REVIEW-ISH: THE BRETHREN BY JOHN GRISHAM
I guess it’s no news that I’m a bibliophile and I’ve given my somewhat fair share of book reviews on this blog well, I’m here with another. Drum roll please.
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Ever since I read THE SUMMONS by JOHN GRISHAM, I don’t think I’d pass up a chance to read any other book of his. Overlooking the fact that a majority of his books deal with lawyers and law-related ideas, I’m a fan of his works even though I personally have nothing to do with law. He’s a great storyteller from my POV. This post isn’t about John Grisham per se but one of his books that I read recently.
So, I’m the kind of person that prefers hardcopy over softcopy anytime any day—call me archaic, I don’t mind. When I had the chance to request for books and Grisham was available, I just couldn’t resist though it was an e-book. It was a good thing though I’m still a hardcopy person. Away from the softcopy experience, let me dive straight into the review.
THE BRETHREN copyrighted 2000 was a real interesting read for me. It centres majorly around 3 judges (Joe Roy Spicer, Beech Hatlee and Finn Yarber) doing time at a minimum prison namely THE TRUMBLE for different crimes and a politician (congressman Lake of Arizona) vying impromptu for Presidency of the US. The judges held court sessions in the prison to settle matters between co-inmates. They later started running the “Angola scam”—that Spicer had heard of back when he was in Mississippi—with the aid of their Lawyer, Trevor who served as their mail man and handled the proceeds from the scam taking a third whilst the 3 judges shared the remaining fraction.
Lake was a congressman as aforementioned that never really gave presidency a thought but Teddy Maynard of the CIA felt otherwise. Teddy was able to convince Aaron Lake to run for presidency after hinting him on how there wasn’t enough funds for military expenses and a terror group in Russia was likely to strike soon. Teddy mobilized the funds for Lake’s election expenses, pulling the strings he could and convincing people he could too using increased funding for the military as bait. One way or the other, Lake was roped in the Angola Scam and it was up to Teddy and his guys to ensure there was nothing to dent the image of their soon-to-be President Lake. Did I mention that Teddy was in the confines of a wheelchair and Lake was a widower, father of 1. I think I’ve said too much already *covers mouth*.
What did I like about the book? I loved Grisham’s approach to the plot: starting from a set of characters and dragging other characters in as the plot progressed. I also like the fact that the relationship between the Judges and Lake wasn’t made known to readers from the start even though readers would have felt there was a connection. I commend his use of sarcasm in the book as well like when Teddy was meeting with the President and Grisham wrote “...the only advantage to being crippled was that he didn’t have to jump to his feet when the President entered the room.” The fact that the story wasn’t held together by just the main acts but other supporting characters like Buster, Wes and Chap, York, the scam victims et al also added color to the story IMO.
His narratives were equally priceless at some points like when Quince, one of the scam victims was reading one of the letters. Grisham wrote: “The words hit like bullets. After the second paragraph, he emitted a strange, painful “Awwww.” Then a couple of “Oh my gods.” Then a low, hissing “Sonofabitch.””, his summary of Teddy’s past experience in the CIA also got me. The portrayal of the CIA was equally good to me. I could go on and on, come on! It’s Grisham.
Regardless of the fact that it was Grisham, I still have my reservations about the book. I would have loved for there to have been more descriptions. You know, the kind that would make you imagine which actor would fit a certain role if the book was turned into a movie. I would really have liked to know how Wes and Chap looked in Grisham’s eyes (somewhere in my mind, I feel he visualized them as Blacks) . It was a real good read and definitely gripping leaving you turning—scrolling in this case—the pages endlessly.
PS: Would you like a copy of The Brethren (epub version)? If yes, drop your mail in the comments section. I’m feeling magnanimous today *grins*.
***
Ever since I read THE SUMMONS by JOHN GRISHAM, I don’t think I’d pass up a chance to read any other book of his. Overlooking the fact that a majority of his books deal with lawyers and law-related ideas, I’m a fan of his works even though I personally have nothing to do with law. He’s a great storyteller from my POV. This post isn’t about John Grisham per se but one of his books that I read recently.
So, I’m the kind of person that prefers hardcopy over softcopy anytime any day—call me archaic, I don’t mind. When I had the chance to request for books and Grisham was available, I just couldn’t resist though it was an e-book. It was a good thing though I’m still a hardcopy person. Away from the softcopy experience, let me dive straight into the review.
THE BRETHREN copyrighted 2000 was a real interesting read for me. It centres majorly around 3 judges (Joe Roy Spicer, Beech Hatlee and Finn Yarber) doing time at a minimum prison namely THE TRUMBLE for different crimes and a politician (congressman Lake of Arizona) vying impromptu for Presidency of the US. The judges held court sessions in the prison to settle matters between co-inmates. They later started running the “Angola scam”—that Spicer had heard of back when he was in Mississippi—with the aid of their Lawyer, Trevor who served as their mail man and handled the proceeds from the scam taking a third whilst the 3 judges shared the remaining fraction.
Lake was a congressman as aforementioned that never really gave presidency a thought but Teddy Maynard of the CIA felt otherwise. Teddy was able to convince Aaron Lake to run for presidency after hinting him on how there wasn’t enough funds for military expenses and a terror group in Russia was likely to strike soon. Teddy mobilized the funds for Lake’s election expenses, pulling the strings he could and convincing people he could too using increased funding for the military as bait. One way or the other, Lake was roped in the Angola Scam and it was up to Teddy and his guys to ensure there was nothing to dent the image of their soon-to-be President Lake. Did I mention that Teddy was in the confines of a wheelchair and Lake was a widower, father of 1. I think I’ve said too much already *covers mouth*.
What did I like about the book? I loved Grisham’s approach to the plot: starting from a set of characters and dragging other characters in as the plot progressed. I also like the fact that the relationship between the Judges and Lake wasn’t made known to readers from the start even though readers would have felt there was a connection. I commend his use of sarcasm in the book as well like when Teddy was meeting with the President and Grisham wrote “...the only advantage to being crippled was that he didn’t have to jump to his feet when the President entered the room.” The fact that the story wasn’t held together by just the main acts but other supporting characters like Buster, Wes and Chap, York, the scam victims et al also added color to the story IMO.
His narratives were equally priceless at some points like when Quince, one of the scam victims was reading one of the letters. Grisham wrote: “The words hit like bullets. After the second paragraph, he emitted a strange, painful “Awwww.” Then a couple of “Oh my gods.” Then a low, hissing “Sonofabitch.””, his summary of Teddy’s past experience in the CIA also got me. The portrayal of the CIA was equally good to me. I could go on and on, come on! It’s Grisham.
Regardless of the fact that it was Grisham, I still have my reservations about the book. I would have loved for there to have been more descriptions. You know, the kind that would make you imagine which actor would fit a certain role if the book was turned into a movie. I would really have liked to know how Wes and Chap looked in Grisham’s eyes (somewhere in my mind, I feel he visualized them as Blacks) . It was a real good read and definitely gripping leaving you turning—scrolling in this case—the pages endlessly.
PS: Would you like a copy of The Brethren (epub version)? If yes, drop your mail in the comments section. I’m feeling magnanimous today *grins*.
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