy’s first book in sixteen years shows him flexing on the literary world， almost mocking anyone to come and try to compete， I’m sure few will attempt after reading this stellar novel。 Was the book perfect？ I’d argue not even close， was it a clustered and mashed together rambling incoherent babbling of a finely tuned writer？ Quite possibly yes。 We get all the things typical of a Cormac novel， the phenomenal dialogue and ambient scenery descriptions that make it hard to fathom not actually being there。 At the end of the day this was an absolutely extraordinary work of art in a world that has lacked substance for some time。Let me explain now， the plot written out on the back of this novel says its about a sunken jet with nine passengers and one missing body， and while this event takes place towards the beginning of the novel， it really has no bearing over the story at all， a minor filler for a bigger picture of a man reckoning with his life。 McCarthy uses two narratives here， the first being italicized， is of our main characters dead sister and her schizophrenic hallucinations。 At first these are quite jarring as we don’t know the context but become more and more intriguing as the book continues， her mathematical skills and worldly theories lend to the belief that most geniuses are crazy， as do her supporting cast of cohorts that take up residence in her mind and visions。Her brother Western is the main protagonist and the story dances around him and his group of friends spanning from Louisiana across the southern united states， they almost seem to crawl from bar room to odd job back to the bar room。 Their constant takes on life， death， and philosophical entities are a spectacle to behold。 Again McCarthy really let loose on this one， touching from the carnal love of a brother and sister， to string theory， to mathematical relativity， the atomic bomb and its creation， and many late 1800’s to early 1900’s philosophers。 We as readers simply become the missing passenger from the plain wreck as we let Cormac take us on the ride of a lifetime。 Was I shocked by the magnitude of this novel， I was not， but I was dumbfounded by the execution and ease the author seemed to tackle everything， I truly believe this was McCarthy pulling out all the stops and having a good time。 One I can say with confidence I don’t think all readers will be having。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Passenger

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Passenger&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Passenger&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0