I doubt that Harper Lee or Anne Rivers Siddons could have told the
story of A PAINTED HOUSE any sweeter than did John Grisham. Add to
that the reading of the incredibly talented David Lansbury and you
have sheer literary joy. This is not typical Grisham, but a Grisham
that stretches the imagination of readers. Thoughtful, exuberant,
seven-year old Luke Chandler is the narrator, spilling his youthful
impressions of growing up in 1952 Arkansas as a member of a family
of proud dirt farmers. Cotton and the Baptist church rule this hard
working, nuclear family.To
help bring in the crop, Luke's father hires "hill people" and
Mexicans, who mix like oil and water in the exhaustingly hot, humid
early fall in rural Arkansas. With 80 acres to pick, every hand is
needed, and the race is on to bring in the crop for the best price.
The opening lines of A PAINTED HOUSE set the tone: "The hill people
and the Mexicans arrived on the same day. It was a Wednesday, early
in September 1952. The Cardinals were five games behind the Dodgers
with three weeks to go, and the season looked hopeless. The cotton,
however, was waist-high to my father, over my head, and he and my
grandfather could be heard before supper whispering words that were
seldom heard. It could be a 'good crop.'"It
is in this year that Luke learns the lessons of humanity. He learns
to love and hate, to consider questions of right and wrong, and to
hold true to his beloved St. Louis Cardinals. The lives of
sharecroppers and migrant farm workers come alive, as the
characters are so real you can practically reach out and touch
them.

Grisham has a jewel. It is my hope that he continues to produce
thoughtful fiction along this line for decades to come. As always,
enjoy!