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The Appeal | 
 enlarge | Author: John Grisham
Publisher: Dell
Category: Book
Buy New: $7.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  442 reviews
Sales Rank: 64926
Media: Mass Market Paperback
Edition: Reprint
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 496
ISBN: 0440243815
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9780440243816
ASIN: 0440243815
Publication Date: November 18, 2008 (In 39 Days)
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Not yet published
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Amazon.com Review
As the author of twenty bestselling books, John Grisham has set the standard for legal thrillers since the debut of The Firm in 1991. Enjoy this Q&A--as well as a personal note to Amazon readers--from John Grisham. 1. Your new novel starts off where most courtroom dramas end--with the verdict. Where did you get the idea to reverse the usual order of events this time around?
The actual trial is not a terribly significant part of the story. Most all of the action and intrigue begins after the trial is over, with the verdict and the subsequent appeal.
2. The Appeal overtly suggests that elected judges can be bought. If the novel is meant as a cautionary tale, what's next--the Presidential primaries?
Why not? Over one billion dollars will be spent next year in the Presidential primaries and general election. With that kind of money floating around, anything can be bought.
3. Speaking of electoral politics, you've been more vocal recently about your political views ... first supporting Jim Webb for Senate and now endorsing Hillary Clinton for the White House. Have you given any thought to running for office yourself?
No. I made that mistake 25 years ago, and promised myself I would never do it again. I enjoy watching and participating in politics from the sidelines, but it's best to keep some distance.
4. This is your first legal thriller in three years. How did it feel to get back to the genre that started it all, and can fans expect another thriller from you next year?
I still enjoy writing the legal thrillers, and don't plan to get too far away from them. Obviously, they have been very good to me, and they remain popular. I plan to write one a year for the next several years.
5. Your nonfiction book The Innocent Man continues to be a bestseller in paperback. In your ongoing work with The Innocence Project, have you come across another story of the wrongfully convicted that begs to be written as nonfiction?
There are literally hundreds of great stories out there about wrongfully convicted defendants. I am continually astounded by these stories, and I resist the temptation to take the plunge again into non-fiction.
6. What's on your bedside reading list at the moment?
1. The Nine by Jeffrey Toobin
2. Eric Clapton's autobiography
3. East of Eden by John Steinbeck.
Product Description
In a crowded courtroom in Mississippi, a jury returns a shocking verdict against a chemical company accused of dumping toxic waste into a small town’s water supply, causing the worst “cancer cluster” in history. The company appeals to the Mississippi Supreme Court, whose nine justices will one day either approve the verdict or reverse it.
Who are the nine? How will they vote? Can one be replaced before the case is ultimately decided?
The chemical company is owned by a Wall Street predator named Carl Trudeau, and Mr. Trudeau is convinced the Court is not friendly enough. With judicial elections looming, he decides to try to purchase himself a seat on the Court. The cost is a few million dollars, a drop in the bucket for a billionaire like Mr. Trudeau. Through an intricate web of conspiracy and deceit, his political operatives recruit a young, unsuspecting candidate. They finance him, manipulate him, market him, and mold him into a potential Supreme Court justice. Their Supreme Court justice.
The Appeal is a powerful, timely, and shocking story of political and legal intrigue, a story that will leave listeners unable to think about our electoral process or judicial system in quite the same way ever again.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 437 more reviews...
 The Appeal by John Grisham October 10, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is the best book John Grisham has written. Everyone should read it now. Certainly before 11/4. It's not only a page turner but also a thought provoker.
 Good story, poor delivery October 9, 2008
The story has a good premise. But there is no carry through. There are card-board bad guys, plenty of victims, but no protagonist. Just bad guys and victims.
Palin? October 3, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The rise of this judge reminds me an AWFUL lot of Palin's recent entry to the political scene. Out of nowhere, with a wholesome background and almost no political experience, she gets propped up by the good ol' senator and a smarmy political team...hmmm...did McCain read this?
 Modern Day David and Goliath story September 30, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Jeannette Baker is a meek woman living in a small town Mississippi trailer park smack in the heart of a place called "Cancer County." Within eight months, she had watched her husband, and then her only child, die of cancer caused by drinking water contaminated by Krane Chemical's illegal dumping of toxins. Jeannette uses up all her remaining courage and strength to sue Krane Chemical, the prototypical multinational conglomeration run by a filthy-rich-yet-still-insatiable Carl Trudeau. And when an appeal is filed, the case goes all the way to the state Supreme Court. Like Krane Chemical itself, John Grisham uses Jeannette Baker as a mere pawn to tell the story of how absolutely anything, even a seat on the state Supreme Court, is for sale in America.
Grisham's twentieth novel presents yet another modern day David and Goliath story. The common person against the corporation. Poor vs. rich. Main Street vs. Wall Street. Good vs. greed. This moral tug-o-war is common territory for the author of The Firm, The Pelican Brief, and The Rainmaker, to name but a few of his fast-paced thrillers of this ilk. Certainly if you are among the many fans of Grisham's favored themes, you will get your fill with The Appeal. It's all there: juicy courtroom scenes, good-hearted small town lawyers, cold-blooded big city lawyers, bureaucratic corruption, Supreme Court justices, a rigged election. Although not nearly as fast-paced and gripping as some of his best work, The Appeal remains a satisfying read.
What saves this book from being just more of the same from Grisham is its timeliness. Within the context of today's age of hyper-bureaucracy, when the average shopper must make a real effort to buy something that isn't produced by a mega-corporation, The Appeal feels eerily perceptive. It asks (and answers) the question, "Can a major election be bought?" In this book, Grisham illustrates a campaign's effective use of "truthiness," a concept that means appealing to a voter's gut feeling as opposed to actual fact. In doing so Grisham comments on an American superficial inclination to elect the candidate they would rather have a beer with. Grisham utilizes common ploys in today's political playbooks in order to illustrate how easy it is to convince the majority of voters to support the less capable candidate. In doing so, the author prompts readers to wonder in fear if powerful people are as devious, callous and cunning as Krane Chemical's CEO Carl Trudeau.
What do you think? Can a major election be bought? You won't get John Grisham's answer until the very end of The Appeal.
Quill says: Read it before you vote!
3/4 is trite filler - Wouldn't sell if it weren't Grisham September 30, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
What happened to Grisham? This seems like something churned out by a kid in a week. Nothing happens that's unexpected (except maybe the bad ending). After the start, at least 3/4 of the book could be summarized in a page and you would lose nothing.
You could dream up the plot line yourself in less than 10 minutes. Real life is more interesting than this. So my advice: don't read this book--you'll get more enjoyment out of just about any other activity.
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