No Country for Old Men

Savage violence and cruel morality reign in the backwater deserts of Cormac McCarthy's No Country for Old Men, a tale of one man's dark opportunity – and the darker consequences that spiral forth.

Adapted for the screen by the Coen Brothers (Fargo, True Grit), winner of four Academy Awards (including Best Picture).


1980. Llewelyn Moss, a Vietnam veteran, is hunting antelope near the Rio Grande when he stumbles upon a transaction gone horribly wrong. Finding bullet-ridden bodies, several kilos of heroin, and a caseload of cash, he faces a choice – leave the scene as he found it, or cut the money and run. Choosing the latter, he knows, will change everything.

And so begins a terrifying chain of events, in which each participant seems determined to answer the question that one asks another: how does a man decide in what order to abandon his life?


Part of the Picador Collection, a series showcasing the best of modern literature.

Review

No Country for Old Men is a compelling, harrowing, disturbing, sad, endlessly surprising and resonant novel. -- Robert Edric ― Spectator

No Country for Old Men is a severed head and shoulders over anything else written in America this year. ― Independent on Sunday

A fast, powerful read, steeped with a deep sorrow about the moral degradation of the legendary American West. ― Financial Times

A Western thriller with a racy plot and punchy dialogue, perfect for a lazy Sunday. ― The Times

[An] utterly absorbing, chilling tale . . . One of the most sinister characters in modern American fiction. ― Herald

It's hard to think of a contemporary writer more worth reading. ― Independent

About the Author

Cormac McCarthy was the author of many acclaimed novels, including Blood Meridian, Child of God and The Passenger. Among his honours are the National Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. His works adapted to film include All the Pretty Horses, The Road and No Country for Old Men – the latter film receiving four Academy Awards, including the award for Best Picture. McCarthy died in 2023 in Santa Fe, NM at the age of 89.