A Painted House

Rating:
Summary: Delightfully different
Review: I am not a Grisham fan. I read The Testament and felt it was a flat meaningless story. I borrowed A Painted House because I really did not notice the author at the time. Although I finished the book a week ago, parts of it are still in my mind. Like another reviewer, I LIVED those six weeks of picking cotton. I wanted my husband to read it, my 12 year old son to read it, etc. Maybe it didn't solve race relation issues or tie up loose ends neatly, but I never expected it to; life doesn't. There are few books that transported me to a setting as well as Grisham's did. I hope he has more like this one in him.

Rating:
Summary: Is it a law to tie all loose threads?
Review: Why do some people think every little story thread needs to be tightly tied-up-and-clipped at the end? Is anybody's life that way? This novel stands up on it's own. Everything is masterful - setting, characterization, description, dialogue, plot, pacing.... Grisham, of course, set himself up for a sequel. Based on his past novels (The Chamber was my favorite) I'm sure if he decides to write a sequel it, too, will be masterful.

Rating:
Summary: The Painted House
Review: The Painted House is a diappointment. This book is one of the worst books I have ever read. If I didn't pay good money for it, I would have just thrown it away.. This book is set in the '50's, through the eyes of a seven year old. Nothing happens in this book towards any kind of drama. The book plods alone like a plow horse in the mid-day sun. I felt this book was written to keep the author in print. If I had one good thing to say about this book, No matter what you condition is, this book reminds us that people are worst off then yourself. However, I can read the daily news and figure that out. I literally had to drag myself through this book. I kept reading it just for the hope that something would happen, nothing ever did. From the begining to the end, this book reads at sea level, just barely keeping itself from nose diving into the earth and buring to death, which is what I really wanted this book to do.

Rating:
Summary: You Become a Character Yourself
Review: This book was so detailed and used such efficient dialogue that the family becomes your own family, the house becomes your own house, the problems become your own problems. Thus, the end is an emotional one, for it is nearly happening to you. John Grisham pulls you in and you don't want to leave, and you will put this book down almost in a state of sadness that it's over and you will not get to continue living the lives of the characters. I was hesitant to set it down for the last time and wished it would go on forever. This book is filled with captivating suspense, a touch of rebellious love, and more importantly, it contains a sense of what we all strive for deep down: a quiet, peaceful life containing it's own issues which can be resolved with the mind of a child. Never have I read a book which brings me back in time the way this one does. An excellent read!

Rating:
Summary: Did I miss something?
Review: So many people have said A PAINTED HOUSE is an excellent work. Even Grisham has said it's one of his favorites. So why did I feel so let down by this book? It's a sweet story; it does evoke a time and place beautifully. We come to see and care for the characters. All the elements are in place for a true classic...and then the plot goes no where. Without giving too much of the story away, let me suggest some of the themes that begged for conclusion: race relations; class distictions; crime and punishment; truth-telling vs. secret-keeping. I can not recommend this book. And it certainly is not in the same league as TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD.

Rating:
Summary: A Painted House
Review: Very differant type of book.You really have to read between the lines in this one.

Rating:
Summary: GRISHAM SHOULD STICK TO LEGAL THRILLERS!
Review: I just finished reading this book and found many positive and negative aspects of it. On the negative side, Luke seems too mature for a 7 year old boy. 7 year old boys aren't interested in 17 year old girls. Second, there wasn't much suspense or an urge to stay up all night and read this book, the story was somewhat bland. However, I'm sure many people could appreciate this book and its story line. But if you are used to Grisham's legal thrillers and think this will someone be related to his other works, think again. There is nothing better to me than a great ending that makes you think to yourself "Wow, who would have thought it would end like that?" A Painted House lacks that. So I give it 3 stars for the good story line and great use of dialogue. Grisham is still my favorite author!

Rating:
Summary: Very entertaining!!
Review: I really liked this book. It was refreshing to read something of Grishams that wasn't in the courtroom. My only complaint is that the book seems to end abruptly. It left me wanting more. I would love to read a sequel to find out what happens "up north" and to see what happens to the Latchers, Ricky, Tally and Cowboy.

Rating:
Summary: A great piece of literature
Review: After reading all (and I mean all!) of Grisham's lawyer related novels, this was a refreshing change. Not only is it a great book, I believe that it will go down as one of the great novels of our time! The writing reminds me of a cross between "The Grapes of Wrath", and "To Kill a Mockingbird". The story is told through the eyes of a 7 year old boy (similar to the boy's perspective in "to Kill"), and is set in the 1950's Arkansas cotton fields. The way he tells the story, from the hiring of Mexican workers and "Hill People", and the quaint and nostalgic times of a yesterday gone by, is breathtaking and captivating. I could not put it down!! I highly recommend this book!

Rating:
Summary: A sequel would change my mind.........
Review: I don't wish to undermine this book as it was a page turner for me. I was totally caught up in the characters. However, the ending was most disappointing for me. The story lines were just not "wrapped up". I always enjoy a book that leaves me wanting for more, but unless there is a sequel in the works, this one just left me feeling a little cheated out of a complete ending. One more chapter would have made this a 4 to 5 star book for me!