How a cruel act of child abuse can affect everyone living in a small town in mississipi.



A black child gets raped and beaten by two white rednecks.Her father,overcome by anger and hate for them,takes personal retribution against them while they are preparing for trial.



All of a sudden things get thrown into an uproar as the town is trying to absorb what is going on.The father is arrested and is placed on trial for murder.



The story then takes on many twists and turns as you struggle to keep up with the fast paced action.

The humor and irony that is subtly present in the interaction of the complex characters.When you feel that the stroy is becoming a bit too depressing,something happens or someone says something that just makes you want to burst into laughter.



My favorite quote is: "..that's my personal bodyguard..he couldn't hit the side of a barn with a shotgun.."

Since this was my first experience in reading such novels..I found it a bit distrubing in how a child could be so violated.



When I reached the parts of the book that dealt with racism and narrow mindness, I couldn't believe that any human being could act like that.



For a 12 year old, the book did have some pretty squemish parts such as the rape itself,the attempted hanging,the shooting of the rapists by the father..



This is not a book to be read lightly.For those who are sensitive I recomend that you steer clear since you might wind up with nightmares.

Cry for the tragedies of life and laugh and shout in triumph when the end came and the father was given a verdict with the sweetest words known to man "Not Guilty".

Breathless and giddy with excitment.



Since I had never been exposed to such writing it was a thrilling ride and till this day I constantly reread it to feel the rush all over again.

is a genious with words and suspence.He paces the story just right so that yuo don't feel as though its too fast or too slow.



Another thing that strikes me about him is that he manages to bring up a topic that sends shivers down anyone's spine.Child rape and abuse is a hard subject to bring up and discuss but he seems to make it effortless while at the same time still make it gritty and realistic.

Everything just blends so well.Its a gripping read from the first line to the end.



You seriously begin to to believe that you are a part of the community and whatever happens to anyone of the characters affects you personally.

There is quite alot of violence and racism in it.Those who are unsure on their position about them should be aware.



This is obviously not for those of the weak of heart.



Some of the references in the book may be a tad out of bounds for some more conservative people.

For a 12 year old just starting out in the world of novels,this was a great first experience.



It made me totally hooked on reading more and more and more..



I found myself being a regular at the bookstore.Starting out by reading all of Grisham's novels and progressing to many other authors and genres.

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Created Jul 19, 2003 at 4:52am • Submit your own review...