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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
hey john! grisham… the writer…did you read the firm, i couldn’t put it down
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Very dumb and not worth the amount of time I spent on it, close to pulp fiction…nonetheless I was entertained for most of the book. It gets points for that alone. Otherwise it was not good stuff: it led me to basically no introspection, I walk away no richer in thought or experience than I was at the start. But it was fine for a time-killer. 2.5 stars I guess.
Definitivamente leerlo por 2da vez me hizo disfrutar aún más esta historia de abogados y mafias.
No les puedo decir mucho porque haría spoilers y hay gente que los odia (yo los odio un poquito), entonces lo único que les puedo decir esque no van a querer dejar de leer para saber cómo, cuándo y dónde será que se resuelva este asunto.
Disfruten!
No les puedo decir mucho porque haría spoilers y hay gente que los odia (yo los odio un poquito), entonces lo único que les puedo decir esque no van a querer dejar de leer para saber cómo, cuándo y dónde será que se resuelva este asunto.
Disfruten!
I haven't read a John Grisham book in over ten years so I might not give them as a high a rating now, but at the time they really entertained me. I know this says I read the paperback but mostly I used to listen to them on tape on my long commute to/from Santa Monica. The firm was my first and one of my favorites.
I recently realized 1) I've never read any of John Grisham's novels and 2) that's a shame. So I picked this up at the library a couple trips ago, when I found myself browsing in the G's. Why The Firm rather than The Client or The Associate? My grandfather, a former lawyer, happened to mention it in a conversation a couple months ago, so the title was on my mind.
My main impression is that this is the kind of pulp that no one will read 100 years from now (thank goodness). It reminded me very strongly of some bad late Victorian short stories I read for a class in fin de siecle fiction. My, how far we've come since the early '90s (the 1990s, just to be clear, not the 1890s). I mean, really, if you're ever in doubt, just pick up this book. It's definitely a product of its time. Sexism, classism, ageism, consumerism--it's all here, unvarnished and unexamined. I don't think John Grisham is or was especially unenlightened...I think he just faithfully represented the cultural norms and popular attitudes.
(This might be a tangent, but if I really wanted to understand what life was like in a previous era, I would look first at its advertising and its advice columns. I would look at what was ephemeral, not intended to survive. Not just at that, but I certainly wouldn't neglect it. I think there's treasure to be gleaned from scrutinizing what was created purely for the present and not for the eyes of history.)
Aside from what now seems crass and/or naive (the sexism especially so, for me), this is a pretty good story. Gripping. At times seemingly very realistic. At others, less believable. (For example, I find it hard, very hard to believe that Abby would say what she does on the last page, given the limitations she and Mitch must find a way to live within. I'm told the movie ending is more realistic. I haven't seen it yet.) I can understand why this book might have put a whole year's worth of law school graduates off their interviewing. I'm sure someone out there decided at the last second to switch their focus to fashion design or sales.
My favorite bits by far were the scenes that show Mitch's interaction with his secretary. As far as I'm concerned, there weren't enough of them. Maybe because his secretary seems like the kind of woman who would resent being underestimated or labeled.
My main impression is that this is the kind of pulp that no one will read 100 years from now (thank goodness). It reminded me very strongly of some bad late Victorian short stories I read for a class in fin de siecle fiction. My, how far we've come since the early '90s (the 1990s, just to be clear, not the 1890s). I mean, really, if you're ever in doubt, just pick up this book. It's definitely a product of its time. Sexism, classism, ageism, consumerism--it's all here, unvarnished and unexamined. I don't think John Grisham is or was especially unenlightened...I think he just faithfully represented the cultural norms and popular attitudes.
(This might be a tangent, but if I really wanted to understand what life was like in a previous era, I would look first at its advertising and its advice columns. I would look at what was ephemeral, not intended to survive. Not just at that, but I certainly wouldn't neglect it. I think there's treasure to be gleaned from scrutinizing what was created purely for the present and not for the eyes of history.)
Aside from what now seems crass and/or naive (the sexism especially so, for me), this is a pretty good story. Gripping. At times seemingly very realistic. At others, less believable. (For example, I find it hard, very hard to believe that Abby would say what she does on the last page, given the limitations she and Mitch must find a way to live within. I'm told the movie ending is more realistic. I haven't seen it yet.) I can understand why this book might have put a whole year's worth of law school graduates off their interviewing. I'm sure someone out there decided at the last second to switch their focus to fashion design or sales.
My favorite bits by far were the scenes that show Mitch's interaction with his secretary. As far as I'm concerned, there weren't enough of them. Maybe because his secretary seems like the kind of woman who would resent being underestimated or labeled.
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This has really was a great legal thriller. About 85% in though I felt like it got a bit bloated with dialogue and could’ve tightened up a bit; it felt like we were circling in the same conversations but with slightly different circumstances. I’ll be reading a whole lotta John Grisham in the future though! Great narrator too (Scott Brick). Watching this movie soon!