what the fuck is going on here nephew. i read this book because i wanted to read a legal thriller!! a drama with lots of jargon!! vicariously live out my dream of being a lawyer thru some white boy!! i should've taken into account this was written by a white man in the early 90s.

there is sooo much misogyny in this book. i did not like kelly at all. she's described as smart, beautiful, but weak :( there are no men in her corner to protect her :( so the duty must fall on Random Dude #3 she just met and recounts her trauma to. while crying. and then flirts with. when she was just crying literally three sentences ago. also! she's 19! why is this guy who just graduated law school pursuing this kid. related to the misogyny, there's a line in this book where rydy describes a secretary (ex-stripper) as surprisingly intelligent and "unbimbolike" i want to strangle him. in fact, they (the lawyers and paralegals) all call the secretaries "the girls". i think we need to bring the guillotine back. i would also like a personal apology from grisham for the fatphobia in this book. it's rampant and disgusting.

i don't understand why i'm meant to think rudy did anything groundbreaking -- or anything period. for the first time in history, i think the movie adaptation actually improved on the source material. it did a far better job at making it feel like it's rudy's hard work that gets that verdict, and makes it very plain he's a rookie who doesn't know wtf he's doing. in the book, he clearly only got the verdict he did thanks to the black lawyers (at the black firm he doesn't even work at!) who held his hand the whole way through. he didn't do anything. i'm glad he didn't get a cent for this bc he didn't deserve it!

I READ THIS PURELY FOR THE PLOT AND ONLY GOT TO THE PLOT IN THE LAST 150 PAGES.

this is not smthn i would recommend to anyone i like. at first, i was willing to be a tad lenient with grisham given this was one of his earliest books, and he's published many, many books since then. but then i sampled one of his newer books and couldn't get thru the first 20 pages. it's actually inspiring that such a prolific writer can make absolutely no improvement over the course of 20 years and still be a bestselling novelist. it gives me hope to see that no matter how bad u are at ur job, u can still hit big ( )

First edition as new

Law student Rudy Baylor is graduating from law school and is ready to start working for a firm. As part of finishing his coursework, he visits a retirement center where students provide law assistance to seniors. He researches a case that becomes important in his working life. When the firm’s employment offer falls through, he finds himself in a situation with little money, no job, and the need to pass the bar exam. This is another of Grisham’s legal-related books, though more of a courtroom drama than a thriller. The villain is an insurance company and the victim a poor family whose son is dying of leukemia. The storyline is engaging. It is filled with colorful characters. It is told in the first-person present tense by Rudy, so the reader is privy to his thoughts and motivations as he searches for a job and pursues his cases. He has a quick wit and sarcastic sense of humor. It explores legal ethics from the perspective of a new lawyer who wants to “do the right thing” while dealing with unscrupulous tactics of others. The story is entertaining and a fast read despite its length. The downsides include a bit of ageism and sexism, and a subplot related to an abused spouse does not work as well as the court case. Recommended to those that enjoy a story that engages the brain and provides an opportunity to root for the underdog. ( )

Quick read the story line flowed very well! ( )

This is not only my favorite book of John Grisham's but also one of favorite books of all time. The story revolves around Rudy Baylor, who is in his final year of law school and has a good future set out for him, when everything goes wrong. He loses his job, gets dumped by his girlfriend, gets robbed, hits bankruptcy. From here on he struggles to earn respect, fights a case against the biggest law firm in town, which could either make or break his career, falls in love with the perfect girl - all to become the rainmaker. ( )