Border Trilogy: All the Pretty Horses, the Crossing, Cities of the Plain

Border Trilogy: All the Pretty Horses, the Crossing, Cities of the Plain | Cormac McCarthy

It's been nearly a decade since I last read a McCarthy novel, but he made an impression on me - my Litsy handle is taken from Billy Parham who appears in The Crossing and Cities of the Plain, two of my favorite novels. I enjoyed those novels even more than Blood Meridian (not pictured), which has one of the most frightening literary villains I've witnessed. But The Border Trilogy focuses on two heroes, which is tougher to pull off in some ways 👇

Billypar John Grady Cole and Billy Parham are fairly unassuming as heroes: they may be cowboy-types, but there is also nothing too dramatic about them. John is quieter than Billy but neither of them say very much. Both seem to share a special bond with horses and often whisper into their ears. But that's about it. Yet somehow they're compelling, even as they confront violence and the more sadistic forces that always seem to pop up in his novels. 10mo

Billypar I haven't read his two latest, but I'm looking forward to revisiting a writer I've enjoyed so much over the years. RIP 10mo

merelybookish Cool to learn he inspired your Litsy handle. 🤎 10mo

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BarbaraBB That‘s a beautiful tribute to him ❤️ 10mo

batsy Lovely tribute. My introduction to him was via his last two books, which despite its bleak nature I found very welcoming/comforting, if that makes sense. I need to read his other stuff. And what a way to go out, with that diptych at the end, at 89! 10mo

Billypar @merelybookish I'm terrible with coming with screen names so I was just glad to think of something 🙂 10mo

Billypar @BarbaraBB Thanks! 10mo

Billypar @batsy Yeah, I'm glad he was able to finish them - I know he was working on them for some time! Totally agree about the comforting feeling in the face of grim realities - I don't think it was always there in his early work but definitely true in The Border Trilogy and The Road. 10mo

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Butterfinger

The Border Trilogy | Cormac McCarthy

Day 16 #20Series20Days @Andrew65

I measure all philosophical westerns to this set. McCarthy can tell a great story about young men growing up around brutal border towns. It is loaded with symbolism. For example, in All The Pretty Horses, you can feel the wildness and the yearning of freedom from the main character. He does remind you of a wild stallion. The one that sticks with me is The Crossing. You just have to read it to fully appreciate it.

DGRachel I have loved every book of McCarthy‘s that I‘ve read. I own The Border Trilogy, but haven‘t read them yet. Good to know they don‘t disappoint! 4y

Billypar The Crossing and Cities of the Plain are two of my all - time favorites (maybe obvious from my Litsy handle). 4y

Andrew65 Sounds well worth adding to my growing TBR! 4y

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andrew61

Border Trilogy: All the Pretty Horses, the Crossing, Cities of the Plain | Cormac McCarthy

#20series20days @Andrew65
Day8
This was a brilliant series set on the wild border of new mexico and mexico, in bks 1+2 we meet separately john cole and then billy pardham, teo young cowboys who get drawn into separate harsh cross border adventures. In bk 3 they are colleagues on the same ranch. Totally absorbing and brutal with scenes and characters that remain etched in my memory.

Andrew65 Stacked! 4y

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Billypar

The Border Trilogy | Cormac McCarthy

#borderline #MOvember
I try not to repeat myself as much as possible, so for those of you who have already heard my tired Cormac McCarthy sermon, I apologize. But here it is again. The Road and Blood Meridian are fine novels, but books 2 and 3 of The Border Trilogy, The Crossing and Cities of the Plain, are his best (imho).
Do you all have favorites that get overshadowed by other works from the same author? I'd like to hear them!
@Cinfhen

BarbaraBB Great question. I have to think of that. 4y

Cinfhen Hmmmm, that‘s interesting.i need to think as well 4y

Billypar @BarbaraBB @Cinfhen It is hard to think of examples. I also don't have very many authors where I've gone deep into their catalogues- I usually just read the bigger hits, so I wonder what I'm missing out on. 4y

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Cinfhen I‘ve been thinking all day but haven‘t really come up with any good examples 4y

Taylor As someone who takes the time to read deep into authors‘ catalogues, I can answer this pretty well. “Just Above My Head” is Baldwin‘s best novel probably; DeLillo‘s “Point Omega” is incredible, as well as his newest one, “Zero K,” which is better and more profound than a lot of his older famous ones; Toni Morrison‘s last novel, “God Help the Child” is superb and I way prefer it to “Song of Solomon” or the “The Bluest Eye.” 4y

Taylor Pynchon‘s “Bleeding Edge” is better than any of his other novels besides “Gravity‘s Rainbow”; Faulkner‘s Snopes trilogy ought to be talked about as much as his earlier stuff because it is phenomenal; Bret Easton Ellis‘s “Lunar Park” is his second best novel IMO; and “Demons” is one of my favorite Dostoevsky novels! That‘s about all I got, that I can think of. (edited) 4y

Billypar @Taylor Wow, thanks for all these examples: I've read all of these authors and almost none of these selections ☺ Lunar Park is the exception - really enjoyed it, probably about as much as Glamorama or Rules of Attraction 4y

Billypar @Taylor I didn't like either of the Delillo novels I tried - White Noise and Running Dog- but they were still interesting enough that I'd try one of the two you mentioned (provided they're shorter than Underworld!) 4y

Taylor @Billypar Yes well you might not like DeLillo in general, and in that case I doubt you‘d like “Point Omega” or “Zero K.” Just hard to tell. Either way they‘re both really short, especially Point Omega. Anyway it‘s a really cool question you asked, and one that I never hear discussed much. It‘s tough to point out examples because it takes a huge time commitment to read deeply into an author‘s catalog. 4y

Taylor @Billypar Personally, I‘d rather know an author really well rather than have read one or two hits a bunch of famous authors have written. The result is I have big gaps in my reading, like huge authors I haven‘t read a word of. (Marquez, off the top of my head.) But on the other hand I kind of consider only knowing one or two books by an author to be a gap in its own way, so...there you go. 😂 (edited) 4y

Billypar @Taylor Since I started reading more in the past few years I feel I've been driven to do exactly what you mentioned- read only 1-2 works and move on in a drive to find new authors. But I think that's changing and I'm craving deep dives into a few authors - Morrison, Erdrich, Calvino, and Oyeyemi are a few I'm targeting. You're right though - too much out there not to have gaps of some kind! 4y

Taylor @Billypar Yeah it‘s a give and take. I guess one way to do it is you could read one author in depth, but take breaks in between their books to read a book by a different author, then get back to that first author. Maybe I‘ll do that more actually. 4y

Reggie Everyone who has ever heard of Julia Alvarez always says that In the Time of Butterflies and How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accent are her best but they‘re not!!!! That honor goes to In the Name of Salome followed by Yo! 4y

Billypar @Reggie This is perfect because I haven't read Alvarez yet and I would have definitely gone with one of the first two you said. I'm stacking Name of Salome & Yo! 4y

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KaatjeH

The Border Trilogy | Cormac McCarthy

Reading with a view ☀️
#currentlyreading

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Billypar

Border Trilogy: All the Pretty Horses, the Crossing, Cities of the Plain | Cormac McCarthy

#Alltheyoungdudes , well, both the young dudes who star in the first two novels of McCarthy's Border Trilogy find themselves together in the trilogy's conclusion, both hands on the same ranch. Even though these guys are cowboy-like...oh my god does this freaking novel pack an emotional punch, just like its predecessor. I have never been more involved in a novel, period. #septembowie @Marchpane @Cinfhen

Cinfhen That is quite a statement!!! I may need to start this series because of your endorsement!!! Have you read this @shawnmooney 7y

shawnmooney @Cinfhen No, not yet but I must get to this writer soon! 😘 7y

Leftcoastzen Way overdue to read the trilogy.One of my friends absolutely favorite read. 7y

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JazzFeathers I know l'm want to read McCarthy, but l always hesitate because l feel unconfortable with the level of violence of his novels 😶 7y

Billypar @JazzFeathers The trilogy has violence but not as much as some of his others. Though if specific, vivid scenes of violence can be an issue, you might want to avoid Cities. But I'd still recommend The Crossing as a standalone. 7y

Billypar @Cinfhen @shawnmooney @Leftcoastzen Personally I wasn't a huge fan of the first one- All the Pretty Horses. You don't need to read it before The Crossing, though you should before COTP. Think of it as a down payment 🙂 7y

Leftcoastzen @Billypar I would have to read all of them, just the way I'm wired.Often my OCD ,I read an authors books in order of publication even if it's not a series.😀 (edited) 7y

Billypar @Leftcoastzen Yeah I'm the same way for series (though by order of pub is impressive!). ATPH isn't a bad book, but it's a little slow for my taste- very different compared to the other two. 7y

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