Patricia Brennan Demuth

A lot of people would be surprised to know that, as a teenager, Ruth Bader Ginsburg twirled a baton at school football games. The reviewer for "Kirkus" said of this book, ". . .[T]he message that defined Ginsburg's [legal] career that a girl is, 'just as important as a boy,' shines clear. Ginsburg goes on to become only the second woman to serve on the Supreme Court. Jake Murray's many pen and ink illustrations throughout add to the enjoyment of this work. This book includes a timeline of Ginsburg's life and one of the world.… (more)

In a departure from novels, Grisham writes a non-fiction story of two men who allegedly were wrongfully accused of a rape and murder. The book is written with an obvious slant to imply that Gore was the actual rapist and murderer, while Ron and Dennis were wrongfully accused by an overzealous prosecutor who disliked them from their past run-ins with the law. Ron had a checkered past, consisting of DWIs, and other crimes as did Dennis, so naturally they were on the prosecutor’s list of suspects. Ron was sitting on death row, days from execution when he won a stay and ultimately was freed based on DNA evidence. Dennis was sentenced to life without parole and was also freed with the DNA evidence.

It is an engaging tale, maintaining my interest to the end. It is obvious Grisham did his homework and the book is well researched. My two complaints about the book are as follows. One, there are too many characters to keep up with without maintaining a list. Many are bit players that never show up again. They could have been included without names as they were not relevant to the overall story. Two, the story is terribly slanted to paint Gore and the prosecutor in a bad light. And Ron and Dennis both are made out to be saints, again despite their criminal history. The story would have been improved if Grisham had told the story without his more than obvious bias.… (more)