A Painted House

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Summary: oops he did it again!!
Review: Grisham did it again, this time going outside of the legal loop. I was skeptical to read this book given the fact that I love all of Grisham's "legal thrillers" and thought what could he possibly know outside of this realm? EVERYTHING! Brillantly descriptive, this story reads like a Steinbeck Classic only in Arkansas. This is a story about a young boy, Luke Chandler, and his farming family. Murder, adventure, secrets bring Luke and all of the characters in this book alive! Grisham, you definitely need to write a sequel to this one!

Rating:
Summary: A Painted House by John Grisham
Review: This book was not as good as Grisham's legal thrillers, but I would still reccomend it because it is a great book. You won't be able to stop turning the pages!!

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Summary: A wonderful American novel
Review: This is not Grisham as you are used to his work. No lawyers. No courtrooms. Just a terrific American story full of fascinating characters and a plot surrounding a dark secret. The narrator is a child, but this is not a childish book. The narrator tells you what happened from his point of view and it works. Sit back and relax. This is a really good read.

Rating:
Summary: A Half Painted House
Review: As with "Skipping Christmas", I was once again left wanting a little more from my favorite author. Grisham does his usual great job of developing characters in short order, but I couldn't help but yell "Noooooooo" a few times at the turns the story took. They just didn't fit. I did, however, thoroughly enjoy Grisham's recollection of childhood that compared the all important outside world (the Cardinals) to the mundane (the farm) as seen through most 7 year olds.

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Summary: Loved it!
Review: Different from the courtroom and the Caymans but a typically fantastic Grisham, nonetheless! Super characters, great story - what can one say? If you like Grisham (except Skipping Christmas), then you won't be disappointed in A Painted House.

Rating:
Summary: A Nice Progression for Grisham
Review: While I generally like Grisham's legal thrillers, I really loved this book. Grisham takes believable characters, puts them into believable situations, and lets the plot move nicely using the people and situations he devised. I'm not from anywhere near the Arkansas of the story, but Grisham described the land and the people of the small town well enough that it was painted as a complete place. Even the minor supporting characters have enough detail to make them seem like people you've met at some time in your life. The conflicts in this book are more subtle than in the typical Grisham book -- between a grandfather's lifetime of farming, and his family's need to grow beyond that life; between the migrant workers and the displaced hill people; between baseball created only in your head from the radio, and baseball on television at the neighbor's house. Luke, as the seven year old narrator seems sometimes a little too wise for his age, but he's a young boy living with adults and a comprehensible landscape of cotton, a small community and carefully delineated rules. I would love to see a sequel with these characters -- Grisham does make them memorable enough that they could easily deserve a follow-up.

Rating:
Summary: Save your money - But if you must, buy it used
Review: Remember in school trying to turn a two sentence topic into 500 words? Mr. Grisham did effectively the same thing - stretched five pages into 388. Whereas his previous works were exciting, this book tossed in one murder (which easily could have been omitted since the author didn't go anywhere with it) and a pregnancy which didn't contribute much to the storyline. First Grisham book where I actually went to bed with one chapter to go.

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Summary: Grisham needs to stick to the courts
Review: Take it from me- A Painted House is not for those Grisham fans whose favorite sypnosis for one of the aforementioned author's books is something along the lines of "a young, rookie lawyer battles a corporate giant." A Painted House is set in rural Arkansas- far away from any whispers of the courtroom or lawyers of any kind- rookie or otherwise. While my initial reaction to this supposedly new and improved John Grisham was that of suspicion if not, forgive me, disbelief. After all- who writes the greatest court stories but, you guessed it- John Grisham!!! Why mess with perfection?? I say, if it's not broke, don't fix it!! Anyway, this novel is certainly not on the same level of excellence as the rest of the Grisham fare. With weak dialogue, unconvincing situations, and a main character who is just a bit over-perceptive for a seven-year-old, I'm about ready to yell "Uncle" so that Grisham can get back to what he's good at- young rookie lawyers and corporate giants all set in the homey city of Memphis, Tenn. So John Grisham, if you're out there and you listen to your fans...(slap) SNAP OUT OF IT!!!

Rating:
Summary: Not up to Par
Review: Overall I do not think this book is up to par with Grisham's other works. The picture picture he painted of the hard working era is excellent., However, at times he seemed to drag on with minute details that were not completely necessary.

It is common to leave storylines open so a sequel can be written. However, I doubt this story will feed another book. Having said that, I think there were two story lines left open that should have been brought to a conclusion.

As a Father, I would love to meet a 7 year old that was a mature and responsible as Luke. I can just imagine what my house would have looked like if my son had painted it when he was 7.

Rating:
Summary: pretty damn good
Review: i wasn't sure if i'd like this after having read his other books. they are all good, but nothing really amazing. i definitely enjoyed A Painted House, though. it was completely different than his other "lawyer-type" books. the story of Luke Chandler, a 7 year old living on a cotton farm in Arkansas tells of the many problems of farm life, the conflicting loyalties of a little boy who isn't sure what to do with the many secrets he discovers one summer, the love he has for his family, and so much more. definitely pick this book up. if you enjoyed his other books, you'll like it. if you didn't, try it anyway, it's a efinite change of pace from his norm.