The Son

An unput-downable read, although there were a few flaws - but I didn't have the heart to give it any less than five stars as it is the best book I've read in a long time.The book concentrates on three characters in the McCullough family - there is a large family tree at the beginning of the book but don't be put off by that as you hardly need it. Eli, his son Peter and great granddaughter Jeannie's stories are told concurrently, each driving forward and each only resolved at the end.Eli, kidnapped by Comanches and his family brutally murdered (this is not a spoiler it's on the inside sleeve), has the apparently most interesting story - Meyer has researched this beautifully from the number of accounts given by those who were taken captive by and lived with the Comanches - this is riveting, brutal and fascinating. Jeannie and Peter's stories seem unwelcome interruptions at first, with Peter having to live under the shadow of the heroic Eli, however, what I really loved about this book is the searching light that is thrown on heroism and toughness (Jeannie, much influenced by Eli) so that the book is ultimately much more than a glorification of the hero (of the Jack Reacher type - and happily Eli is never really that kind of hero, although he is pretty fearless).It does seem to lag in a few places but actually those lags were resolved in the end for me when I realised I had been drawn into the thrall of the heroic and missed something all along - and I won't spoil that for you. Do read it - I wrestled manfully with the hardback version and enjoyed that over having something Kindling at me ...

Philipp Meyer's The Son has been rightly labelled an epic. The novel follows, although not chronologically, the narrative of several generations of Texans, from the days of the Frontier to the present day. Through portraying characters of different eras, it explores how a region can change, with violence, money and race as catalysts for these changes. Despite this, its characters are vivid and rich, with their particular narrativesengrossing, as well as contributing to the wider perspective.The first narrative readers are introduced to is that of Eli McCullough, born in 1836. This narrative offers a perspective of Texas as a young state, focusing on the growing conflict between the ancient prairie life of the Native Americans and the Settler's desire to civilise. Meyer must be congratulated for his portrayal of Native American life, which is clearly well-researched, and honest, without overly romanticising the facts.The second is that of Jeanne-Anne McCullough, great-granddaughter of Eli, who in the present day, is the heiress of a sizable cattle and oil empire. The third is that of Peter McCullough, the son of Eli in the early 20th century, who is not as well equipped to deal with prairie life as the other two protagonists; he is more sensitive and introspective, and cannot come to terms with the violence that life in Texas entails.Meyer explores these narratives through different perspectives. Eli's is, we are informed, an audio-recording taken when he is one hundred years old, a first person memoir of his life. For Jeanne-Anne's portion of the novel, the perspective shifts to third person, but in a manner that often delves into the thought process of the protagonist. Peter's is perhaps most interesting; an up-to-the-moment journal, which is written in the present-tense, but reflects on recent events. The two first person voices are so different that it is difficult to imagine that they have the same source; Meyer has a masterly control over these very different characters. The different modes of expression make for interesting reading, but also allow readers to compare the characters. Furthermore, the reliability of each account is called into question; for instance, compare the portrayal of Eli in all three accounts. Whose is most valid?Meyer's language is very readable. It is simple without being inelegant. However, there are two criticisms which come to mind. Firstly, for an non-American reader, there are certain difficulties in ascertaining the meanings of certain words and expressions, which I presume to be either peculiar to the US or even to Texas. These are not so often as to detract from the narrative, but can cause confusion at times. Secondly, there are some typos and errors, and syntactically inaccurate sentences, which better editing could have avoided. Though this is a pedantic criticism, as these occur perhaps once or twice throughout the entire novel.The Son is well worth a read, regardless of whether you have any particular interest in the region. It provides a history of Texan life through its striking characters, and is engaging and entertaining throughout.

At last a possible successor to the great Texan author Larry McMurtry. Yes this epic story, up there with Lonesome Dove, spanning 170 years in the lives of the McCullough clan as they kill, cheat and steal their way to the top of Texan wealth is that good.Back about 1850 young Eli McCullough witnesses the rape, defilement and slaughter of his mother, sister and brother at the hands of the Comanche people before being taken as their slave. He survives and learns their ways and skills becoming a respected member of the tribe. He grows to love his new "parents" and fellow braves. After some disastrous raids and hard winters with food and ammunition almost gone he agrees to be sold back to the whites thus allowing his particular band of the Comanche nation to survive for a little longer. Still only sixteen he finds it hard to settle into "civilized" life and becomes a problem to those who try to help him. The answer for him is The Texas Rangers where the survival rate is about 50% for each tour of duty. By a stroke of good fortune he comes into substantial funds and sets about making a name for himself and of course an even greater fortune.We follow Eli and his descendants to the present time against the background of Texan history covering the Indian, Civil and Mexican wars, the rise and fall of the cattle empires and the emergence of the biggest money maker of all: the oil industry.Intermingled with real events and characters from American history and painstakingly researched this is a remarkable and totally believable work. Although over 800 pages long, it is a page turner with literally never a dull moment.I have read Mr. Meyer's previous work American Rust and enjoyed it [see my review], but this goes way beyond that in scale, entertainment and pure enjoyment. "The Son" epitomizes reading for pleasure.Why this does not feature in the best selling charts, I do not know for that is where it belongs. I keenly await Philipp Meyer's next novel.

I'm really dumbfounded what happened here. A cursory glance at this and I'd expect this to rank high on an all time list: it's a huge sweeping multigenerational epic, covering huge swaths of American history; it's a postmodern tale of the American West replete with blood lust, scalp-hungry marauding Indians, vigilante ranchers, and oil barons. It's socially and politically subversive, in that it both challenges how frontiersmen confronted race and privilege as well as exposing America's less than honorable methods of procuring land and fulfilling Manifest Destiny.So much potential. While the bones of the story kept me reading, the writing felt hackneyed, lacking elegance, lacking rhythm, and lacking a distinct voice. The whole of the novel 'told' the reader the story rather than 'showing'. In my experience, novelists that tackle the American West should have the requisite rhythm to mirror the subject. And perhaps that is expecting a bit much, but the lack thereof made reading this almost a chore. And while it was clear Meyer did his research, not all of said research was completely seamlessly integrated. I say that because I noticed he did his research, rather than it simply buoying the story.

Every man or woman has a dream,yet unfulfilled!We try to impose our will on our children but they have their own dreams.Unending misery,still a life is worth living!

Resulta sorprendente que esta gran obra de Philipp Meyer haya pasado sin pena ni gloria en su formato al Castellano, no entiendo cual es la política promocional de las editoras.

Der Zugang einer Biographie zum wahren Leben ist oft verschlungen. Es muss nicht das eigene, unmittelbare Erlebnis sein, das das Tor zur Erkenntnis öffnet. Manchmal, für die Feinfühligen, reicht auch nur die Aura, um das Wesen des Seins zu begreifen. Wenn es sich bei dem Begreifenden um eine Schriftstellerin oder einen Schriftsteller handelt, so ist das in unseren Tagen ein Glücksfall. Die amerikanische Literatur scheint mit Philip Meyer einen weiteren solchen Glücksall zu haben. Sein Debütroman American Rust, der den Niedergang und die Tristesse der einstigen Kohle- und Stahlhochburg Pittsburg PA im Leben von Jugendlichen materialisierte, schöpfte Meyer wohl aus den Erfahrungen, die er als Jugendlicher selbst in Baltimore, einer Stadt mit einem ähnlichen Schicksal, sammelte. Nun, mit seinem zweiten Roman, The Son, verbindet den ehemaligen Derivatenhändler ein Stipendiatenaufenthalt an einer Literaturschule in Austin, Texas. Die heutige, moderne und attraktive texanische Metropole hat ihn inspiriert, in die dortige soziale DNA zu blicken.The Son ist ein für heutige Zeiten grandioser Roman. Grandios deshalb, weil er die Geschichte einer Familie miteinander korrespondierend über drei Jahrhunderte erzählt. Im Wesentlichen sind es drei Personen, die abwechselnd und fortschreitend ihre Erlebnisse, Gedanken und tragischen Erkenntnisse erzählen. Dabei zeichnet sich ein Bild der texanischen Gesellschaft, wie es in dieser profunden Art noch nicht gezeichnet wurde. Die Figuren, die die Geschichte dominieren, sind nicht durchweg sympathisch, aber sie sind verständlich. Ihre Motivlage ist deutlich und transparent und ihre Handlungen folgerichtig, auch wenn sie zum Teil in ihrer Konsequenz ins Desaster führen.Da ist zum einen Eli McCullogh, der bei einem Überfall auf die eigene Farm 1849 von den Comanchen entführt und aufgezogen wurde, J.A. Jeannie McCullogh, der letzten Patriarchin eines Öl- und Finanzimperiums, die von der Jetztzeit, dem Ende her in der Stunde ihres Todes das Leben betrachtet und die Tagebücher des Peter McCullogh, die 1915 beginnen und an der Nahtstelle zwischen dem Rinder- und dem Ölimperium sowie des Wandels der USA von der Kontinental- zur Weltmacht entstehen. Die drei Perspektiven für sich sind bereits eine tiefe Bereicherung. Eli McCulloghs Erlebnisse schildern die große Naturverbundenheit, die zivilisatorische Unschuld und damit verbundene Barbarei der amerikanischen Ureinwohner mit ungeheurer Detailkenntnis und Sympathie. Jeannie McCulloghs Betrachtungen sind ein Lehrstück über eine erfolgreiche, mächtige Frau, die nahezu archaisch patriarchalisch erzogen wurde und radikal mit ihren Rollenerwartungen brechen musste, um ihrem Schicksal gerecht und trotzdem unglücklich zu werden. Und Peter McCulloghs Tagebücher gewähren den Einblick in einen Zweifelnden innerhalb eines skrupellosen Machtgefüges, dem klar wird, dass er von innen heraus nichts ändern kann und der mit der Familie brechen muss, um der tödlichen Logik zu entkommen.In ihrer Kombination sind die drei Perspektiven eine Vivisektion des Staates Texas, der bis heute die über drei Jahrhunderte geschilderten Lebenswelten zumindest in Ansätzen noch in sich vereint. Das Archaische, die patriarchalische, muskulöse Männergesellschaft und die global agierende, mit Formen sozialer Dekadenz kämpfende Öl- und Finanzindustrie. Philip Meyer ist mit diesem Roman etwas gelungen, das kaum noch gelingen mag in einer Zeit, in der die kurze Zeichnung das zu sein scheint, was das Gros der Leserschaft noch bereit ist zu akzeptieren und in der die schreibende Zunft den Atem verloren hat, die großen Geschichten bis zu Ende zu erzählen. Meyer hat dies getan, und das gar nicht so Überraschende ist die Vielschichtigkeit, die sich hinter der menschlichen Geschichte verbirgt. Ober, wie es Jeannie McCullogh einmal lapidar formuliert, es bedurfte keines Hitlers, um zu der Erkenntnis zu kommen, dass die Flüsse der Geschichte voller Blut sind.

This book was riveting from the first page. When the first three chapters dealt with the lives of three people I wondered if it would be confusing and I wasn't sure about 'diaries', but it is a true masterpiece. The story spans a huge time frame and so many facets of frontier life; not being one sided and only dealing with the white man, but the Indian life and traditions and includes Spanish/Mexican history as well. The characters are believable. One of the best books I have read in a number of years. It is well written and well researched. I look forward to more from this author.