Reader’s Note
A man and a boy walk south.
by@commuterfictionWritten 9 May 2026Read 7 May 2026
A man and his son walk south along a road, pushing a shopping trolley with a tarpaulin over it. Neither of them is named. The sky is grey, the trees are dead, and there is ash on everything.
They are heading for the coast because the man thinks it will be warmer there. They avoid other people. Twice they hide in the trees while a group goes past. The man carries a revolver with two rounds in it and has told the boy what to do with it if he has to.
They search a farmhouse, a barn, a supermarket where they find one tin, and a cellar under a lawn that is full of food and blankets. They stay in the cellar for several days and then move on because the man decides it is not safe. The man coughs blood into a rag and does not show the boy.
In flashback, the mother walks out one night before the journey starts.
They reach the sea. It is grey. There is a boat offshore with something left in it. The man gets worse as they go along the beach. Near the end another man comes along the beach and speaks to the boy.
About this book
The RoadCormac McCarthyIn the Margins
The Road reviewed by @books_and_bins
Two nights, then I phoned my boy for no reason. Bleak as anything. It's the tinned peaches that got me.8 out of 10@books_and_bins
The Road reviewed by @an_ordinary_tuesday
Ash, ash, ash, and the boy.9 out of 10@an_ordinary_tuesday
The Road reviewed by @grimdarkgareth
Nine. Bleak all the way down — and the bunker chapter is the cruellest bit because it's nice.9 out of 10@grimdarkgareth
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