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 two weeks to go, and the season looked hopeless. The cotton, however, was waist high to my father, almost 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." Thus begins the new novel from John Grisham, a story inspired by his own childhood in rural Arkansas. The narrator is a farm boy named Luke Chandler, age seven, who lives in the cotton fields with his parents and grandparents in a little house that's never been painted. The Chandlers farm eighty acres that they rent, not own, and when the cotton is ready they hire a truckload of Mexicans and a family from the Ozarks to help harvest it. For six weeks, they pick cotton, battling the heat, the rain, the fatigue, and sometimes, each other. As the weeks pass Luke sees and hears things no seven year old could possibly be prepared for, and finds himself keeping secrets that not only threaten the crop but will change the lives of the Chandlers forever. "A Painted House" is a moving story of one boy's journey from innocence to experience.
A Painted House
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This is the paperback edition of A Painted House which is publishing in December 2001. The hardback edition, which published in February 2001, is currently available.
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Worlds away from his usual legal dramas, this departure for John Grisham has produced a wonderfully evocative novel. Set in the late summer of 1952 in the cotton-growing regions of Arkansas, the story is told through the eyes of eight-year-old Luke Chandler. Born and raised on his grandfather's cotton farm, like his father before him, he dreams of a world beyond the cotton fields, only existing in his imagination from what he has heard on the radio. But first and foremost is the cotton picking to be done before the rains come.. Outside help in the form of Mexican labourers and hill people is recruited bringing with it antagonism and racism which will eventually culminate in murder. Within 20 pages you are hooked, watching and feeling this tough life through young Luke's eyes. Set against the strict Baptist upbringing of these poor farmers, Grisham gives an intense picture of a hard, insular life where everything revolves around the cotton crop. All the characters are memorable from Pappy who spends his life worrying about the weather to Hank, the Spruill's violent unstable son, to Cowboy the shifty Mexican. And he does not forget the women of this tough world who live in the background quietly ruling the roost and supporting their men without question. A memorable book marking a dramatic change of direction for Grisham - one which this reviewer for one hopes he continues. - Lucy Watson
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
27 of 28 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Having read quite a few of John Grisham's books in the past I was beginning to find the whole lawyer thing quite tired and boring. When I purchased "A Painted House" I thought I'd give him one more go and then give him up for a lost cause. However I was pleasantly surprised to find that I could not find a lawyer anywhere in in sight! The book is written with tenderness and insight into the hardships of the lives of cotton farmers many years ago. Although it would not fall into the category of your usual "gripping" novel, I just couldn't put this book down and finished it in a weekend. I would imagine that if someone still enjoyed John Grisham's usual style they would be bitterly dissapointed with this book but if you feel the need for something different and more mellow, this book is definitely for you.
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
If you are looking for a legal battle with judges' witnesses and juries forget it.
A clear departures from John Grisham's Court Room /Lawyer Thrillers, A Painted House is a gem of a read. And in my opinion undeniably one of his best! But then I think that of all Grisham Books.
The hero, Luke Chandler is only seven years old, but can he tell a story. . Snippets of his life during the cotton-picking season in the early fifties in Arkansas are not soon forgotten. Luke introduces us to the field hands who arrive to help pick the cotton that is waist high. 'The Mexicans' and 'The Hill Folk', bring a lot of tension, (not to mention a murder) to this hard working family of Farmers.
The fact that the Chandlers' are avid Cardinal Baseball fans just adds enjoyment to this delightful nostalgic story of a bygone era.
A Painted House is simply one of the most dead on target depictions of Southern rural life in the fifties, poignant sensitive and thought provoking. It brought back fond memories of a simpler life style. One we would have a hard time returning after a taste of the highly sophisticated electronic equipment we now have now found necessary. If you want to escape and enjoy a good read, take my advice and read this with the thought in mind that this is how life used to be for many Americans. Not bad, not bad at all.
A clear departures from John Grisham's Court Room /Lawyer Thrillers, A Painted House is a gem of a read. And in my opinion undeniably one of his best! But then I think that of all Grisham Books.
The hero, Luke Chandler is only seven years old, but can he tell a story. . Snippets of his life during the cotton-picking season in the early fifties in Arkansas are not soon forgotten. Luke introduces us to the field hands who arrive to help pick the cotton that is waist high. 'The Mexicans' and 'The Hill Folk', bring a lot of tension, (not to mention a murder) to this hard working family of Farmers.
The fact that the Chandlers' are avid Cardinal Baseball fans just adds enjoyment to this delightful nostalgic story of a bygone era.
A Painted House is simply one of the most dead on target depictions of Southern rural life in the fifties, poignant sensitive and thought provoking. It brought back fond memories of a simpler life style. One we would have a hard time returning after a taste of the highly sophisticated electronic equipment we now have now found necessary. If you want to escape and enjoy a good read, take my advice and read this with the thought in mind that this is how life used to be for many Americans. Not bad, not bad at all.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This book marks something of a departure for John Grisham. All of his previous books have dealt in some way with the law. "A Painted House", does not, but tells the tale of a 7 year old boy growing up in rural Arkansas in the early 1950's. It is, as the blurb in the front cover explains, in many ways autobiographical, reflecting Grisham's own childhood.
At first I was unsure if I was going to enjoy this book, I feared that a story about a young boy growing up on a farm during the cotton-picking season might bore me. I needn't have worried. Although this story differs from the author's previous novels, and the pace is slower, it is none the less an amazing read. With a murderous fight, a 17 year old girl running away with a knife wielding Mexican and an illegitimate child chucked in for good measure, this book is far from boring. Add in the claustrophobic atmosphere of a small town, where every body knows every body else's business and the interminable tension of a family under strain to harvest their crop before the weather breaks; and what you get is a real page turner.
What is most interesting about this book though, is that it tells the tale of a boy growing up. Whilst not exactly chronicling his journey from boyhood to manhood, it shows us how he becomes more self-aware. Aware of the world outside, his small town, of the change in technology as the TV and phone become more commonplace and begin to intrude even into little towns like Black Oak. In this way, it seems to me, that the book is also a microcosm, reflecting how American and indeed the Western world changed as the consumer society took over from the bleak war years and the fading ripples of the Great Depression.
This book is seriously good. If you liked John Grisham's books before or even if you've never read one, read this, you will not be disappointed.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars
Tedious and extremely slow moving
This was an extremely tedious, slow moving and borming book to read unforutnaley. I survived until page 70, and gave up rather than wasting any more of my time. Read more
Published 1 month ago by TIMBO
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not a gripping read.
This was certainly a charming story but I kept wondering when we were going to get to the point. I am afraid that I was disappointed and thought this was not Grisham's usually... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Siamber Wen
4.0 out of 5 stars
A very enjoyable read
This is my first John Grisham book and I really enjoyed it. I found the writing style easy to read and the story interesting. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Lulu
5.0 out of 5 stars
A cotton picking good read
I neither know nor care to what extent this is autobiographical - it is simply a very good read. It brings together Hillbilly and Mexican families as hired help on the farm of a... Read more
Published 9 months ago by RoverP
1.0 out of 5 stars
Very slow and tedious
I found this book very slow and quite tedious. The story is told through the eyes of a child Luke ( which I didn't mind) and is about what happens over a few months when his... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Misty
2.0 out of 5 stars
Get a trial on a kindle first...
Sometimes the blurb gives too much away, so occasionally I'll read a novel on the basis of an author's good reputation...suffice it to say, I wish I'd read the blurb this time. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Callyfox
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great read
Bought this book on recommendation and thoroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end...The first John Grisham book I have read and now very keen to read more of his work. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Juken
5.0 out of 5 stars
Poignant, interesting and amusing. A very good read.
I picked up this book at a second-hand book sale realising that it was different from Mr Grisham's usual crime and courtroom novels, but intrigued by the change of subject. Read more
Published 16 months ago by S. E. Walsh
5.0 out of 5 stars
Is Grisham schizophenic - beautiful piece of literature - and...
You may like Grisham for his lawyer yarns. I do. They're great. Ripping, thrilling but unmemorable. I buy them all but I normally give them away when I've finished them. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Marc Gander
5.0 out of 5 stars
A welcome change of direction
I live in Spain and sometimes books in English can be hard to come by, I picked this book as the best of a bad bunch in a free book exchange run by a local estate agent. Read more
Published 18 months ago by Teruel
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