Ford County: Stories
by John Grisham
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Book Summary Information
Author: John GrishamEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-11-03
ISBN: 0385532458
Number of pages: 320
Publisher: Doubleday
Book Reviews of Ford County: Stories
Book Review: An Invigorating and Entertaining Collection
Summary: 5 Stars
On [...], I have often commented on the admirable quality of John Grisham, a writer who refuses to be constrained within the writing style that has brought him fame, fortune and annual placement on bestseller lists around the globe. Throughout the past decade, I have had the opportunity to review more than a dozen Grisham novels as well as a work of nonfiction for [...]. When one thinks about Grisham, stories surrounding lawyers come to mind, but he refuses to be pigeon-holed in that single genre. Certainly, he is known for novels that focus on the law, but every now and then, he elects to follow a different writing path. His new subject might be football, Italy, or life in his native Mississippi. You cannot stereotype John Grisham.
FORD COUNTY is a collection of seven stories focusing on characters from the Mississippi community first discovered in Grisham's debut novel, A TIME TO KILL. They cover subjects familiar to his readers: attorneys, the death penalty, and life in the rural South. Grisham has suggested that the stories in this collection represent plots that could not sustain full-length novels. "I've had dozens of ideas for Ford County novels," he observes, "almost all of which peter out for one reason or another. The good stories stick, but they're always long enough to become novels." Regardless of length, the stories that comprise FORD COUNTY are vintage John Grisham: thoughtful, sometimes humorous, often touching, and a joy to read.
Many of the stories reflect Grisham's personal interests, such as capital punishment, which has become one of his passions. In "Fetching Raymond," Inez Graney and two of her sons are travelling to Parchman Prison to visit the youngest family member, the titular Raymond. Convicted of the murder of a Ford County Deputy Sheriff, the youngest brother has been on death row for 11 years. As his appeals are exhausted, this could be the last time they will have the opportunity to see him. The family visit provides readers with Grisham's view of the madness that is capital punishment.
It would not be a representative Grisham collection without something about the law, the subject that brought him acclaim from readers around the globe. Two stories here focus on legal issues. "Fish Files" is an opportunity for Grisham to expose an issue dear to his heart: the battle between legal ethics and money. Mack Stafford is a struggling, small-town attorney who receives an unexpected phone call that could settle some worthless personal injury cases for more money than he can fathom. The opportunity to change his life is more than Stafford can handle.
"Michael's Room" is provoking but disturbing. One evening, on his way home from work, attorney Stanley Wade is abducted by a man who he recognizes but cannot place. Those of us who practice law in smaller communities know well the experience of noticing someone from a courtroom meeting but being unable to remember any other details of the encounter. For Wade, the specifics are violently recalled. The losing family in a civil lawsuit where Wade represented a doctor charged with malpractice decides that they will obtain some revenge from the man who engineered their courtroom defeat. Attorneys, those who have served on a jury, or anyone who has been a party to a lawsuit will find this story insightful.
When Grisham ventures into new territory, he continues to exhibit his talent as a storyteller. "Blood Drive" is the laugh-out-loud adventure of three men from Clanton who travel to Memphis to assist an injured hometown acquaintance by donating blood. You will visualize the actors who will portray the characters in the movie version of the story. "Funny Boy," the final selection in FORD COUNTY, is a story of bigotry and tenderness that speaks volumes in an understated fashion.
John Grisham has written 21 novels and one work of nonfiction. More than 250 million copies of his books have been sold worldwide. One might expect that somewhere in that writing would be a dull, uninteresting book, but I have yet to read it. Grisham's venture into short stories provides readers with an invigorating and entertaining collection that prove once again that a bestselling author can also be an outstanding writer.
--- Reviewed by Stuart Shiffman
Summary of Ford County: Stories
In his first collection of short stories John Grisham takes us back to Ford County, Mississippi, the setting of his first novel, A Time to Kill.Wheelchair-bound Inez Graney and her two older sons, Leon and Butch, take a bizarre road trip through the Mississippi Delta to visit the youngest Graney brother, Raymond, who's been locked away on death row for eleven years. It could well be their last visit.
Mack Stafford, a hard-drinking and low-grossing run-of-the-mill divorce lawyer gets a miracle phone call with a completely unexpected offer to settle some old, forgotten cases for more money than he has ever seen. Mack is suddenly bored with the law, fed up with his wife and his life, and makes drastic plans to finally escape.
Quiet, dull Sidney, a data collector for an insurance company, perfects his blackjack skills in hopes of bringing down the casino empire of Clanton's most ambitious hustler, Bobby Carl Leach, who, among other crimes, has stolen Sidney's wife.
Three good ol' boys from rural Ford County begin a journey to the big city of Memphis to give blood to a grievously injured friend. However, they are unable to drive past a beer store as the trip takes longer and longer. The journey comes to an abrupt end when they make a fateful stop at a Memphis strip club.
The Quiet Haven Retirement Home is the final stop for the elderly of Clanton. It's a sad, languid place with little controversy, until Gilbert arrives. Posing as a lowly paid bedpan boy, he is in reality a brilliant stalker with an uncanny ability to sniff out the assets of those "seniors" he professes to love.
One of the hazards of litigating against people in a small town is that one day, long after the trial, you will probably come face-to-face with someone you've beaten in a lawsuit. Lawyer Stanley Wade bumps into an old adversary, a man with a long memory, and the encounter becomes a violent ordeal.
Clanton is rocked with the rumor that the gay son of a prominent family has finally come home, to die. Of AIDS. Fear permeates the town as gossip runs unabated. But in Lowtown, the colored section of Clanton, the young man finds a soul mate in his final days.
Featuring a cast of characters you'll never forget, these stories bring Ford County to vivid and colorful life. Often hilarious, frequently moving, and always entertaining, this collection makes it abundantly clear why John Grisham is our most popular storyteller.
Amazon Exclusive: Pat Conroy Reviews Ford County
Pat Conroy is most recently the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller South of Broad, as well as eight previous books: The Boo, The Water Is Wide, The Great Santini, The Lords of Discipline, The Prince of Tides, Beach Music, My Losing Season, and The Pat Conroy Cookbook: Recipes of My Life. He lives on Fripp Island, South Carolina. Read his exclusive Amazon guest review of Ford County:
In the mail last week, I received a copy of John Grisham?s latest fiction. It surprised me that the book was comprised of seven short stories. From the time I first began publishing at Doubleday, they have always made sure that I received a copy of a Grisham book long before it went on sale in the bookstores. He has written 22 books, and I?ve read them all as soon as they were available in crisp review copies.
I have loved the Grisham books for the same reason that I love the works of John Irving, Richard Russo, or Anne Rivers Siddons: I get hooked by an early page, and pure habit forces me to read until I am issued my walking papers and can return to my normal life. These writers are all wish-bringers who cast spells with the bright enchantment of their stories, and the power of story has retained its glamour and necessity for me. I?ve always liked it when Grisham took a sabbatical from his impressive fiction to romp in the field of sports or non-fiction.
John surprised me by entering the ring of danger that the short story represents for all writers. In the world of writing, the poets come first as they finger the language like worry beads and wonder where their next meal is coming from. The art of the short story writer is one of economy, concision, and the genius of trying to craft a whole world inside a mason jar. The modern world punishes the short story writer with inattention. The literary reviews keep the short story alive and finger-popping in America today, while the New Yorker tries to strangle the form with its bare hands. But a great short story is a source of joy, and the reading of Chekhov, de Maupassant, Flannery O?Connor and others offer pleasures unmatched by any other form. Since I?m incapable of writing the short story form, I wanted to see how Grisham fared, knowing the critics would sharpen their swords against him no matter how accomplished his stories might be.
Ford County is the best writing that John Grisham has ever done. One of the many things I?ve admired about his books is his intimate chronicle of Mississippi life in the generations following William Faulkner and Eudora Welty. Grisham writes equally well about the plantation south, the black south, and white-cracker south. Over the years he has used the legal system as an instrument to illuminate the world of mansions and sharecroppers and everything in between as he not only defined Mississippi but also staked it out as his home fictional territory. His short stories were a surprise to me. All of them are very good; three of them, I believe, are great. Grisham has always had a rare gift for breaking hearts when he invokes unforgettable images of the broken, hopeless South. Some of the stories are hilarious, and Grisham?s gift of humor has never found a showcase like this. One of these stories should find its way into the anthologies of the best short stories of 2009. It might not happen, but I for one think the stories in Ford County are that damned good.--Pat Conroy
(Photo © David G. Spielman)
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