The orchard keeper

The Orchard Keeper is Cormac McCarthy's debut novel, published in 1965.

The story is set in rural Tennessee during the early 1930s and revolves around three main characters: Marion Sylder, a bootlegger; Uncle Ather Ownby, an old hermit living in a decaying apple orchard; and John Wesley Rattner, a young boy whose father was killed by Sylder in self-defense.

The novel explores themes of cyclical violence, the encroachment of modernity, and the complex relationships between these characters, who are unaware of the connections between them.

The narrative is characterized by McCarthy's vivid descriptions of the natural world and his exploration of human nature, morality, and the impact of societal changes on individual lives.