Child of God

Talk about a disturbing story...and fascinating.  We watched the movie "Child of God" and I was 

immediately reluctant to continue watching it, but stuck with it and I ended up ordering the book as soon as the movie ended.  I wanted to know the back story of Lester Ballard.  The book Child of God was written by Cormac McCarthy, who is an author that I always enjoy reading.

The story is about Lester Ballard, a solitary, mad man living in the mountains of Tennessee.  He lost the family home, and lived in a deserted cabin until it burned to the ground, along with his first victim (that we know of), who had been dead for some time.  He then moved to underground caves and wandered the mountains.  He had won some stuffed animals at a carnival and they were like his family.  His dead female victims were his relationships.  Yes, it's a story of necrophilia and madness.

Yet, the characterization of Lester made me want to know more about him.  As the author stated, he was a Child of God.  But how did he end up where he did?

As I said, it is a very disturbing, fascinating story.  My questions about Lester remain.  The book is only 197 pages.  In one sense, it is a simple and sparse tale.  In another, it is deep and full.  I ended up liking the book, but that could be concerning!  I especially liked the end of the book.  It did not end like the movie did, and I thought that the book's ending was quite powerful.