The Reckoning by John Grisham
The Reckoning is set in small Clanton, Mississippi in the 1940s. Pete Banning owns a successful cotton farm. A war hero, he survived the Bataan Death March, life as a Japanese prisoner of war, and a stint as a guerilla in the Philippines along with malaria, dysentery, and several serious injuries.
After recuperating and resuming his old life--and shipping his wife off to a mental hospital--he walks into the parsonage in Clanton one day and shoots the minister dead. And that one decision changes several lives--most notably those of his 2 children--forever.
The book is divided into 3 sections. The first part tells of the shooting, the trial, and the aftermath. The second part tells about Pete's experiences during the war, and the third part focuses on the (now grown) children, who finally learn why their father shot the minister.
It's not my favorite John Grisham book, though I liked it better than The Rooster Bar. Since we know Pete is guilty, the courtroom scenes regarding the murder have no suspense. The courtroom scenes near the end, involving the children, are more engrossing.
Unlike some readers, I found the parts during the war fascinating. And you do feel terrible for Pete's 2 children, whose safe and secure world is totally turned upside down by their father's decision--with consequences that he could never have foreseen. As an aside, I would love to know what happened to the minister's widow after the book ends. She seemed to make some ill-advised decisions that might come back to haunt her later.
After recuperating and resuming his old life--and shipping his wife off to a mental hospital--he walks into the parsonage in Clanton one day and shoots the minister dead. And that one decision changes several lives--most notably those of his 2 children--forever.
The book is divided into 3 sections. The first part tells of the shooting, the trial, and the aftermath. The second part tells about Pete's experiences during the war, and the third part focuses on the (now grown) children, who finally learn why their father shot the minister.
It's not my favorite John Grisham book, though I liked it better than The Rooster Bar. Since we know Pete is guilty, the courtroom scenes regarding the murder have no suspense. The courtroom scenes near the end, involving the children, are more engrossing.
Unlike some readers, I found the parts during the war fascinating. And you do feel terrible for Pete's 2 children, whose safe and secure world is totally turned upside down by their father's decision--with consequences that he could never have foreseen. As an aside, I would love to know what happened to the minister's widow after the book ends. She seemed to make some ill-advised decisions that might come back to haunt her later.
Comments
Post a Comment