Why this book:  Selected by my literature reading group – strongly advocated for by Janar.

Summary in 3 sentences:  A man hunting out in the outback in South Texas stumbles upon a number of shot up vehicles, a bunch of dead men and a satchel full of money – and figures out quickly that this was a drug gang war, and so absconds with the money, expecting to never get caught. That sets off multiple bad guys trying to find him to recover the money, and a lot of killing which includes not just bad guys, but no shortage of innocent bystanders. Meanwhile throughout the story, the local Sheriff, the key protagonist in the book, is on the trail of both the man who found the money, as well as the multiple bad guys who are committing murders and mayhem in their efforts to track him down and recover what they believe is rightfully theirs. 

My Impressions:  I listened to this book, so my impressions are colored (positively!) by the excellent rendition the audible reader gave representing the various characters in the book.  The story takes place entirely in South Texas, and nearly all of the characters are working class, down-to-earth Texans and their voices and accents bespeak the region and their origins.  I could also argue that the book is largely about small-town Texas and its people, and how their culture of simple courage and hard work is being corrupted by the influence of the traffickers who are moving through their world, who do not share their values – in fact whose values directly oppose those of the people who settled and live in that space. 

There are two main characters who represent both sides of this cultural divide: Sheriff Ed Tom Bell and narco trafficker hit man Anton Chighurh.  Sheriff Bell’s voice and perspective begin each chapter – he is a WWII veteran (the book takes place late 70s/early 80s) whose grand father had been a sheriff and whose influence led to Ed Tom becoming a sheriff – which at the time of the story, he’d been for nearly 30 years. Chigurh is an extremely intelligent, cold-blooded, socio-pathic killer, who works for the big money players in the narcotics trade. He has no qualms at all about killing anyone who might compromise him or his purpose, and he does ALOT of killing in No County for Old Men. 

A third major character is Llewelyn Moss, who early in the book, happens upon the scene of a shootout between rival drug gangs.  He finds numerous dead bodies, a van full of heroin, as well as an unclaimed valise full of over $2 million in cash.  He believes he’s hit the jackpot – takes the money, and makes a plan for himself and his young wife to disappear and live happily ever after.  Obviously, it turns out to be not that easy, as the “bad guys” are pretty resourceful and intent on not only finding that money,  but also in punishing the individual who took it. 

In the midst of all this, Sheriff Bell is trying to solve the crime of so many dead bodies in his jurisdiction, with very few clues to go on – though it’s clear to him that it’s all drug related – no IDs on the bodies, mostly Mexican, lots of bullet holes in the vehicles without valid license plates.  And then more bodies start turning up as he tries to put the pieces of the puzzle together. 

Meanwhile Chigurh is on the trail of the money and is tracking Moss, as is separately, one of the fat cats who is now out his $2million plus.  Bodies keep piling up, while Sheriff Bell is a couple of steps behind.  We are seeing the situation evolve through Moss’s eyes,  and separately Chigurh’s, as well as the Sheriff’s.  As we accompany the Sheriff on his investigation, we already know the answers to his questions, because we are privy to Chigurh’ and Moss’s thoughts and actions.   Pretty much all the way to the end. 

Both Bell and Chigurh are great characters – Chigurh is extremely intelligent in a diabolical way, consistent in his evil logic and actions, and extremely effective at covering his tracks.  Sheriff Bell is very sharp in a practical, everyman/commons sensical way, and figures things out pretty quickly.  Sheriff Bell is also a man of principle and a dedicated public servant,  who cares for the people in his community, his friends, and his country.  He has seen a lot of bad in his 30 years on the job, but also a lot of good and has empathy and appreciation for the hard working, poor people in his community. Moss is likewise a good man, practical and smart,  but not as smart as he thinks he is. 

We see in the book that it’s hard to defeat an enemy who has no moral scruples.  Sheriff Bell shares his frustration at what his job has evolved into, what his county and South Texas have become as a result of the drug and gang wars, and what America’s new generation has become.  Chigurh  has no such concerns.  Moss is basically a good guy, who is just trying to take advantage of what looks like a really good break, at stumbling upon this ill-gotten money.  In some ways, this story reminds me of the movie A Simple Plan with Billy Bob Thornton

I can’t say that I enjoyed all the evil and killing in this book, but the story is very well told.  I thought the story had almost religious overtones – Chigurh is the devil, and Sheriff Bell is a good man, struggling to believe in a God who would let someone like Chigurh do what he does, struggling to have faith in a good God when so much evil seems to continue to occur, and to go unpunished.   The battle between Good and Evil taking place in South Texas is difficult to watch, especially when Evil seems to have so much power and so much influence.  Sheriff Bell has the unpleasant feeling that perhaps Evil is winning.

I really liked Sheriff Bell’s voice and insights at the beginning of each chapter.  He represented the practical wisdom and humility that is the best in the American character.  He is quite vocal about how important his marriage is in his life and how much he admired and needed his wife Loretta.  It was easy to empathize with him when he expressed his despair, to admire him for his courage, and to like him as a protagonist in this story.

I haven’t seen the movie yet – but I will.  I hear it’s quite good and I want to see how Hollywood portrays these interesting characters.