KnockBack, Episode 78 | The Road (novel)

I know I’m 3 years late, but finally got around to reading this book solely based on this KnockBack episode. Really enjoyed the story and depiction of the post-apocalypse. A lot of the man’s motivations and fears feel so real. The ending, specifically the final 2-3 pages had me in tears and I NEVER cry when consuming media. Especially a book. What I do regret is reading the book on my honeymoon in Punta Cana. What a dark and sad story to experience on what was otherwise such a joyous occasion haha

Corey Adams

After reading this book I'm ordering Cormac Mccarthy's entire collection. This book is one of the most haunting works of fiction I've ever read. Blood Meridian is still my favorite of Mccarthy's work, but The Road is a close second.

Miles Williams

Patreon removed that option, but it should be back now. If you're having further issues, DM me and I'll look into it for you.

Colin Moriarty

Thank you! I'm so pleased that this episode resonated, because I didn't know how an episode about a book would do.

Colin Moriarty

That would be cool, but it's a big risk to "ruin" it like that.

Colin Moriarty

The doctor thing was interesting. I wonder what he did...

Colin Moriarty

is the podcast not downloadable anymore on patreon? I can't seem to download them anymore

Tristen Luu

Excellent discussion, as it sent me to my bookshelf to grab "The Road" for my second reading of it. I first read it 12 years ago right after my first child was born, and while it was a fantastic experience, there was an undeniable emotional weight of reading this while being new to parenthood. Maybe it won't be any different the second time, but I'm looking forward to enhancing this experience with the observations and insights that you and Dagan brought. Can't wait until your next literarily-based Knockback.

Zach Brown

Loved the episode. Colin, you mentioned possibly wanting a game set in this world. How would you feel about a follow up novel, written by McCarthy, about the boy as an adult. Or even thousands to hundreds of thousands of years later?

Josh Lucente

The other thing to note about The Road is the sheer resourcefulness of the Dad - felt like he was a doctor before. He was also deeply Christian which I think was a big part of why he wanted them to survive.

Jeremiah Lyne

You should definitely read the book. =D

Colin Moriarty

Just finishing this episode while eating breakfast on my last day of vacation. It was great. I’ve seen and enjoyed the movie but never read the book. I’ll pick it up now. What I love about you and Dagan is how much I feel like I could be involved in the conversation. I live in New Brunswick, Canada and our provincial government has actually lost money selling cannabis since it was legalized here. We make the joke that only the government could screw up selling drugs.. As a licensed firearm owner, please take safety courses on firearm handling before buying. We have somewhat decent regulations here in Canada, though not as strict as a lot of uninformed people seem to think (that’s another conversation though) one problem I do have is that you’re never required to fire a gun to obtain a license for one. Yet, when getting a license to hunt with a bow, you have to prove you can shoot it accurately. Anyway, sorry for the long winded post but this episode made me fall down the rabbit hole of prepping on YouTube.. As a self-proclaimed “gear head” My wallet may not be happy for the next little while. Thanks again for the great content and be good!

Jason Price

I think I'd be done either way. LOL.

Colin Moriarty

Loved this episode. City folks would be hosed if and when the apocalypse happens. Grab that shopping cart quick Colin and head to the outskirts as soon as possible, haha :)

Will Caldwell

Yeah, I'd like to think I'd do the same. But you never know... LOL.

Colin Moriarty

That's quite the pace!

Colin Moriarty

It's such a special book. Bleak, indeed!

Colin Moriarty

You'd be swapping out shoes and boots wherever you could, I'd imagine.

Colin Moriarty

I personally would just starve to death. No way I’m eating human flesh. Just think & imagine what that would taste like.

Brandon Soto

I've never been much of a reader so this year I've challenged myself to read 52 books by the end of the year. I've currently read 35. The Road was the 6th book I read this year and it's probably my favourite book I've ever read. Horrifying and powerful. I sat in my chair for 10 minutes just thinking after I finished it.

Haydyn

I chose The Road for a book project in high school and the next year did No Country for Old Men. Loved them both, especially the former. The utter bleakness of that story was so captivating, and I remember being really enthused to talk about it in class

Ross Tarren

Had a weird thought listening to this: I (we?) don't even know how to make our own shoes! I (we?) would be sooooooooooo f'd in the post apocalypse.

Interesting. Yeah, this book is about as economical (word-wise) as it gets.

Colin Moriarty

Yeah, that's the really sad part of the book: Its slow-moving decent into complete doom.

Colin Moriarty

Awesome. You're gonna love it!

Colin Moriarty

Thank you for listening, and for your kind words. <3

Colin Moriarty

Awaiting...

Colin Moriarty

Indeed! That's what makes it so special. =)

Colin Moriarty

I havnt read the book yet, I will soon, but its interesting to hear that his use of language is very economic here. I just finished Blood Meridian, which is one of the most dense and verbose books I have ever read. It was a real struggle to read at times, but at the same time entirely engrossing.

Phil Walker

What scared me the most about this book is that it reframed my thoughts around how humanity might end. Call it ignorance, but when I first read it as a 17-year-old, I always figured we'd just blow each other up, or there would be an instant extinction event. The idea that humans might slowly, painfully wither away and be pushed into cannibalism utterly horrified me. Books that evoke such emotion are truly a treasure.

Phillip Guglielmo

Bought a copy of the Road today. I look forward to listening to this when I am done reading it for the first time.

Prince Borutski

What I find so great about this novel isn't just how McCarthy uses a word to paint a thousand pictures. But how remarkably he blends prose and poetry. Never have I read a book where from front to end it is so open to interpretation like a good painting. The symbology even down the the man and the boy being blank canvases to paint yourself on to (as he intended) as you discussed, you can't help but fall into their shoes and wonder what you would do. Or The Road not only being literal, but figurative in the sense of keeping the moral high road alive and maintaining our humanity instead of reverting back to animals as essentially most did. No compassion, just kill to survive. My favourite episode so far. This was perfect for you two being knowledgeable on the themes but also Dagan being a Dad brought a great view to it. At times this was even hard to listen to. I can't imagine what the audio book is like. He truly is the greatest American literature writer in history.

Daniel Schiffer

FUCK. YES. Instant. Click. Download. T-minus 30 seconds until listening.

Daniel Schiffer

Ah, a funny coincidence indeed!

Colin Moriarty

I didn't read too much about the ending, no.

Colin Moriarty

Thank you for listening!

Colin Moriarty

I'm pretty sure I said at least half of this, too. But it's been awhile since we recorded, so I could be remembering wrong.

Colin Moriarty

Brett, with respect, while I got the numbers wrong, you literally just said what I said on the show. LOL. (With the exception of all of your string theory-like shit, which isn't science. =D)

Colin Moriarty

I found this extremely hard to read just because of how emotionally draining every single page is. Definitely the darkest book I have ever read, borderline upsetting at points. That's quite the achievement.

Michal Dudic

It’s funny that this episode came out today because I just bought McCarthy’s No Country For Old Men because I adore the movie so much so I decided to purchase the book. The man is a master in storytelling. Looking forward to what you two have to say about The Road.

Will Hahn

Also Colin The Road is definitely a metoer. There is an old quote by him confirming it was a meteor event. The reason for the Earthquakes in the aftermath are common with large meteor strikes the size of extinction level events. They hit the earth and then fuck up the plate tectonics bad. If a massive meteor hit earth their would be massive volcanic eruptions and tsunamis and torrential weather for a long period of time. Also what you fail to mention and realize about global warming is that intelligent life was not present on the planet. Only plants were able to survive it. Global warming has been responsible for 2 mass extinction events. That's a narrow view. Just a few degrees warmer cause the carbon in the atmosphere to not negate the power of the sun an absorb it. If the planet heats up then water heats up. The warmer the oceans the more powerful hurricanes and weather systems. The entire global water supply would be warmed and sea level would rise 200 feet which would literally have billions of people underwater. It's not happening quickly thats the point. It has been happening since the industrial revolution. This is not an issue to be taken lightly because the balance of life and ecosystem is extremely surgical and the slightest bump makes things drastically change. The Earth was at one time completely covered in a layer of ice all around the planet. Snowball Earth. If it gets too hot the oceans will literally evaporate into space.

Brett Carlson

Colin the numbers you gave for light speed tike dilation are wildly inaccurate lmao. If you traveler at 99% of light speed for 5 years then 36 years would have passed on Earth. And that is technically time travel because time I relative to the user and the speed in which they move through space. So on your return trip to Earth you would in fact have gone to the future from your perspective. Going back in time you are correct. Impossible. Time always moves forward and can be manipulated as such, but there is no such thing as the past. Every moment that occurs through your course of life is just a variable amount of probable outcomes and once they happen it's over and done with. The trick is that the many worlds theories state that every possible decision Colin Moriarty can make in life he will make, across multiple realities. Because the universe is infinite that would mean the number of Colin's in also infinite and the decisions you make are indeed also infinite.

Brett Carlson

I was wondering if you guys in your research for the episode, had read about the ending of the book interpretations. Some people have interpreted the end differently especially the last paragraph. Interesting reading.

Steve

Another fantastic episode! Cormac McCarthys books are just perfect fiction. I gotta agree with Dagan about Blood Meridian. It has to be one of the best works of fiction of the 20th century. Excited for more potential book topics.

Robert Graham

I see. That's not quite what I was thinking of, but it's something.

Colin Moriarty

That's great to hear! I think they've been tinkering in the background, so it's cool that it's paying dividends.

Colin Moriarty

<3

Colin Moriarty

I think we'll do a topic like that one day, particularly because Dagan and I both really liked that shit as kids (and, as we said, Long Island has a deep history in that space).

Colin Moriarty

It's a special one.

Colin Moriarty

I'm glad to hear that, though I'm sorry that you spoiled it for yourself. That said, it's a short read.

Colin Moriarty

You can defiantly buy guns online. But California may not allow it. I bought my pistol online it just has to be shipped to a registered firearms shop in your area and you have to pay a transfer fee to get possession of it.

Ryan R. Kittredge

I have noticed over the past couple weeks that the Patreon audio hosting has become a TON more stable. I am able to listen to full episodes while using other apps. Pause and return. And am very happy I do not have to download each and every episode to listen to fully. Just wanted to post a positive take on patrons media hosting. Has gotten waaaay better

Ryan Harvey

Awesome. Huge Cormac fan, and it is great to see a book make the list on Knockback.

Quinn

You ever wanna chat Bob Lazar, Area 51/S4/Dreamland, Roswell, Phoenix Lights, anything UFO and aliens.....let's go lol. One of my passions.

Jeremy Cochran

The Road is the only summer reading assignment that I actually ever did lol. To say it was captivating is an understatement...

GameSimp

Gonna try to be a little more engaged in the community and actually comment in things. Haven't read the book or seen the movie, don't care enough about spoilers though, so I still listened. Colin and Dagan have convinced me to add this to my Kindle wishlist. On a side note, this is the second episode (I think) where I heard my name listed among the producers and I smile every time. Feels good to support such great content.

Matthew Perdue

For what it's worth, she had no idea who we were again.

Colin Moriarty

I only played Season One, so I need to tear through all of it, really. I think they have a compilation coming out soon that I'll probably just jump on.

Colin Moriarty

You got it. Enjoy!

Colin Moriarty

It really is a powerful book, there's no doubt about it.

Colin Moriarty

Nice, good to know.

Colin Moriarty

Uh-huh.

Colin Moriarty

"That boy looks hungry."

Colin Moriarty

The movie is great. The book is unrivaled.

Colin Moriarty

I didn't know he was a playwright until I was researching for this show. Very interesting stuff.

Colin Moriarty

Well, I hope you enjoy our show!

Colin Moriarty

I think the movie is awesome (though we don't talk a great deal about it here).

Colin Moriarty

Enjoy. =)

Colin Moriarty

I need to go to this diner when I visit the States. I need to know who this waitress is! She’s as much a part of this show as Colin and Dagan are at this point haha

Adam Barnes

I would say, Colin: I really recommend you play Telltale’s The Walking Dead: Season 2. It’s my favorite of those games, and it’s got a phenomenally poignant vibe that’s darker and more lonely than the first game’s (cause Lee’s not there, music, etc.). Like, even the opening “scene” really fucks you up and hooks you in. Unlike south though, that game has you traversing north where the walkers might be slower and freeze. It captures the spirit of works like The Road in a different way, and I think about that game a lot. Highly recommend it if you like this kind of fiction. It’s a weekend game.

Caleb Greer

Hell yes! I can't wait to go through this one, I think you turned me (and by proxy, eventually her) into this book about 5-6 years back or so. Such a great book, and a, very good film as well. Thanks a million 👍

Lou & Rei Loper

I can’t wait to listen to this. The Road hit me like a freight train the first time I read it. It is so deeply, profoundly beautiful that I just couldn’t stop. I read it in two sittings. I’m not trying to be super matcho or anything (far from it, I’m beta male as fuck) but I’m not much of a crier. When I closed the book I just sat and wept for a little while. Then I flipped back to the beginning and read it again. It’s remarkable.

Russell Garrett

Great book and great podcast as always. Worth noting that the film is available on Amazon Prime streaming in the UK and is included in the standard Prime Video membership. But yea, read the book first!

Dave Boorn

What a book.

Liam Fagan

Part of the movie is filmed on an abandoned section of the Pennsylvania turnpike, very creepy but worth visiting

Andrew Hess

I watched the movie many times, it's one of my top 10 favorite movies of all times, very powerful performances from Viggo Mortensen and the actor who plays his son I don't remember his name. It reminds me of The Last of Us and God of War when it comes to the father figure and son/daughter figure relationship.

Josh Correa

There is a terrific movie that got very little buzz to my knowledge called "The Sunset Limited" that was adapted from one of his plays. It stars Samuel L. Jackson and Tommy Lee Jones and is entirely dialog between 2 men. One man that is suicidal and the other that is a man of God that is trying to convince him that there is so much to live for... May not be everyone's cup of tea but I liked it a lot.

Jordan Maus

Wow this is quite the surprise for me didn’t see this one coming! I remember reading this book in college a few years ago, I loved it as much as the movie.

Kenneth Oms

This should be a good one. I read the book a couple years ago after hearing Colin talk about it and its great! The movie is pretty good as well.

Keith A. Lewis

Absolutly love this book! Looking forward to hearing yours and Dag's take on it!

Jordan Maus