Distributor/Publisher Synopsis: Based on a real story, “[t]he lawyer had not wanted the case at first -- it was too big, too complicated, too risky. It concerned a cluster of childhood leukemia victims in a small town north of Boston where the city wells had been poisoned by industrial chemicals. Two of the nation's largest corporations, stood accused... In this book, you'll meet the Harvard Law professor who told the lawyer that this case was worth a billion dollars, that it was the sort of lawsuit that would ring the alarm in corporate boardrooms across America. And you'll meet his adversaries, foremost among them a crafty old trial lawyer, chairman of the litigation department at one of the biggest and most feared law firms in Boston. The case turned into an epic struggle that took nine years of the lawyer's life. At the heart of the legal system, he was confronted by powerful and well-connected interests who would do anything to win. In the end, the struggle nearly cost the lawyer his sanity. He sacrificed everything -- home, friends, and reputation -- not for money, but for what he believed to be the truth.”

“A page-turner. Rich and vivid. . . eventful and gripping." --The New York Times

Well written, and extremely well researched. I couldn't put this book down! ( )

Pitch perfect illustration of the law in practice in all its beauty, mundane struggles, and the personal toll. ( )

I read this while camping on an island in Maine, and I could hardly tear myself away to look at the view! One of the most well-done non-fiction books I've read: written like a thriller, but so carefully researched that know you're not reading made-up conversations or imputed thoughts and feelings. Perfect pace; fascinating characters. ( )

3059 A Civil Action, by Jonathan Harr (read 8 Mar 1998) (National Book Critics Circle nonfiction award for 1995) This tells of a suit in Federal Court in Boston against W. R. Grace and Beatrice Foods over events in Woburn, Mass. Jan Schlictman is the plaintiffs' attorney and he is a big-spending flamboyant lawyer (not high on my list of favorite figures) and yet I found myself very much on his side. Of course, the author spent his time with Schlictman, and presents the account with a pro-plaintiff slant. It involves pollution affecting city wells in Woburn. The attorney for the plaintiffs pretty much runs the show, with minimum input from his clients. The book is a fascinating look at the inside of a major trial, and it is all factual. This is one of the best courtroom non-fiction books I have ever read. ( )