Identify and Sort

McCarthy, Cormac. The road. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006. Print.

The five elements of a short story that are in the book that I am reading (The Road by Cormac McCarthy) are characters, setting, conflict, suspense and point of view.

In my personal opinion this is the order of importance:

1. Suspense

2. Conflict

3. Characters

4. Setting

5. Point of View

In the book The Road by Cormac McCarthy there is a ton of suspense. A great example of the suspense in this book is when the man and his son came upon the mysterious house where people are being held captive. As the two descend down to stairs in the basement their only light is coming from a lighter. Because of this, the author reviles small bits of information as the light flickers in and out. This really drags out the moment and as each piece of information is reveled the suspense of the moment keeps building and building up until finally the whole picture is reveled. "He started down the rough wooden steps. He ducked his head and then flicked the lighter and swung the flame out over the darkness like an offering. Coldness and damp. An ungodly stench. The boy clutched at his coat. he could see part of a stone wall. Clay floor. An old mattress darkly staid. Huddled against the back wall were naked people, male and female, all trying to hide, shielding their faces with their hand. On the mattress lay a man with his legs gone to the hip and the stumps of them blackened and burnt." (McCarthy, 110) As you can see this is a very suspenseful part of the book. This is just one example of the many suspenseful elements in The Road by Cormac McCarthy 

Identify

     There are many things that can make a great book. Three things that I look for in a good book are a good plot or storyline, good characters and lots of action or suspense.

     So far in "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy all three of those qualities are being met. So far, the storyline has been good. Everything so far has made sense and has been in a logical order. The characters are also very good in this book. The father is smart, strong and brave and his personality really contributes to the story. The boy is the other main character in the story. The boy's presence really adds to the story because the father has to look after himself as well as the boy, where as if the boy wasn't in the story the father would only have himself to look after and his journey would be a lot easier. This story is also full of action and suspense. The two characters have been through many near death experiences and have survived two different attacks from the "bad guys" so far. Whenever their is action the author does a great job of adding suspense. For example when the father and his son come upon the house where people are being held captive their only light is coming from a lighter. As the light flickers pieces of information are reveled. This really drags out the moment which creates a feeling of suspense.

     "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy has met my three requirements of a good book and is overall a great book.

McCarthy, Cormac. The road. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2006. Print.