Atticus : Novel, A

Rating:
Summary: Atticus: A Captivating Read
Review: Atticus tells the story of a man (Atticus Cody) from Colorado and his son Scott, who are different from each other in values and lifestyle. Atticus demonstrates a conservative and disciplined way of life, whereas Scott is creative and more laid back. This first segment of the book is rather boring, as nothing interesting seems to be happening. However, the story redeems its integrity as the main conflict is introduced and the reading begins to pick up its pace.
Atticus eventually receives word that Scott had committed suicide in Resurrecion, Mexico. Devastated, he flies to Mexico to recover his son's body. After some time, Atticus obtains small bits of information that lead him to suspect that his son was murdered. As the story unravels and events take place, the reading becomes more and more intriguing. Ron Hansen keeps the reader in suspense; I couldn't help but to constantly wonder what would happen next. In addition, the author presents many misleading clues regarding the outcome, catching the reader off guard.
Ron Hansen's narrative style enhances the story. He provokes the reader to play an active role in the reading by providing indirect characterization and vague information. This allows the reader to make inferences and come to conclusions without being directly fed the information. Also, the author describes characters, objects, and places in the novel using interesting metaphors and similes. His descriptions give the reader a vividly detailed image of what is being talked about. "Cold snow crunched beneath his gray cowboy boots with the toothgrind noise of cattle chewing. Jewels of sunlight sparked from the whiteness everywhere." (19). This is an example of sheer brilliance. It shows (rather than tells) the reader what it looked and sounded like.
Over all, I would say this novel is a great choice for any reader. With the exception of the slow and boring introduction, this book keeps the reader interested until the end.

Rating:
Summary: Not to be read lightly
Review: I have been to enough book groups now that have chosen Hansen's masterpiece "Atticus," to realize that people are reading this book much too lightly. Because it has the form of a mystery, this does not mean that the novel is strictly a who-done-it. Book group members continually want to rewrite and edit Hansen's book rather than to see what he has done in writing a novel about forgiveness and unconditional parental love. Methinks part of the problem is that the father and son theme of this book takes readers where THEY do not want to go. Because father/son relationships are not externally emotional, readers have to work hard to understand Atticus and Scott, rather than Atticus and Scout of "To Kill A Mockingbird". Harper Lee had the easier job of dissecting father/daughter relationships and told the story from the girl's point of view. Hansen told it like it is when the father and son are at odds. Too bad some members of the reading public find that too painful to face and use Hansen as their scapegoat. "Atticus" needs to be taken seriously.

Rating:
Summary: Atticus Review courtesy of Brian French
Review: Atticus Cody, is a 67-year-old Colorado rancher, and his son, Scott, a excellent but plauged artist, have been on edge with one another since his mother was killed in a car accident, in which Scott was the driver. Atticus'insight on life and responsibility is as strong as Scott's is shattered and weak. When Atticus is told of Scott's untimely death off the coast of Mexico, he investigates his son's party-hard lifestyle among the natives, runaways, and distressed seekers of a cure for cancer, hoping to shed light on the loss of his youngest son. Instead what he finds is the assurance that is son has not committed suicide but rather was murdered and the need to unearth the truth not only for Scott but to give him closure. This story told from both the father and son narrative, the story accomplishes both mystery and one of deep emotion between father and son. the characters of Atticus, Scott, and Renata, Scott's part time, part lover, are vibrantly expresseed, and the fake citry of Resureccion is portrayed as real as Mexico City, itself.

Rating:
Summary: Book Review For Atticus
Review: Ron Hansen has written something truly amazing. This book was about a murder mystery, and a father's love for a son. When Atticus hears of the news of his son's murder he is completely divested and let down by his son. He then sets out to the city of Resureccion, Mexico, to seek the reasons for his son's death. While there he begins to suspect his son had been murdered. The book then began to get increasingly suspenseful, which is why I began to get caught up in the plot. The suspense took me by surprise, which kept me guessing what would happen next. Ron Hansen made a good job at leaving the reader asking questions. I was happy with the way Ron Hansen described the settings so vividly. I had an image of the story taking place the whole time. Ron Hanson showed many examples of good writing. "Atticus couldn't get up without gripping the crosspiece on the spindle chair. He went out and switched off the truck's ignition, and then he telephoned Frank in his Antelope office, giving him the news." I thought this was a good piece of writing, because it showed Atticus' love for his son. Also that it really let the reader feel the mood at the news of his Scott's death, which hurt him drastically. I was really impressed with this book, and with the way Ron Hansen envisioned it.

Rating:
Summary: Not to be read lightly
Review: I have been to enough book groups now that have chosen Hansen's masterpiece "Atticus," to realize that people are reading this book much too lightly. Because it has the form of a mystery, this does not mean that the novel is strictly a who-done-it. Book group members continually want to rewrite and edit Hansen's book rather than to see what he has done in writing a novel about forgiveness and unconditional parental love. Methinks part of the problem is that the father and son theme of this book takes readers where THEY do not want to go. Because father/son relationships are not externally emotional, readers have to work hard to understand Atticus and Scott, rather than Atticus and Scout of "To Kill A Mockingbird". Harper Lee had the easier job of dissecting father/daughter relationships and told the story from the girl's point of view. Hansen told it like it is when the father and son are at odds. Too bad some members of the reading public find that too painful to face and use Hansen as their scapegoat. "Atticus" needs to be taken seriously.

Rating:
Summary: Intriguing suspense/mystery novel
Review: Atticus is a very well developed mystery/suspense story about a Farmer named Cody Atticus. Atticus goes to Resureccion, Mexico after he learns that his son, Scott has suddenly committed suicide, and that's when the plot begins. The story takes the reader through an intriguing tale of murder and a father's passion and love for his son. Ron Hansen depicts the quest of Cody Atticus excellently, to the extent that it is as if the reader is actually in the story. This book is full of suspense, twists and turns. All my predictions about the outcome I had established turned out to be false, because of Hansen's brilliant writing. Although confusing and boring at sometimes, I would recommend this to anyone who is a fan of suspense and mystery.

Rating:
Summary: Atticus-A story of discovery
Review: Atticus was a hartwarming story about a man's search for answers about his sons death. His son, who lives in mexico has committed suicide and his father goes down there to retrieve his body. When he gets down there though,he finds clues that lead to a suspicion that maybe his sons didn't commit suicide, and maybe there is much more about what happened to his son than meets the eye...Atticus is a very exciting novel that willl keep you rivited throught the story. It can be quite confusing at times, but it is worth working through to reach the extremely climactic ending. This book has alot of twists and turns in the plot and I would highly recommend reading this book to any fan of the mystery genre.

Rating:
Summary: Atticus
Review: Atticus was a slow, but enjoyable read full of vivid imagery. Hansen has the ability to lay a scene in front of the reader's eyes, whether it is a character's bedroom, the jungle just outside Resurrección, Mexico, or the rowdy streets of Boystown. The story of Atticus revolves around a successful cattle rancher named Atticus Cody and his quest to determine the true cause of the death of his youngest son, Scott. Atticus flies down to Resurrección, Mexico, to take care of the remains of Scott's apparent suicide. Atticus comes to believe that his son was murdered, and so, unrealistically, Atticus becomes a crime-solving detective, interrogating Scott's friends and picking up clues. Nonetheless, one cannot help but feel sorry for Atticus, who has to deal with the grief of his son's death, the stress of an investigation, and a spell of Montazuma's Revenge. Hansen has a small host of well-developed characters that help to give some interesting twists to the story. An interesting contemporary mystery story; I recommend Atticus to anyone that enjoys a good sleuthing novel.

Rating:
Summary: Mysteriously Delightful
Review: Atticus is a tale of mystery, deception, love and hate. There are many different events in this book which misguide the reader and transpose the plot to indicate serious hurt or endangerment, when really it's a tool of misconception to create a dastardly plot to excite the reader. Now, Atticus is a Colorado rancher who discovers that his creative minded son, Scott has committed suicide in Mexico.
Throughout the story, Atticus is an investigator; this feature creates a twist in the character's format. He's a detective discovering the truth to the reader, while his son frolics around Mexico causing chaos and associating with the wrong crowd and being at the wrong place at the wrong time, and daddy has to pick up the pieces. Yet, I am impressed by the intuition of Scott to "cover up" his troubles.
I congratulate Ron Hansen for creating a story that's both compelling and entertaining on so many levels. Although, there were some lagging scenes with innumerable details I accepted the characters, plot and setting as a compelling story of love, forgiveness, and mystery. I give this book four stars. If you enjoy a good mystery, read Atticus.

Rating:
Summary: In between good and bad.
Review: I gave Atticus an overall rating of three because this was just an average book. The plot was good quality, and the characters were well developed. There is something about mystery novels that I really seem to enjoy. Atticus is a lonely old man who has lost a wife and more recently a son. I like the way his persistence on not to let go of his son helps him act like a detective. The religious symbolism is fun to catch and pay attention to also. This is just about all of what I got out of this book. The book wasn't really interesting until about one-third of the way into it. Once I got interested I was determined to finish it, but the ending wasn't what I was hoping for. It was kind of disappointing to see what was really going on in Ressureción, Mexico because I was expecting this big extravagant ending. Some people might like the way it all worked out like it did, but I don't think I would end the book like that. With the beginning and the end of the book on the negative side, the rest of the book gets brought down. The author is a good writer with the way he buts imagery and displays the Mexican culture. If you are looking for a quick mediocre mystery novel, Atticus is your book.