Books

Octavo, [3], 197pp, [3]. Red hardcover, title in gilt on blue cloth spine. Stated "First Edition" on copyright page. Solid text block, faint sunning to top edge, remnant of bookplate previously affixed to front free endpaper, a near fine example. In the publisher's first state dust jacket, $5.95 retail price listed, sunned spine, faint shelf wear, "1/74" code on rear flap, image of McCarthy on rear panel.

Cormac McCarthy's 'Child of God' tells the story of Lester Ballard, a dispossessed, violent man whose life is a disastrous attempt to exist outside the social order. McCarthy depicts the life of a violent young outcast and serial killer in 1960s Appalachian Tennessee. Though the narrative is stark, the protagonist's isolation and disaffection are depicted with empathy by McCarthy, whose prose reveals the layers of humanity in even the most desolate and detestable characters.