Rating: 
Summary: Authentic in Every Way
Review: Having grown up in the Arkansas Delta region in the years the author describes, I can attest to its authenticity - 100% - he captures the small-town southern feeling,landscape, moods (highs and lows) depending on the weather, and innocent curiousity of a young boy. I loved the rhythm of this book. It reminded me of sitting on a front porch swing in the summertime, watching the world go by. His description of the southern meals, garden, and the greatly anticipated Saturday trips to town and the center of society (the movie theater)were perfect. He had to have been there to offer such insights - bravo. Thank you for leaving out the lawyers and the chase scenes in this one. It was a delightful week's read of stepping back into a simpler time when life moved at a slower pace.
Rating: 
Summary: Absolutely loved this book!
Review: I couldn't put this book down!! It was so awesome! I am only 16 years old and it was very easy for me to read! The reference to baseball was great because I love that sport! The ending leaves you where you NEED to find out about a character in the book!The Main Character Luke, grows up very fast after he sees things, my dad wouldn't even want to see! He also has to keep a lot of secrets in which gets hard for him! Read this NOW!
Rating:
Summary: Super Story!
Review: O.K., O.K..... So this one is different. All the reviews and collumns, including "Book" magazine, were serious when they said that it would be. For those you don't pay attention to those articles let this be a lesson to you. The fact is, i'ts different. It's a GREAT story!! Buy it, read it, enjoy it. Don't expect the twisting plots and underhanded schemes that you have been used to in the past. It is as equally well written as any other Grisham novel and a fantastic change of pace. Grisham shows his real talent here!
Rating: 
Summary: Another disappointment from a good writer
Review: This book is another disappointment by a very talented author. The idea, it seems is taken from Homer Hickam's novel 'October Sky or The Coalwood Way.' Fortunately I did not spend any money on this book as well, but read it in hope that this might be interesting. The whole book evolves around one or two plots and does not get anywhere. The reader hopes that soon it will become interesting but, it does not. Mr. Grisham is cashing in on his old credibility. I would not recommend this book to anyone. Arshad Altaf Karachi, Pakistan
Rating:
Summary: What a nice change of pace!
Review: A pleasant read! The book is done from the eyes of a 7 year old boy whose parents are cotton farmers in Arkansas. They ive with their grandparents on leased land and he has an uncle fighting in the Korean war. All he wants when he grows up is to be a pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals. It was a most enjoyable book and so different from Grisham's lawyer stories. I highly recommend this one!!
Rating:
Summary: Grisham is back!!
Review: I thought John Grisham was falling into the same trap of sticking to the "safe script" that Danielle Steele, and Patricia Cornwell have become fans of. Grisham takes a stab at something new in this book, and his guts pay off. He moves away from the legal thrillers he is famous for, and instead hits us with a touching, triumphant story of a 7 year old farmboy in the midwest forced to grow up way too fast. As a Grisham fan, I hope that this new success in style accomplished by Grisham will lead to future great novels. I think this is a read for any of his fans. Those of us who have been feeling lately that he had been writing about 200 pages too much.. That's a reference to the "Testament." Try this one, you'll love it.
Rating:
Summary: What happened?
Review: At first, I was happy to here John Grisham trying his hand at something besides legal matters. But after reading this book, all I can say is I hope John gets back to what he knows best! I think John really missed a good chance to have a great book. It could have been great. I get the feeling he got in a hurry and ended the story without all the subplots coming to some great climax. I am sorry, but the story kept developing and developing, then nothing happened. All the different plots and story lines just drifted off into the wild blue yonder! After getting to the end, one is left with the question,,,,what happened??????? I feel this is one book that would make a good move. As a book, I was very disappointed. Although, it was not as bad as the last book, "The Brethren"!!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: One of Grisham's best
Review: I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. I have read many of John Grisham's books, but in all honesty, have become hesitant to spend money for the hardcover editions because I was not enjoying his writing as much in later works. This book was a refreshing change from what I have come to expect(lately)from John Grisham. I have family who still farm in the South, but I have never set foot on a cotton field. Grisham's descriptions were so vivid of life as a farmer, that I can only be grateful my family left as Luke's did in this story in the 1950s. His descriptions of life on the farm, the relationships between a young boy and his parents and grandparents are all in fine detail. I grew to really care about what happened to Luke and his family. I am grateful that Mr. Grisham decided to try his hand at something new. It is a wonderful book--one I was sorry to have come to an end. The only reason I didn't give 5 stars is because I thought, like some reviewers stated, that Grisham's narrator, Luke, a 7 year old boy, is way too precocious. I would have found his level of understanding and his preoccupation with 17 year old girls more believable if he had been a 10 or 11 year old boy. This is a similar complaint I had in "The Client". This is the first time I have reviewed anything and that says more than anything how much I enjoyed this book and how much I would recommend it.
Rating: 
Summary: Grisham Loses Luster
Review: I bought Painted House thinking that it would measure up to Grisham's past home runs. The theme of the little boy painting the house was much like the experience i had reading the book. One of watching paint dry. This is one of Grisham's most disappointing works to date. The pace is extremely slow and the reader is left waiting for the plot ot thicken and it never happens. Even when some juice appears, like in the murder during the fight or the hidden love affair with Cowboy and the hillbilly girl, Grisham does not give the reader near enough suspense or thrill. The ending is a non-event and leaves so many loose ends that I thought i missed a last chapter. Advice to Grisham - stick with what you do best - writing thrillers.
Rating:
Summary: Bringing Back Old Memories
Review: Although this novel varied from Grisham's usual writings, I enjoyed the story immensely. It tended to bring back old memories of cotton pickin' time in Alabama, where I was reared. However, some readers might not enjoy the recollections of the seven-year-old main character if they couldn't relate to what his life was like. I must add, also, that I do think the seven-year-old boy behaved and thought way beyond the years of any seven-year-old I have ever met.
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