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Summary: A Painted House
Review: This book is very well written. It shows that Grisham has more talent than just your typical writer who would stick with only one topic. However, Grisham was able to expand his horizons successfully. I would highly recommend this book the suspense is evident, as is many other parts that are classic in a Grisham book. Whats missing though is the courtroom, however this was replaced by a barnyard. The book does reflect on the poor people and still holds true to this date because many farmers are just scraping by and holding down other jobs while they farm. I highly recommend this book to people of all ages.
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Summary: Through the eyes of a child
Review: Not since TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, have I read such an earthy account of life through the eyes of a child. Nothing is taboo, since it comes from innocence. Everything is so exciting to this child, whose world is a cotton farm in Arkansas. One can almost hear Harry Caray announcing the Cardinal game, or taste the hot sweet coffee which Luke has each morning. While dreaming of a life far away, this youngster experiences more life than most of us ever will. Please John Grisham--write more like this!!!!!!
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Summary: Would McDonald's ever sell pizzas and stop selling BigMacs?
Review: or Coca-Cola sell wine and stop selling Coke.... John, where is my February law novel? I don't really care if you want to have a go at writing something different, but I NEED MY FEBRUARY LAW NOVEL. I can't wait another 12 months! By the way, you could have warned us that the Painted House is totally boring for readers who did not grow up in Arkansas, and don't follow baseball.
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Summary: a pleasant departure from the lawyer books
Review: I was looking forward to this book because I had heard it was a departure from Mr Grishams usual storyline. I was not disappointed. The book was well written and I could actually feel myself in the year 1952. There were many noteworthy characters in this novel and I wish he would have written more about some of them. My favorite character in the whole book was Trot the poor kid who couldn't pick cotton but he did have a purpose. I recommend this book to anyone that loves a good story but remember this is not the usual John Grisham book. I feel with this book Mr Grisham has truly shown that he is a great writer and not just a writer of legal thrillers. I would love to read a sequel to this book. paul ray heinrich gilchrist, texas
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Summary: A New John Grisham
Review: I have read all of the John Grisham lawyer novels and was somewhat hesitant to buy this one. However, from page one I was hooked, just like always. Perhaps, it was because I also lived a part of my childhood during those years that I found the novel facinating. John Grisham has a style that appears to come through no matter what the subject matter. I just love to read books that I really have a hard time putting down and this certainly was a winner.Thanks John Grisham
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Summary: If Grisham Were a Pitcher, This Would Be His Perfect Game
Review: The story of Luke and his family on a cotton farm in Arkansas begins slowly. I started the book and learned more about picking cotton than I'd ever wanted to know. I decided I never, in my life, want to pick cotton. Just when I thought I'd read enough about this topic, the book begins to move the way Grisham knows how to make a story flow. If you are sick of slick lawyers and profanity (and if The Brethern left you feeling slightly dismayed as it did me), you are going to love this book. My friend Jimmy, who likes a good read as much as you and I do, was a bit suspicious at what he'd heard about A PAINTED HOUSE. "But does it make you want to keep reading? Is it a page turner?" he asked me. A resounding "YES!" from this reader. I wanted to know what was going to happen between Tally and Cowboy, the Hill people's daughter and one of the Mexican pickers. I wanted to know how far Hank would go with his tendency to be not only mean but violent. What was going on at the Latcher's, I asked myself. What was Trot doing when everyone else was picking cotton? And would the crop get in or would there be a flood? This just might be my favorite Grisham novel. Seven year old Luke, the narrator, is an easy blend of sophistication and naivete and Grisham's love of baseball, which matches mine, makes for an enjoyable sideline to the reality of living in rural Arkansas in the early 1950s. When Grisham wrote this he was not only pitching a perfect game, he was batting clean-up as well. Get it today!
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Summary: A coming of age story
Review: Grisham is a master storyteller in this book. You can feel every lump in young Luke's throat, you can feel his cheeks turn red in embarrasment, and you can recall the first time a member of the opposite sex caught your attention. Although not a lawyer book, A Painted House maintains Grisham's master use of subtleties and suspense. Also, having grown up in the Southwest, I especially appreciated Grisham's accurate depiction of farm life and Mexican farm workers.
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Summary: Gives "change of pace" a bad name....
Review: For the record: I've really enjoyed every book of Mr. Grisham's except "The Street Lawyer" and "The Brethren." But "A Painted House" is just too slow and too simple. The author wants us to find charm, humor and basic human decency in these characters. But there's little character development or plot that rises above cliche (fear of bad crops, unwanted pregnancies, local bully, annual carnival, etc.) We read about the "Hill People" who, with the Mexicans, are hired to pick cotton, but other than their names and salaries they remain faceless also. Grisham throws in baseball (the narrator is a Cardinals fan) and a couple of fights but these plot elements do little other than to add some action. (Almost as if the author knew we were getting bored.) The biggest crime is that with all these plot threads nothing converges or builds to anything. You don't even find out the final disposition of the one character you DO care about. This book is Grisham...without a Grisham plot.
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Summary: Goodbye John Grisham...
Review: I read Grishams previous book, The Brethren and swore off reading Grisham again, to me he had taken the path oft travelled and became formulaic. I could not believe he could write something so badly conceived and full of holes, maybe he didn't write it. Anyhow this has nothing to do with his latest book other than I won't be buying it.
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Summary: One of the best so far, except...
Review: I really enjoyed reading this book. The story line was interesting and well told. I had a hard time putting the book down, but I was really disapppointed in how it ended. I almost felt like reading it had been a pointless waste of time, except for the fact that I thourghly enjoyed the experience!(?!) There were lots of plot twists, but not many of them were resolved. I've read most of Grisham's books and think this was one of the best, but I think we need a sequel!
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