[.ca] The Last Juror (ISBN 1844131599)

Amazon.com Review:
In 1970, small town newspaper The Clanton Times went belly up. With financial assistance from a rich relative, it's purchased by 23-year-old Willie Traynor, formerly the paper's cub reporter. Soon afterward, his new business receives the readership boost it needs thanks to his editorial efforts and coverage of a particularly brutal rape and murder committed by the scion of the town's reclusive bootlegger family. Rather than shy from reporting on the subsequent open-and-shut trial (those who oppose the Padgitt family tend to turn up dead in the area's swampland), Traynor launches a crusade to ensure the unrepentant murderer is brought to justice. When a guilty verdict is returned, the town is relieved to find the Padgitt family's grip on the town did not sway the jury, though Danny Padgitt is sentenced to life in prison rather than death. But, when Padgitt is released after serving less than a decade in jail and members of the jury are murdered, Clanton once again finds itself at the mercy of its renegade family. When it comes, the dénouement is no surprise; The Last Juror is less a story of suspense than a study of the often idyllic southern town of Clanton, Mississippi (the setting for Grisham's first novel, A Time to Kill). Throughout the nine years between Padgitt's trial and release, Traynor finds acceptance in Clanton, where the people "don't really trust you unless they trusted your grandfather." He grows from a long-haired idealist into another of the town's colorful characters--renovating an old house, sporting a bowtie, beloved on both sides of the color line, and the only person to have attended each of the town's 88 churches at least once. The Last Juror returns Grisham to the courtroom where he made his name, but those who enjoyed the warm sentiment of his recent novels (Bleachers, A Painted House) will still find much to love here. --Benjamin Reese

good book:
This is a great book. I haven't read in years, so I was surprised when I was so into it. At times you feel like you are in Ford County, Mississippi with the characters, thinking you know what's coming next when the story takes a turn. It's a good book by Grisham.

What Last Juror?:
John Grisham is one of my favorite authors; however, I was a little disappointed in this novel. The storyline was basically good, nonetheless, somewhere in the middle of the book; he strays off the subject and wastes a lot of unnecessary time and pages on subjects not really relevant to the main storyline i.e., visiting every church in the county and the history of same. The murder and subsequent trial and the background information of Clanton, Mississippi in the 70's was very good reading and I believe had he stuck with the main plot of jury, trial and revenge, I definitely would have given the novel at least four stars. His friendship with Miss Callie and the Ruffin clan was heartwarming, yet again, he put too much into the problems of Sam and his unfortunate affair, adding nothing to the main plot of the story. There was entirely too much irrelevant verbiage on unrelated subjects. I also felt that after spending quite a bit of time explaining how rough and tough and revengeful the Padgitt family was, the resolution to the antagonist of the story came much too easily. I am not giving up on Mr. Grisham, because I have read many an excellent novel by him; however, "The Last Juror" did not meet the high standard of work that I expect from a Grisham novel.

The Last Juror by John Grisham:
The Last Juror is a delightful story about Mississippi in the 1970s. The characters are well developed and fascinating. Don't miss it.

But....!:
Rarely have so many cliches about the South been found in one single place. The black lady with 7 children all with Ph.D.'s was too much for me! Her sexually adventurous 8th child was more believable.

A good quick read:
I enjoyed this book because it was a great look at a small town in a very trying time. Grisham writes so very well and has a good sense of what it was like in those times not so very long ago. As some of the editorial reviews said, the book tells of a time, it doesn't necessarily fill with actions. One feels like you really got to know the characters. A slightly above average vacation read.