Cormac McCarthy's All the Pretty Horses follows John Grady Cole, a young Texan who crosses into Mexico seeking adventure and freedom in a changing landscape. Through lyrical prose and sparse dialogue, McCarthy creates a coming-of-age story that becomes an elegy for a vanishing way of life. The novel explores themes of love, loss, and the impossibility of escaping history, revealing that some dreams can't survive contact with reality.

WHY WE PICKED IT: Because McCarthy understood that the American frontier wasn't a place but a state of mind, and that by the time John Grady Cole rides south, that frontier is already disappearing. This National Book Award winner reminds us that the past we romanticize never existed the way we imagine it.

DETAILS: • Author: Cormac McCarthy • Publisher: Vintage • Format: Paperback • Publication Date: June 29, 1993 • ISBN: 9780679744399 • Ships direct from distributor in 3–7 business days