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Loading... The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Townby John Grisham
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. ron willianmson suspected murder of Debra CArter- interesting - should have been a documetnary - stick to the novels John  Brumby18 | Jan 19, 2010 |  True story of the bad side of our justice system where expedience in closing a case is more important than getting the right guy and all the political sides of the system and of people covering their asses come into play. Well written and the book on tape version is well read by Dennis Boutsikaris. (  ) ZachMontana | Dec 27, 2009 | This book was a particularly difficult read for me because of how plainly Grisham treats its subject matter. I'm glad that I pushed through it, though, because Grisham's message about the incredible injustice of the American justice system is worth knowing. Ron Williamson is a protagonist that I could never learn to love, but I eventually learned to appreciate his plight. (  ) jncboyer | Dec 22, 2009 | For those that already have moral qualms with the death penalty, it can be easy to tear through the pages of The Innocent Man feeling moral outrage and indignation knowing that the innocent on death row are there not only because of bad circumstance but because of deliberate action on the part of those eager to close cases at any cost. And then one must take a deep breath. And realize that this is a true story being told by John Grisham. The man that writes legal thrillers for a living. Who picked two men who were convicted wrongly, but in the glare of hindsight's 20/20 vision, it becomes hard to discern certain things. While I would find it very easy to believe that a person would have reason to make up things against Ron Williamson and Dennis Fritz in order to gain a conviction against them - believing that the entire Ada police force, the entire prosecutor's office and the judge and perhaps even the jury were all in on the conspiracy gives pause. It sounds good - the conspiracy, that is - after all, the idea that this is the result of overworked offices, individuals that were merely complacent and wanted to believe the first explanation that they were offered and really bad group think sounds terrible, doesn't it? But then again, those things are common and that's an even more frightening tale...but not Grisham-sexy. But one that would probably make individuals far more afraid of prosecutorial mistakes when it comes to the death penalty. Don't get me wrong, it is a very compelling story. There are parts that have to be read to be believed - the tale of the blind public defender being at the top of the list. Grisham also gives Debra Sue Carter the respect of having the first chapter - after all, it was her murder that started the entire saga. Seeing her tragic last moments becomes key to seeing why a small town would feel so compelled to find her killer at any cost. The book is a good introduction into what can go wrong with a justice system that counts success in terms of conviction. With a system obsessed with the punishment side of things, Grisham has been able to find a case that seems to hit on so many issues and he does a great job of touching on many of them throughout the book. In this vein, it's a read that should make you want to find out more about the issue. ( )1  stephmo | Dec 7, 2009 | Chilling factual story written with Grisham's customary assuredness ( ) chicjohn | Dec 3, 2009 | 
 It’s true in some cosmic sense that the story of every life has value, but not to the writer of nonfiction. Writers of nonfiction narratives learn to pick their subjects with care, because some true stories are much, much more interesting than others. In this case, John Grisham could have conjured up a better story on his own.  When Grisham gets into what happened to Williamson and company during their prison stay, The Innocent Man finds its purpose. In describing the wretched food, poor ventilation, and abusive guards—all factors that led to Oklahoma prisons being condemned by Amnesty International—Grisham makes clear exactly what's at stake when the state sends the wrong man to jail. Grisham is a great storyteller and a fine, no-nonsense writer. He has a well-honed attention to detail. He doesn't degenerate into cliches and he has a natural sense of dramatic structure that ensures the book has a compelling forward momentum. John Grisham here crosses the line from fiction to non-fiction. And it's hard to tell the difference. His prose is still lean and fast-paced and his skilful sketches capture all you need to know about the characters. He explains courtroom procedure and precedent in a simple style that allows a layman to follow the legal labyrinth. Even the plot would fit comfortably between the covers of one of his earlier books, except this story is true. Grisham is a great storyteller but an uninspired writer — he has none of Capote's weird, stark lyricism — but his spare, direct style serves him well here. He expertly dissects each judicial and constitutional outrage with cool precision.
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Q: After almost two decades of writing fiction, what compelled you to write non-fiction, particularly investigative journalism?(retrieved from Amazon Tue, 05 Jan 2010 15:35:56 -0500)
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