Lesa's Book Critiques: Sparring Partners by John Grisham

 Lesa's Book Critiques: Sparring Partners by John Grisham

Chess, Comics, Crosswords, Books, Music, Cinema: Partners: Rogue Lawyer by John Grisham

Chess, Comics, Crosswords, Books, Music, Cinema: Partners: Rogue Lawyer by John Grisham: “I’m not sure I want to get involved in this one,” Sebastian mumbled. © Doubleday Partners: Rogue Lawyer (2016) is a 60-page prequel...

Guest Reviewer Larry W. Chavis: "I Have Nothing to Say.' (The Reckoning by John Grisham)

Well, it has been quite awhile, but Larry W. Chavis is finally back on the blog today with another review. After you read the below regarding the new one by John Grisham, make sure you go check out his review of the 2016 Bouchercon Anthology, Blood on the Bayou. I keep telling Larry he is good at this reviewing thing and ought to keep at it. I hope he does.

"I Have Nothing to Say.'

The Reckoning by John Grisham

New York, Doubleday

October 23, 2018

ISBN: 978-0-385-54415-3 (hardcover)

           978-0-385-54416-0 (ebook)

Reviewed by Larry W. Chavis

At the end of 1945, Pete Banning returned home to the fictional town of Clanton, Mississippi, a bona fide war hero. Captured by the Japanese forces who had forced the American and Filipino defenders, starving and with no hope of reinforcement, to surrender, Pete survived the horrors of the Bataan Death March, and the even-more-unspeakable nightmares of prison camp, to escape and fight for three years as a guerilla in the mountains of Luzon. His family, notified after the fall of the Philippines of his missing-and-presumed-dead status, ecstatically welcomed him home to his ancestral farmlands. A happy ending for everyone.

Until the chilly morning of October 9, 1946, when Pete Banning rose early, walked to his sister's neighboring acreage to have breakfast with her, then calmly drove into Clanton, strode into the Methodist preacher's office, that of his friend, the Reverend Dexter Bell, and shot him three times, twice in the chest and once in the head. Exiting the pastor's study, Banning told the church caretaker to fetch the sheriff, and then drove home to await his arrest. To the sheriff, to his attorney, to his family, Banning made one statement: "I have nothing to say."

The first chapter of John Grisham's latest book sets the stage for what may be his most perplexing novel yet. Not that the underlying motive is so perplexing—in fact, when it is revealed in the final pages, it may be a bit of a let-down—but that Pete Banning is not only willing to commit murder and set loose an avalanche of uncertain and possibly dire consequences on his family, the victim's family, his farm hands and their families, even all of Ford County, without uttering so much as a syllable of the reason for it. Pete's obstinate refusal to speak could, perhaps, be viewed as the actions of principled character acting on his principles. It could also be taken as the narcissistic action of a man who will unleash, at the very least, waves of anxiety and fear on those closest to him with never a care for what he is doing to them. The reader is left to determine which, and it is not so easy to do.

Being a John Grisham book, race and the legal system play prominent roles, the legal system's corruptible and very flawed processes on display, the racial inequities present in 1946 Mississippi differing in degree, if not so much in kind, from those that still plague society. There are two trials in the book, criminal and civil, written with Grisham's ability to highlight a system that, like Diogenes, seeks for truth and honesty. One is left to wonder whether and how often these things are found. The Reckoning is worth reading and is a book to make one think. It is not a book to make one happy.

Larry W. Chavis ©2018

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Playing for Pizza by John Grisham

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Playing for Pizza by John Grisham: Reviewed by Jeanne Rick Dockery is an NFL quarterback. . . or was an NFL quarterback.   The third stringer has been bounce...

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Playing for Pizza by John Grisham

Bookblog of the Bristol Library: Playing for Pizza by John Grisham: Reviewed by Ambrea Rick Dockery isn’t the luckiest guy in the world.   After being transferred between teams numerous times a...

5 Incredible Debut Novels

5 Incredible Debut Novels

FFB Review: "A Painted House" by John Grisham

Friday means Friday's Forgotten Books hosted by Patti Abbott. I had intended to run another review from Patrick Ohl this week. That review as well as a number of e-books and a lot of other important stuff from the last four years was in my Thunderbird mail program and lost when the computer went bad last week. So, instead, this week you get my review from 2003 on A PAINTED HOUSE by John Grisham.

I am always a bit leery and concerned when an author I like attempts something radically different than the previous works. Usually the book is a disaster, the author learns a lesson and gets it out of his or her system, and goes back to what made the author worth reading in the first place. I expected the usual situation in this novel and expected to have to work my way through, reading glasses firmly in place and nose to the grindstone, to finish it. I simply dreaded this book and I could not have been more wrong.

It simply wasn't the case. The man best known for setting off the continuing wave of lawyer style mysteries and thrillers with his second novel, The Firm, creates a powerfully moving human story. This novel is written in a completely different style and is a remarkable change of pace from his other works. The characters are rich and developed from the beginning and as the story evolves, nuances and shading are added, changing each character in subtle, yet powerful ways.

The story revolves around the small world of Luke Chandler, age seven, who lives on a cotton farm in Southern Arkansas with his parents and grandparents. The family rents 80 acres and on a good year, barely breaks better than even. The depression came and never left. The year is 1952, late fall, the cotton is ready to be picked, and his uncle is off fighting the war in Korea. Luke does not want to farm and instead, wants to play ball for his beloved St. Louis Cardinals.

His mother hates the farming life and is determined that Luke will go to college. His father would prefer him to farm, but is willing to go with what Luke's mother wants. His grandparents are equally divided as well, with his grandfather aware that a way of life is passing by. They have rented the acreage for generations and never made enough to buy it outright. Without enough hands to pick the cotton, the Chandlers must rely on the good graces of migrant farm workers.

The Chandlers, like other farm families in the area, go through a yearly ritual of hiring workers as they begin to trickle into town. The farm is deep in debt, cotton prices are down, and the cost of labor is going up. But, the cotton has to be picked and everything else becomes secondary to the harvest. The harvest becomes the dominant theme of the work. A full harvest of a good crop allows them a few extra luxuries while a poor harvest or no harvest means they slide further in debt and face losing the little they rent and own.

The first ones hired are a family down from the Ozarks who have complex problems of their own. The Spruills are a family of seven. There are four boys and a young lady, ten years older than Luke, and he is instantly attracted to her. She is also attracted to him in a big sister sort of way, but Luke reads too much into it. The Chandlers also hire a group of Mexicans from a large pool that is trucked into town every year. Unfortunately for Luke, his friend Juan isn't with the group this year, and he is forced to deal with that fact and make new friends.

Against the backdrop of the unrelenting heat and the backbreaking effort to pick cotton, cultures and personalities quickly clash in deceit, treachery and murder. For Luke Chandler, this harvest will be like no other and will change his life forever. His priorities will change massively as he realizes what is truly important.

This is a pleasant change from the usual Grisham fare of deceitful lawyers, back stabbing judges, and corporate greed. The characters are more diverse, driven by other factors than the worship of a dollar. Grisham shows a breath of characters and writing style not shown in his previous works and I hope this was not a one-time thing. While I thoroughly enjoyed The Firm, and to a lesser extent some of his more recent works, this one was a refreshing breath of air and very enjoyable.

Kevin R. Tipple (c)2003, 2014