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Summary: Stick to books about lawyers and such.....
Review: This book was highly recommended to me by close family members who know me and my taste in books....what an error in judgment they made this time! I had a hard time getting started, and finally "made" myself read this book. I was disappointed. I love John Grisham's other novels, and always go see the resulting movies. But this book had me yawning and waiting for something to hurry up and happen. The thoughts and actions of the narrator were unrealistic and not believable for a 7 yr-old. More like a pre-teen or older to me. The other characters had stereotypical, stiff, predictable dialogue. It seems like the author is trying too hard to make this genre work for him -- it doesn't. If this book had been by any other author, it would have flopped. The author's past success and reputation are the only things that got this book to the level it reached. Sometimes when a writer is particularly good at one theme, he should stick to it --- one writer does not need to write about all subjects. The best I can do is recommend this as a light read, just to see what your favorite author is up to.
Rating: 
Summary: Pleasant read, not much meat to it....
Review: I started reading this book with a couple of expectations, one of which may have been unfair on my part. The first expectation was that it would an easy book to read. That, it was. Grisham, everyone knows, has no problem telling a story. My other expectation based on publicity and word-of-mouth was that this book might be a more modern version of "To Kill a Mockingbird", which is one of my favorite books. That, it wasn't. While it might be unfair to set an expectation like that on a book, especially if the author didn't mean it to be, one still finds oneself wondering what the purpose of this book was. I couldn't tell, other than to tell a story about life in the rural midwest in the 1950s. I thought, however, that since Grisham's books are generally for sheer entertainment, that this departure for him would have more of a purpose; more of a point to make. The story is fun enough to read and has good wit in it. It also does convey the hardness of scraping a life on a cotton farm, the loneliness of growing up in one and the hard life of migrant workers as well. But, if you're an adult, this is not necessarily new to you. We've all been exposed to that through other books and movies. There are a few plot lines and the reason I only gave this book 3 stars is that a couple of them (important ones in my view) never got resolved. In my view, Grisham gave up a couple of immense opportunities to write some beautiful, heart-wrenching and memorable drama if he had pursued these lines to a conclusion. (I don't say what they are here because I don't want to spoil anything for prospective readers). Overall, a great plane or rainy weekend book, but nothing all that outstanding.
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Summary: Finally a NON-law book
Review: This was a very refreshing break from reading ONLY about lawyers from Grisham. I enjoy his laid back writing style and it carries over very well into this book. Thanks John
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Summary: Cardial Fan + Farming+ Small Town = A Painted House
Review: This book kept me reading from the first page but... it takes place in a small slow town, and the book falls into a small, and slow rotine too. This is a book about a boy that goes from ingnorance to independence. This book is for you if love books about change and finding who you are.
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Summary: A Pinted House review by A.C.
Review: A.C.
11/4/02
English II p.1
A Painted House
John Grisham, the author of A Painted House, did an excellent job writing this book using the literary device of character. I enjoyed this book very much because of his depiction of major/minor, round/flat, and static/dynamic characters. Every character has his/her own way of looking at their lifestyles and their families.
In the beginning Luke's family hires Hill people and Mexicans to help harvest the cotton. They need to harvest as much cotton as possible in order to pay off debts and crop loans. One of the major characters, Luke Chandler, a seven-year-old boy, must keep secrets to keep his family safe. One Saturday, like always, the Chandler family heads to town along with the Hill people and the Mexicans for needed supplies. While Luke and his friend were getting a Coke they hear of a fight and go watch. Much to Luke's surprise, Hank, one of the Hill people was in the fight. By the fight's end Hank had killed three of the Sisco boys. This is one of the many secrets Luke must keep in order to finish the harvest. As more problems erupt on the Chandler farm Luke has more and more secrets to keep to himself.
Luke's uncle Ricky, who is off at war in Korea, has a secret himself that no one knows. He and Libby Latcher are going to have a baby, who is due while Ricky is away. I like how Grisham pulls minor characters like Ricky and Libby into the main story line. Their lives and their predicament now become a focal point for the author to keep you interested in a story that has several facets. He tells us that if the secret of their baby ever gets out that Ricky will have the worst reputation in Black Oak. As if times aren't bad enough, flood season is upon the family and the worst is yet to come.
The author now has another surprise for his readers. The Hill people have a little secret of their own. The youngest Hill person, Trot, is painting the Chandler's house. Back in the days a painted house meant that a family was rich in some way, having money, a television or phone etc, but the Chandlers didn't have any of that. The entire family didn't know why their house was getting painted. Grisham describes Trot as a static character and makes this part equally if not more important now than in previous chapters. He also depicts the Chandlers as round because they care about many things that are happening about their farm. Even with all of these contrasts in characters, the author concludes his story cohesively and an in depth understanding of why each character was the way they were.
In summary, of all the characters in this book deserve their own character description. I think the best way to describe Grisham's Luke Chandler is dynamic. I say this because he has Luke come out and tell all of his secrets to help his family. Luke was probably my favorite character because he is most like people today. He keeps his feelings all bottled up inside and then finally lets them all go when it is most important. I would describe Hank as flat because he has the same attitude throughout the whole book. He never wanted to give anyone a chance; therefore no one liked him. Hank always had a negative outlook on everything in life. The best way to describe Ricky and Libby is round dispositions. They are very much like today's young people, they don't know what they want to do with their lives and don't tell anyone what they have done wrong. Trot is a static character because he doesn't change much throughout the book. He just does what other people tell him to do.
In conclusion, John Grisham's book was great because of the characters and their ways of life. All types of characters play a big role in his story.
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Summary: A Painted House
Review: A Painted House, written by John Grisham is a well written book. Grisham uses literary devices well, which makes A Painted House a strong novel. The development of the characters in the story is good. The imagery of the Chandlers, the Mexicans, the Spruills, and other characters is enough to give you an idea of what they are like; but one can also ascertain other characteristics that are not explicitly stated. Most of the characters are fairly flat, but still interesting. It is nice how Grisham gives one a basic outline of the culture in the deep South. That particularly makes it interesting for it offers facts about southern farms and what life was really like. The realism throughout the entire story is also well presented. Realism strenghthens the book, because it shows how hard life actually was in the deep South. Since Luke is challenged by life and struggles with all the lies and secrets that burden him, it is realistic enough that it makes one feel for him. One thing that is a weakness is that Luke lives on a farm, but has a dream of becoming a cardinal. That seems somewhat unrealistic, but by the end of the story one thinks it might actually happen. Grisham keeps the story at a well moving pace. Although, it starts somewhat slow, it picks up quickly and does not stop until the end. The plot is not very complex, but the story is well written. Also the action in the story keeps one interested in what is going on. One is also able to follow the book fairly easily and therefore it results in a fast reading book. Overall, A Painted House, by John Grisham is an interesting and well written book and that is why I give it a 3 out of 5 stars.
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Summary: Too Close to Home
Review: My inlaws moved from Kentucky to Detroit in the fifties to find a better way of life. The closing scenes of "A painted House" tore my heart out as I imagined what is was like for my father-in-law to tell his parents he was leaving the family home for a
job in Michigan. - Although the story starts out slowly, It hit home with the parallels of the exodus from the farmning south to the promise of the "Good Life" in the north.
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Summary: Not a single lawyer in the whole book.
Review: This novel is very different from the usual Grisham lawyer novel but still an excellent read. The story is about growing up on a cotton farm in Arkansas in the early 50s, as seen from a seven year old boy's perspective. There is the struggle of farming cotton and some exciting secrets that keep the story going and interest high.
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Summary: Another great book from GRISHAM
Review: This is another great story from Grisham. Although it is not law-related such as his previous successes -it is a well written book. I couldn't put this book down. I'm anxiously awaiting another release from this great author!!
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Summary: WAT A PLEASANT SURPRISE
Review: Not being a great lawyer fan, I am not a great Grisham fan, but this work, "A Painted House" is certainly something of a marvel!
I was surprised and delighted. The book is well worth the read. I do hope we get more of the same from Grisham. A very good story. Very good character developement. Thank you Mr Grisham for this work!
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