All the Pretty Horses is a novel set in southern Texas and Mexico in the 1950s.   It is the story of John Grady, a 16 year old who has become disconnected from his ranch home and family.   He was raised by a Mexican familyso he is fluent in Spanish.   He and his friend Lacey Rawlings decide to look for work as cowboys rather than move into town.    They ride south into Mexico.   The author tells the journey of the cowboy life in detail, slowly, with great craftsmanship and passion.     The boys continue south across the plains to ranching territory and they get jobs on a large ranch mainly because of John Grady’s ability to break and care for horses.    Their connection to horses is an important part of the novel and about half of the book follows their lives as cowboys.

In Cormac McCarthy’s novels, violence and anarchy is out there, and a wrong decision can lead to disaster.   John Grady falls in love with a girl and faced with an ultimatum, he follows his heart, resulting in a series of deadly consequences.

“He saw very clearly how all his life led only to this moment and all after led to nowhere at all. He felt something cold and soulless enter him like another being and he imagined that it smiled malignly and he had no reason to believe that it would ever leave.”

The book won the National Book Award (1992) and the National Book Critic’s Award.    It is the first book in a trilogy and it was made into a movie in the year 2000.  It is widely acclaimed, but it is not an easy read.    The language is plain and the story is simple, but it has an unsettling tone.    The peace and harmony of life on a horse on the plains is contrasted with the turmoil of communities, and the conflicts of class society, poverty, corruption, greed, power, anger, and betrayal.    The prose is simple, but elegant.   The story is rewarding, but dark.   Recommended – 4.6 out of 5.0 stars4.6