by John Grisham
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Product Description
In the town of Ada, Oklahoma, Ron Williamson was going to be the next Mickey Mantle. But on his way to the Big Leagues, Ron stumbled, his dreams broken by drinking, drugs, and women. Then, on a winter night in 1982, not far from Ron’s home, a young cocktail waitress named Debra Sue Carter was savagely murdered. The investigation led nowhere. Until, on the flimsiest evidence, it led to Ron Williamson. The washed-up small-town hero was charged, tried, and sentenced to death—in a trial littered with lying witnesses and tainted evidence that would shatter a man’s already broken life…and let a true killer go free. Impeccably researched, grippingly told, filled with eleventh-hour drama, John Grisham’s first work of nonfiction reads like a page-turning legal thriller. It is a book that will terrify anyone who believes in the presumption of innocence—a book no American can afford to miss.
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Average Customer Review:
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
 Too long and drawn out, 2008-08-28
I really like John Grisham's other books, and I expected ths nonfiction book to be different but was disappointed. It appears that Grisham is trying to do a book similar to In Cold Blood, but the topic here is just not as interesting. It is quite long and actually boring until the last fifth or so of the book, but it takes perseverence to get to that point. I think a shorter format would have helped.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
 Well researched documentation - remarkably written!, 2008-08-28
This real-life story is very emotional, rousing and compelling and in my opinion also very exciting. Even if you know the outcome already and the writing style isn't out for suspense. The nonfictional narration is constructed as a history of a criminal case and less intended as a thriller. In the English edition in midsection there are photographs of some participants which help a lot to put oneself in there place and empathize with them. It is a book that gives a deep insight in the touching life of a wrongly convicted person, who is hit hard by destiny several times - the burst dream of a baseball career, alcoholism, drugs, women, schizophrenia and eventually the condemnation for death penalty. It is a distressing factual report of a human tragedy, put together from many conclusive pieces of a puzzle. To my mind no page is too long and no excessive information is given. Anyway I can recommend this book warmly to every empathic, humanely and politically interested reader.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
Too much information, 2008-08-23
I enjoyed the first half of the book. I found it interesting that it was a true story unlike the rest of his books. I also used to be a counselor so I thought the mental illness aspect was interesting. His writing style (similar to a reporter) was also different but I enjoyed the change. What I didn't like was there was way too many details and information. I ended up skimming through the last half of the book.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
Innocent Man A Must Read, 2008-08-23
This was yet another great Grisham novel. I love the non-fiction writing and could not stop turning pages. The Innocent Man reads like a legal thriller you would expect from Grisham, but the reality of it makes it all the more interesting to read. Definately recommend this book.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
Book Review: The Innocent Man by John Grisham, 2008-08-19
The Innocent Man 428pgs. (Author's Note: 429-435)
by John Grisham
Review by SpeekNDaTruuf
Before 1982, very few had heard of Ada, Oklahoma. It was a small familial town; there were no strangers because everyone knew everyone else. On December 8, 1982, however, that all changed. Debra Sue Carter, a bartender at the local nightclub, The Coachlight, was raped and brutally murdered in her apartment. Scrawled on the wall in red fingernail polish were the words: Jim Smith next will die. On a small table in the kitchen were the words, written in ketchup: Don't look fore us or ealse. On Debra's back, smeared in dried ketchup: Duke Gram. Inside Debra's mouth was a green washcloth. Two men, Ron Williamson and Dennis Fritz, would sit in prison for 11 years, wrongly convicted of murdering Debra Sue Carter in 1988, until exoneration on April 15, 1999. This is the story of The Innocent Man, brilliantly authored by John Grisham.
As with most Grisham novels (i.e. The Client, A Painted House, The Pelican Brief, etc.), I originally thought this was a fictictious account of two men wrongly accused and convicted of murder. I grabbed a bottle of water and my fresh pack of Newports, and sat down to enjoy a fictictious novel. Yet, within the first few pages, something was bothering me. I know good authors when I read one, and I know that Grisham is an astounding author. The praise he receives is a testament to that very fact.
Yet, The Innocent Man seemed... too good. It was a bit too real for me, and oddly enough, I noticed a difference in writing. It seemed as if someone was narrating a story as opposed to a first person account that I'd noticed before from Grisham. The writing was... stilted, but not in the sense that it was a hard read. It was just different. It reminded me of those docu-dramas on A&E. I could easily hear Bill Kurtis from American Justice speaking these words. I thought to my Self, Wow, this man's imagination is amazing! So, I kept reading, amazed at Grisham's talent to concoct such a story. But, it kept nagging me and nagging me, and eventually, I decided to do some research on my own.
I found out that The Innocent Man was, in fact, based on a true story! Two real, living and breathing men were wrongly convicted for a murder that they did NOT commit! Suffice it to say, I finished this book in approximately 3 days. It was that good! Sad, but very well-written. Now, I could tell you all about Mr. Williamson and his mental issues, and I could tell you about the separation between Mr. Fritz and his daughter, Elizabeth, but I'm sure I wouldn't do this any justice. I would strongly suggest you read this book for your Selves.
Out of all of the novels that I've read by John Grisham, The Innocent Man, by far, is my favorite. Though it is a long and sad account of a failed justice system, and though I was often frustrated because of that, it's still a great read. FIVE STARS.
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