Child of God by Cormac McCarthy – Reviewed by Guy Portman
Having been dispossessed of his land, Lester Ballard is now homeless and eking out an existence in the backwoods of Sevier County, East Tennessee. For food, he steals and forages. For shelter, he uses caves and an abandoned house. Ballard’s aptitude for survival is in stark contrast to his inept social skills. Coarse, profane and prone to leering at females, this unsavoury creature casts a sinister presence wherever he goes. As the book progresses, we witness the violent and amoral redneck’s descent into insanity.
Set in a rugged and unforgiving landscape, Child of God is a tautly written and concise work of ‘country noir’. Themes include loneliness and necrophilia. This reader was mesmerised by the eloquent simplicity of the prose and the compelling depiction of the depraved, Geinesque protagonist. He will be reading more of McCarthy’s bleak offerings.
