Set in Kentucky among four generations of a family losing its craft, The Stonemason is a moving play from Cormac McCarthy, legendary author of Blood Meridian and The Road.

'Expertly constructed and limpidly written' - Chicago Tribune

Ben Telfair admires and respects his grandfather for following the family trade with religious simplicity. Black and middle-class in the 1970s, he has acheived well. His father, on the other hand, has abandoned the old ways of hand-hewn stonemasonry - favouring building contract work. His nephew, likewise, disregards the old man's guidance.

But his father is in debt. His nephew has turned to crime. And so it is that, as the family trade dies out, the family itself may see tragic consequences befall them.

Praise for Cormac McCarthy:

'McCarthy worked close to some religious impulse, his books were terrifying and absolute' - Anne Enright, author of The Green Road and The Wren, The Wren

'His prose takes on an almost biblical quality, hallucinatory in its effect and evangelical in its power' - Stephen King, author of The Shining and the Dark Tower series

'[I]n presenting the darker human impulses in his rich prose, [McCarthy] showed readers the necessity of facing up to existence' - Annie Proulx, author of Brokeback Mountain

A powerful, dramatic playfrom the bestselling author of No Country for Old Men and The Road

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.

Reviews
Expertly constructed and limpidly written, the play triumphs in its presentation of Papaw, whose earthy wisdom McCarthy makes altogether credible. * Chicago Tribune *
Mr McCarthy has the best kind of Southern style, one that fuses risky eloquence, intricate rhythms and dead-to-rights accuracy. * New York Times *
McCarthy is a born storyteller, a writer of natural, impeccable dialogue, a literary child of Faulkner. * New Republic *



Book Information
ISBN 9781447272168
Author Cormac McCarthy
Format Paperback
Page Count 144
Imprint Picador
Publisher Pan Macmillan
Weight(grams) 236g
Dimensions(mm) 234mm * 156mm * 9mm