6 reviews for The Street Laywer
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The Street Laywer
by John Grisham
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.
About The Author
John Ray Grisham, Jr. (born February 8, 1955) is an American bestselling writer, attorney, politician, and activist best known for his popular legal thrillers. His books have been translated into 42 languages and published worldwide.
John Grisham graduated from Mississippi State University before attending the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1981. He practiced criminal law for about a decade and served in the House of Representatives in Mississippi from January 1984 to September 1990.
He began writing his first novel, A Time to Kill, in 1984; it was published in June 1989. As of 2012, his books had sold over 275 million copies worldwide. A Galaxy British Book Awards winner, Grisham is one of only three authors to sell 2 million copies on a first printing; the others are Tom Clancy and J.K. Rowling.
Grisham’s first bestseller was The Firm (1991); it sold more than seven million copies. The book was adapted into a 1993 feature film of the same name, starring Tom Cruise, and a 2012 TV series which “continues the story of attorney Mitchell McDeere and his family 10 years after the events of the film and novel.” Eight of his other novels have also been adapted into films: The Chamber, The Client, A Painted House, The Pelican Brief, Skipping Christmas, The Rainmaker, The Runaway Jury, and A Time to Kill.
Skryf Review
“Amazing Reading”
Krushali
I think Grisham should always write in the first-person. His stories are livelier and more realistic from the first-person perspective. This novel is somewhere in the middle of his works, and it shows signs of becoming formulaic, but it still feels fairly fresh. The only reason that I’m giving it three stars and not four is that I didn’t appreciate the racism implicit in ideas about homelessness in Washington D.C. Obviously, facts are facts, but there is a way to handle them without being sided one way.However, I really like Michael Brock, the main character from whose perspective the story is told. I like Mordecai Green, the street lawyer from whom Michael learns, and I appreciate Grisham’s obvious respect for the “real Mordecai Greens” as he calls them in his thank yous. The book is entertaining, but it’s also educational and eye-opening. Working at a public library located downtown in a suburban city, I encounter homeless people and poor people often. I’ve become familiar with some of their ways and their struggles. I both empathize and sympathize. I’m sure, though, that most of Grisham’s readers, like him, never knew much or understood much or even cared much about the homeless. This book is a way to show people the truth about the plights of the homeless around the country, starting with the nation’s capital.I recommend this book to Grisham fans, to readers who enjoy books about lawyers, and to anyone interested in learning more about the homeless and the people who work for and with them.
Kaushal
I read a few of Grisham’s early books years ago (The Firm, A Time To Kill) and thought they were, for the most part, formulaic legal fiction. I wouldn’t normally have picked up another one of his novels,but years ago I read a short article he wrote for a high school magazine about how he researchedThe Street Lawyer, and I was intrigued. I finally grabbed the book last week and read it over the weekend. Standard fare for a Grisham novel: a young lawyer going up against a corrupt, powerful legal firm where dark deeds have been committed at the expense of the little guy. What made The Street Lawyer interesting was the head-on way in which the author dealt with homelessness in Washington, DC. It’s quite remarkable to think that, in the most powerful and wealthy country history has ever seen, our capital is absolutely filled with poor black people. Nearly 20% of all the people living in the District of Columbia are poor (and that’s using the Census Bureau’s numbers, which are notoriously inaccurate). Having been to DC many times, I can tell you that the difference between the capital and some of the surrounding neighborhoods is stark. So the author does a good job juxtaposing the wealthy and powerful elite of Washington with the hopeless, homeless, drug-addicted human refuge that tends to wash up on the front steps of the mighty. It made for a compelling, page-turning story even as I knew it was going to end up in tense courtroom standoff during the last twenty pages, with an outcome that was never in doubt.
Jasmine
The Street Lawyer takes place in Washington DC, Michael Brock is working for a big law firm that pays big money. Until one day a homeless man enters the firm and takes Brock and many other lawyers hostage. The police take out the suspect, but afterword’s Michael discovers something going on in the very firm he’s been working for. So Brock has a change of heart, he quits the firm and takes to the streets, now working for a lower firm that help homeless people and doesn’t pay Michael as much money.While reading this it broke my heart when introduced to the life of homeless people, even though the book was fiction, but that’s the kind of stuff you see every day.
Ira
One of my favourite authors is John Grisham. His books are one of the reasons that I decided to study Law for my degree. Even though his portrayal of the law and the job that comes with it is slightly exaggerated and intense, I believe there is truth behind his novels. He is an American lawyer specialising in Criminal law. This is evident within his novels as he is best known for his legal thrillers. I have read the majority of his books and out of all of them, The Street Lawyer has by far been my favourite read. I believe this book can be used to make older students discuss attitudes toward the poor and homeless, developing their social awareness skills. The book teaches you about helping those in need and looking beyond the face surface of situations. It can also be used for students to begin thinking about their future aspirations and maybe if they want to carry out a career in law or even anything else. Students can also be asked to carry out role-play activities in relation to the conversation between the characters in the book. This will involve working together in pairs or in a group with the aim of creating a scene from their own interpretation and understanding of the book. There is a certain emphasis on the media within the book so the book can be used to promote interest in one of the powerful sources of society which acts as a social change. Students can be divided into groups to talk about the media, focusing on the power of the media and how their intervention changed the course of events. This can lead to intellectual discussions and also may get young adults to engage in conversations over every day events and how they are portrayed in the news and newspapers today. This book can be used with young people for many activities. Reading this book can be viewed as both relaxing and fun, but at the same time educational. It is insightful, interesting and thrilling, all at the same time.
Kahaan
A lawyer with a conscience? A Homeless man with a message? A law firm held to ransom? So much drama and so effectively told. We are taken quite brutally into the uncomfortable, compelling, and ugly world of homelessness which for manifold reasons exist in ever-increasing numbers in cities all around the world. Michael Brock is a man of character; a man who discovers he cannot live with who he thought he was, following a frightening hold up in his office. He witnesses the fear, disbelief and horror of his peers at Drake and Sweeney during this stressful situation but the apparent ease with which they resumed normality(post trauma)eludes him.He gives up a lot in his quest to make peace with his soul, and it wasn’t easy to convince Mordecai (Director of the 14th Street Legal Clinic and advocate of the homeless)that he was in it for the long haul. Michael’s marriage is in trouble. Claire is puzzled with the change occuring in her husband, unsure if she likes the new Michael any him better than the one she had married. As a reader, I really wanted things to work out for them; feeling great empathy for this man who’d become energized with fresh passion and vision. But as any avid reader will tell you, our wishes don’t always come true. Who would settle for predictability anyway? Not me!