"In Morality in Cormac McCarthy''s Fiction, Russell Hillier applies his considerable knowledge of the Western literary tradition to expand in an extraordinary way our understanding of Cormac McCarthy''s rich ethical vision. The book is elegant, insightful, and manifestly original. While rooted in the scholarship, Hillier brings literary and philosophical contexts to bear that have largely been untouched by others. This is a work that will emerge as central to McCarthy studies for years to come." (Steven Frye, President of the Cormac McCarthy Society, USA)
"In the now fervid world of Cormackian criticism, Russell M. Hillier''s style and voice stand out for their deftness and elegance. His probing and insightful intertextuality brings to bear the influence of Job, Ovid and Dostoevsky, among many others. His vindication of John Grady Cole as stoic and tragic hero is as uplifting as it is needed, and his critical consideration of The Counselor will become a primary resource." (Allen Josephs, University of West Florida, USA)
"This fine study of our greatest living poet in prose argues for McCarthy''s "impassioned and consistent moral vision," and that McCarthy "remains as intrigued by the mystery of goodness as he is by the mystery of evil." As applied to McCarthy''s Southwest novels, including Blood Meridian, the Border Trilogy, No Country for Old Men, and with a chapter on McCarthy''s Pulitzer Prize-winning The Road, Hillier''s approach to what he calls "McCarthy''s examination of goodness striving to prevail in a dark world and wide" is presented with a rare combination of intellectual clarity and force. This is a book that is bound to be enjoyed and to stimulate lively discussion amongst McCarthy enthusiasts both professional and private." (Peter Josyph, author of "Adventures in Reading Cormac McCarthy", and "Cormac McCarthy''s House: Reading McCarthy Without Walls")
"It is entirely appropriate that Renaissance man (and scholar) Russell Hillier here turns his attention to what he calls Cormac McCarthy''s "Renaissance mind." Hillier joins writers such as Edwin Arnold, Dianne Luce, and more recently Lydia Cooper and Matthew Potts in focusing on the moral engagement of McCarthy''s works, and he is often surprising and always illuminating in drawing out McCarthy''s debts to Dante and Donne, Ovid and Marlowe-allusions that have not been as commented upon as those to the likes of Faulkner and Hemingway, for instance. This clear and incisive study will be a touchstone." (Stacey Peebles, editor of The Cormac McCarthy Journal, USA)
"In this meticulously researched and elegantly written volume, Russell Hillier has rendered disputatious Cormackians a boon service by pouring more fuel on the fire kindled by critics like Dianne Luce, Lydia Cooper, Manuel Broncano and Petra Mundik. Hillier not only argues convincingly for an ethical and even heroic vitality to the master''s works, but stakes out new and important critical territory by demonstrating McCarthy''s indebtedness to formerly neglected sources like Milton''s poetry and Shakespeare. This is an important addition to the exegetical literature about McCarthy." ( Richard Wallach, The Cormac McCarthy Society, USA)
