Comments (26)

What did you think about this title?
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Feb 22, 2024AParish517 rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
Very slow, couldn't get into it.
Jan 01, 2024
Ryan holiday rec
Jun 26, 202339Stude6 rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
Writing not particularly good. Somewhat predictable of many "saga" type stories. I found the back and forth narrative between characters and different eras annoying. I felt there were too many characters and extraneous story lines…
Oct 03, 2021BARosen1112 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Multi-generational story centering on a youngster's kidnapping by Comanches in 1849 Texas who lives with the tribe for 3 momentous years. For the balance of his life, Eli identifies strongly with the tribe, and his experiences during…
Jan 04, 2021
I started to read this epic novel of the generations of the McCullough family but I couldn't get into it. The McCullough family are very unappealing.
Dec 26, 2020beckerbren rated this title 1 out of 5 stars
This book started out so good but ended up going nowhere. The three storylines were held together by the flimsiest of threads and two of them just sort of ended without any resolution. Usually when a book has more than one storyline going,…
Oct 09, 2020JCLCharlesH rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
This multigenerational epic follows Eli McCullough and his descendants as they gather power and influence in by any means necessary. At times brutal, while still tender at others, this novel attempts to share an unflinching look at the…
Jun 25, 2019feralranger rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
Harsh. That's the way it was and the way it still is. Nothing prettified, no glory. This is a good solid historical work of fiction but the reality, because most fiction is based on some fact, is unsettling.
Nov 25, 2018kcooleyreyes rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
I really enjoyed Eli's story. I felt out on the plains with him, because the writer's details were so minute and fascinating. But I have questions. Why is this called The Son? What am I missing here? I have another question about Eli, but…
Feb 04, 2018ArapahoeAnnaL rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Texas before the Civil War, thirteen year old boy captured and brought up by the Commanche, ruthless lust for land and money, complex sympathetic characters, a family saga that stretches from before the Civil War to the 21st century.…
Sep 27, 2017InsJavert rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
I have been doing some heavy duty reading in politics and theology and found myself needing a break. I was attracted to "The Son" when I watched the first 30-40 minutes of the recently released movie. I purposefully stop watching the movie…
Jul 02, 2017PearlyBaker rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
I do not feel worthy of reviewing this piece which is by far the best novel I've read since Skagboys. Philpp M. makes Irvine Welsh look like Trump tweeting at 3:00 a.m. He's like the impossible love child of Quentin Tarantino and Cormac…
Jul 20, 2016xiaojunbpl12 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Exhilarating! But I have doubts about the structure. Though it suited my schedule taking breaks without the compromise of memory fading or thoughts disconnected, 3 storylines are intertwined in a way arbitrary (or trying to stimulate…
Jul 11, 2016duskandtheseawatcher rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
Wonderful narrators and gorgeous prose make this epic family saga a rewarding endeavor. The beginning starts off with a powerful bang, and while it loses a bit of steam towards the end, Eli McCullough and Peter McCullough's stories are…
Aug 20, 2015uncommonreader rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
An "epic" of 200 years of Texan history told through the stories of three generations of a family which heads a cattle and oil dynasty. It tells the story of the founding of the state based on greed and savagery. With this book and his…
Apr 12, 2015garyockenden rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
This book is disturbing at times (the vivid violence and historical perspective). It takes place over about 100 years, in Texas and voiced by three generations of one family. It's a compelling read.
Maywati
Mar 31, 2015Maywati rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This is one of the best books I have ever read. It brought tears to my eyes and well as laughter that was out loud. Loved it! Eli's story moved me more than any of the others, but I enjoyed them all. It really makes you think about America…
May 26, 2014tavkaa rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
This epic Western was really good. it was difficult in the beginning, I kept referring to the lineage chart at the front of the book, and then realized that one of the characters went by another name in the book. Near the end, i just…
Feb 08, 2014jenzbooks rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Even if you don't care for Westerns you will enjoy this family saga set in Texas during the 19th century. Narrated by different voices for the three main characters who are members of the same family, but in succeeding generations. The…
Jan 15, 2014JCLGreggW rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Philipp Meyer's THE SON quickly proves why it was on so many best of 2013 lists. A post-modern multi-generational saga, the novel spans multiple generations of the McCullough family, including the patriarch Eli, the first child born in the…
Dec 14, 2013
This system needs to link all formats to all comments for a complete review. Will Patton is the reader of excellence.
Nov 24, 2013jazpur rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Texas.The giant state.Land. Cattle. Oil.Comanches. Mexicans.How the West was won and at what cost all round. I found the McCullough/Garcia saga told by the various family members down the generations but in no chronological order,…
Nov 24, 2013
Fascinating and hard to put down for a couple hundred pages - but then the jump cutting among generations starts to feel like a failure of organization. I could be wrong. I have yet to figure out how the Son became the Colonel.
Aug 17, 2013Trevin123 rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
Interesting book but very slow. Found it got better near the end. It's not a book I would normally read, but it had a lot of great reviews. Would be a good read for those interested in history and westerns.
Aug 15, 2013
I have not read a Western since Owen Wister's The Virginian and I do not enjoy violence. Even so, this book has made a real impression on me, and I want to reread it. I think it may be the great American novel.