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 | | The Street Lawyer (Penguin Readers, Level 4) by John Grisham ISBN-10: 9780582434042 ISBN-10: 0-582-43404-1 ISBN-13: 9780582434042 ISBN-13: 978-0-582-43404-2 Paperback 2001-03-05 Pearson ESL Find Lowest Price |
Editorials | ||
Product Description Michael was a successful lawyer with Drake and Sweeney, a giant Washington law firm. But a homeless man dies in an attack on Michael, and in trying to discover who he is, Michael uncovers a dirty secret ... about Drake and Sweeney. Soon Michael himself is on the run. A taut thriller in true Grisham style. | ||
Amazon.com Review John Grisham is back with his latest courtroom conundrum, The Street Lawyer. This time the lord of legal thrillers dives deep into the world of the homeless, particularly their barely audible legal voice in a world dominated by large, all-powerful law firms. Our hero, Michael Brock, is on the fast track to partnership at D.C.'s premier law firm, Sweeny & Drake. His dream of someday raking in a million-plus a year is finally within reach. Nothing can stop him, not even 90-hour workweeks and a failing marriage--until he meets DeVon Hardy, a.k.a. "Mister," a Vietnam vet with a grudge against his landlord--and a few lawyers to fry. Hardy, with no clear motive, takes Brock and eight of his colleagues hostage in a boardroom, demanding their tax returns and interrogating them with a conviction that would have put perpetrators of the Spanish Inquisition to shame. Hardy, a man of few words and a lot of ammunition, mumbles cryptically, "Who are the evictors?" as he points a .44 automatic within inches of Brock's face. The violent outcome of the hostage situation triggers an abrupt soul-searching for the young lawyer, and Hardy's mysterious question continues to haunt him. Brock learns that Hardy had been in and out of homeless shelters most of his life, but he had recently begun paying rent in a rundown building; that means he has legal recourse when a big money-making outfit such as Sweeny & Drake boots him with no warning. When Brock realizes that his profession caters to the morally challenged, he sets out on an aimless search through the dicier side of D.C., ending up at the 14th Street Legal Clinic. The clinic's director, a gargantuan man named Mordecai Green, woos Brock to the clinic with a $90,000 cut in pay and the chance to redeem his soul. Brock takes it--and some of the story's credibility along with it; it's hard to believe that a Yale graduate who sacrificed everything--including his marriage--to succeed in the legal profession would quickly jump at the opportunity for low-paying, charitable work. However, Brock's search for corruption in the swanky upper echelons of Sweeny & Drake (via the toughest streets of D.C.) is filled with colorful characters and realistic, gritty descriptions. In the The Street Lawyer, Grisham once again defends the voiceless and powerless. In the words of Mordecai Green, "That's justice, Michael. That's what street law is all about. Dignity." | ||
Reviews | ||
This book is about redemption. It is gritty. It is humane. Good triumphs over evil, finally. The Street Lawyer is a book about a character named Michael Brock, who quits his job, loses his trophy wife, and strives to do the right thing. His life of excess is redeemed in his new-found dedication to serving others. I found the story full of action and suspense, and Brock's character is likeable and realistically complicated and in conflict with himself. The story includes some litigational maneuvers that lead to the ultimate success of Brock's lawsuit. The story depicts life on the street as dirty, dangerous, sad, and just plain gritty. The book is unquestionably a good read, and I found it worth more than Grisham's other excellent works of fiction because the story has consequences. As you read the book, you wonder what you would have done in the situations that Brock finds himself in. And when you realize that you probably wouldn't act as selfless as Brock, you learn something about yourself and the way you interact with other people. Typical legal thrillers (like most of Grisham's other books) won't affect you personally the way this book will. I browsed some of the negative reviews written about this book, and they typically come in two categories: (1) readers didn't like the story because it wasn't like Grisham's other works, (2) readers didn't like the story because it was "preachy" and they found it hard to believe that a person could turn his back on material affluence and start a new life to help the homeless. The people in the first category were understandably surprised that this was not a typical Grisham novel. The people in the second category are exactly the people for whom Grisham was writing this book. They should read the book again because they have something more to learn from the story. In real life, there actually are people who dedicate their lives to serving others. I'm not calling for everyone to be like Michael Brock. But wouldn't society be better for all if more people were as selfless? | ||
The Street Lawyer This is a very compelling book. Even though it is fiction, it only took the first three chapters to have me sit back and reflect on how well my family handles donations to the Food Banks, Free Clinics, Homeless Shelters, etc! This story helps one put things in perspective and to be mindful of those in more difficult positions in life, particularly in today's economy. | ||
A well-written book recommended for your reading pleasure This is certainly a well-written book I'd highly recommend for reading if you are into legal fiction. The reviews on Amazon are all over the place and completely mixed. That should tell you something - this book may or may not appeal to you depending on how you respond to the central theme: homeless people in need of societal assistance. My review should help you decide if you indeed want to read the book. I read some of the reviews on Amazon. People either hated it, or loved it. Typical reaction on a topic that highlights social problems. What some people, especially the ones that have rated it 1's and 2's seem to have overlooked is: it's a work of fiction. They have questioned the "realism" of the plot. So, if you are the type of reader looking for realism you should probably stay away from this book. On the other hand, if you are a fiction reader that can handle a real problem be central to the fiction this book is for you. | ||
old fan comes back but not for good I used to be a big Grisham fan in the early 90's. Needed a beach book decided to give this book a go. Terrible choice on my part. I put it down after a few chapters. If I wanted a sermon I'd go to church. I wonder how much of the profits from this book were given to the poor? | ||
Not really a novel I've been reading John Grisham for years and have always thought that he doesn't just write entertaining legal thrillers, he is also a pretty good writer. However, I've found that his writing doesn't always hit the mark and I thought that this was especially true of The Street Lawyer. It seems like a book that is searching for an identity. It's ostensibly a work of fiction about a lawyer who has a change of heart after a homeless man holds him hostage in his swanky law firm. This isn't really true, though, as the plot is more of a thin veneer coating what is really a work of nonfiction about the plight of the homeless in the U.S. I don't mean to say that Grisham trying to educate his readers about homelessness is a bad thing--far from it. What doesn't make sense to me is why he set the book up the way he did. I read Grisham's gripping work of non-fiction, The Innocent Man, and I can't help but wonder why he didn't write a similar nonfictional account of homelessness, as it seems Grisham is well-informed and passionate about the subject. I can also see how fiction is a good platform for inspiring readers to think more deeply about important causes. History provides us with many examples of this, such as Uncle Tom's Cabin or The Jungle. However, Grisham doesn't use fiction to great effect here. Most of the story has to do with Mike, who is really more of a symbol than a character. Mike has a great change of heart and comes to see that the world of ease and glitter inhabited by the wealthy butts directly up against a world of struggle and grit inhabited by the less fortunate. There is so little development to him, though, that he could really be any wealthy white male who realizes that, in fact, money really isn't everything. Likewise, when we are introduced to homeless characters like Ruby or Lontae Burton, they are little more than ciphers. The reader is given a very terse synopsis of what led to their homelessness but we never get a feel for who these characters are as people. The novel is ultimately a real disappointment. The premise is very interesting and, had it been handled deftly, could have led to a real page-turner. Aside from the poor character development, there is precious little tension over the cover-up upon which Mike stumbles. This is a device that Grisham has used to great effect in the past and it's a letdown that he falls so short of the mark here. A Time to Kill proved that Grisham can handle controversial topics very well and in a way that really makes the reader think. It's a shame that this book doesn't display that same level of ability. | ||