Sparse and Unpunctuated
We have the feeling if we went up to a cowboy and said, "Howdy, pardner," he wouldn't do much more than look at us, chewing slowly on his toothpick. Or maybe he'd shoot us if he was having a really bad day. Either way, he wouldn't be a man of many words, especially if he's like the men in this book.
The sentences in this book are often short, simple, and clipped. When Llewelyn Moss sits and thinks about his life, we're told just that, and nothing more: "He chewed slowly and thought about his life" (3.3.257). That's it.
We have to mention, too, that many contractions dont have apostrophes. See what we did there? For example: "It wasnt us" (2.4.116). "No. We couldnt" (7.2.33). Maybe it wasn't drugs in those pouches, but commas and apostrophes. McCarthy uses them as if they cost $1,000 a pop.
Why does McCarthy do this? Maybe he just wants to confuse us. He arbitrarily chooses which contractions to add apostrophes to and which not to. There's no pattern. Maybe he's trying to evoke the lazy laid-back nature of the West, which is lazy and laid-back even when our main character is on the run for his life. Either way, this book is a literary Wild West, and we have to play by McCarthy's rules.