A Painted House

Rating:
Summary: BORING!!!
Review: Well, was I surpised. Mr. Grisham has certainly changed gears on this one. After reading and thoroughly enjoying the suspense and characters of his previous novels, I was quite disappointed in this one. Ok,Ok, life on a cotton farm in the 50's was no great way to grow up but this book didn't quite captivate me. I don't find any interest in a 7 year old boy watching a 14 year old girl take a bath in the river. The characters are explained in depth but are not followed through to the end. What happens to Ricky, Miguel and his new wife, the family they take in from the flood,etc. And what does painting the house have to do with anything! I guess he is setting us up for the sequel. I did enjoy the baseball references and will probably read any future books of his just based on his past endeavors.

Rating:
Summary: Sweet and simple
Review: I had given up on John Grisham after reading, in order, A Time to Kill, The Firm, The Pelican Brief and the The Client. I enjoyed them all but felt that if I continued reading his books after that, I would simply be reading the same story over and over again. When I heard that A Painted House was going to be "different" than everything he's written before (i.e. no lawyers) I was delighted to give him another chance. He's a very talented writer and it's about time he tried something new. True, there's not much action in A Painted House and some readers may feel that the story leaves too many loose ends, but it evokes a sense of time and place and a simplistic beauty that his other novels sorely lack. This is not a perfect book but it is one worth reading if only to watch as one of America's most popular authors stretches his wings and grows as a writer. If you're not interested in trying something new along with John Grisham, skip A Painted House and wait for his next book - I hear the lawyers are back.

Rating:
Summary: MaryAnn
Review: I've read many Grisham novels and have always liked them, and when I heard that this one wasn't about lawyers, I looked forward to a change of pace. I enjoyed it VERY MUCH. Beautifully written, keeps you very interested, and you really get to know the characters and story setting. The only problem I had with it was that some of the continuing story lines weren't tied up at the end. In fact the end of the book didn't really seem like the end, it just sort of stopped with respect to some of the ideas in the story. But as I've said, I really did enjoy this book and would highly recommend it. As others have said, this book screems "sequal."

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely loved it!
Review: Someone once said, "I don't like to read books that have everything in it but the kitchen sink. Instead, I like to read books ABOUT the kitchen sink." Grisham's new book "A Painted House" is indeed about the kitchen sink. It's the kind of book you never want to end. I hope he writes a sequel. And judging from how Grisham ended the story, it wouldn't surprise me if there isn't another one in the making.

Rating:
Summary: Excellently written
Review: In my estimation, this is the John Grisham book that may last as a classic. It seems the 1950's are not widely written about in fiction. I was slightly younger than Luke living in Philadelphia in the 1950's and I remember how that was. The book paintd a vivid picture of how the South was obviously a very different world from mine in most ways. I could see the farm and the town and understand the plights of the people involved. This was a very satisfying read that helped me understand the human drama many people in the south went through.

Rating:
Summary: Not Worth the Wait
Review: There are only a few authors that I look forward with anticipation for their new books. John Grisham is one. Although I certainly could have waited a lot longer for this one. This book seems to encompass the same day throughout. It plots along and in some places, drags along. There is never edge-of-your-seat action. It gets to the point of "who cares". I had to stop 3 times and read another book in between. My advice is to wait for the paperback and then try it. John Grisham should go back to what he does best, legal thrillers.

Rating:
Summary: A Painted House
Review: This book was a major disappointment. It was a struggle to finish it. I am a big Grisham fan. I have read and loved all of his books. I eagerly awaited this one. I do not read reviews of his books before purchasing them. I felt totally deceived by the author. I had no idea what the book was about and assumed I was going to enjoy another of his books,as usual. From now on I will surely read reviews. I want his "old" stuff, the lawyers, the thrillers, etc.

Rating:
Summary: Welcome back, John. We missed you !!
Review: This is John's first real book since "A Time To Kill", and a welcome break from his long line of mega-best-selling screen plays masquerading as legal suspense novels. "A Painted House" has real people doing what real people do; struggling, surviving, fighting, helping, lusting, grieving, laughing and, incidentally , picking a lot of cotton and painting a house. I loved all the characters and can't wait for the sequel. John is a first-rate story-teller, and it all shows in this novel.

Rating:
Summary: memories of old
Review: I am a avid reader of Grisham's books and found this one easy to relate to.I felt like Grisham was writing as if we grew up close to one another. Even though we grew up generations apart life was not that different. The major diffrence was he and his family grew cotton and my family grew tobacco. Life in rual America was still in some aspects the same when I was growing up. Oh the times I heard my grandfather and father worry about the weather and crops. Grisham took me back to a time and place that I had left behind when I left the farm for college. I would like to know what happened to the family when it moved and to Ricky.I hope there is a sequal to this book.I will be one of the first to purchase the book.

Rating:
Summary: Glad its over
Review: My husband and I have enjoyed all of the Grisham books on tape. This was the first time I can honestly say, I am glad its over. I hope Grisham goes back to what he does best and I will make sure on the next one I read the jacket before I purchase.