John Grisham’s latest offering is a collection of short stories dealing with people and events in a fictional town named Clanton in Ford County, Mississippi. The book comprises of 7 short stories.
In order to help a neighbor who met with an accident in Memphis, three men travel to the big city from Clanton. Two of them have never left Clanton. Their mercy mission turn eventful even before reaching Memphis.
Inez Graney and her two elder sons – Leon and Butch – loan a van from the local upholstery shop to visit their youngest brother, Raymond. During the trip, all three start reminiscing.
Mark Stafford is a divorce lawyer running a small office in Clanton. Of late, he is behind on various payments including the mortgage on the office. To top it, his wife is constantly fighting with him and he can sense a divorce round the corner. On a sleepy afternoon, he gets a call which may alter the course of his life.
Bobby Carl Leach is a successful businessman who is adept at having his way in means which are not socially acceptable and bordering on illegality. Exploiting his lineage, Bobby is able to set up a casino in Clanton. But, he is not prepared for the silent wrath of Sidney, a data collector for an insurance company.
While walking out of the local supermarket after buying medication for his wife, Lawyer Stanley Wade is kidnapped by masked and unnamed men. Frightened and helpless, Stanley realizes his kidnapping may be related to a litigation case he represented years ago!
Gilbert arrives in Clanton to take up a job in Quiet Haven Retirement Home. Although he poses as a uneducated youth, Gilbert is a man with an agenda.
Adrian returns to Clanton after falling prey to the deadly disease of AIDS. As his family despises his lifestyle, he is entrusted to Emporia, an elderly black lady living alone in the black section of the town.
The seven stories deal with various human emotions and bonds. John Grisham writes in a simple manner which makes this easy to read. As this is a collection of short stories, you are hooked only for a short duration. This is a blessing for someone who has little time to read and hates to carry the cross of suspense for longer time.
Picture Courtesy: Landmark
Tags: Books,Videos,John Grisham
Grisham is a master story teller, the last one I read of his was 'Pelican brief' and was very impressed with his style of story stelling laced with modern day concern like environment
ReplyDeleteI should say that I was pretty much disappointed reading the Ford County Stories considering that John Grisham has written wonderful legal thrillers like 'The Firm', 'The Pelican Brief' etc
ReplyDelete@Vaz - He writes a thriller well. There are others in which there are no drama. Yet, the narration is good.
ReplyDelete@Elizabeth - Thanks for dropping by. This book is not a thriller. This is a collection of stories he could not develop into a full novel. This worked for me as there was less to turn pages and find out how a story ends. :)