One of my favourite authors is John Grisham. His books are one of the reasons that I decided to study Law for my degree. Even though his portrayal of the law and the job that comes with it is slightly exaggerated and intense, I believe there is truth behind his novels. He is an American lawyer specialising in Criminal law. This is evident within his novels as he is best known for his legal thrillers. I have read the majority of his books and out of all of them, The Street Lawyer has by far been my favourite read. The Street Lawyer is a story of a wealthy, successful lawyer in Washington DC, Michael Brock. One day at work within his law firm, Drake and Sweeney, they are challenged by a homeless old man who walks into the office armed. The old man is shot by the police and Michael, in shock by this, investigates and soon realises that his law firm had made the old man homeless. With his marriage breaking up in his personal life and the trouble surrounding him in his professional career, he decides he can no longer work for the law firm. He meets Mordecai Green, who runs a law firm which helps the homeless, and decides to join him. Michael goes against his law firm and steals evidence from them which proves that the company evicted the old man and other tenants. Michael leaves his wife and begins work in a shelter for the homeless. His company realise that he knows the truth and do everything possible to try and stop him from revealing their dark secrets, resulting in his arrest. The book then builds on the case where Mordecai Green defends him.The book is gripping in the sense that you don't know what the company are going to do next. They are so desperate to keep their secrets hidden and it is scary to read how far they are prepared to go to stop Michael, their ex co-worker and friend. The most appealing aspect of the book to me is not just the law system and the corruptions which surround it, but also the storyline regarding the homeless. In reality, a growing number of people in big cities are homeless. Some lose their jobs and cannot afford to live; some leave their home or are forced to leave their home to avoid domestic violence and abuse. Whatever the reason, the sad truth is that the local governments have shelters but they are usually crowded. Charities run hostels and soup kitchens where they offer hot food but even they are crowded and, sadly, some end up on the streets and survive by begging. Young people tend to find seeing someone on the streets somewhat amusing and I think the reason for this is that they are not educated behind the reasons of what can put a person in this position. The systems to provide shelter are long winded by paperwork and old-fashioned traditions, leaving the homeless helpless and lost. Unfortunately, this happens more than we, as society, like to acknowledge and it is easy to forget. So I like this book because it broadens your mind about everyday life occurrences and shows you the ugly truth which society tries to avoid.I would say this book is appropriate to read from the ages of 11 and above. I read this book at a very young age myself and it really makes me grateful to my teachers who made it possible for me to read. The Street Lawyer always reminds me that education is a powerful instrument which can make a difference in your development, both academically and socially. Reading not only develops your imagination but can change you as a person. If mature reading can be instilled into an individual from a very young age, it will have a positive effect on their future aspirations. I believe this book can be used to make older students discuss attitudes toward the poor and homeless, developing their social awareness skills. The book teaches you about helping those in need and looking beyond the face surface of situations. It can also be used for students to begin thinking about their future aspirations and maybe if they want to carry out a career in law or even anything else. Students can also be asked to carry out role-play activities in relation to the conversation between the characters in the book. This will involve working together in pairs or in a group with the aim of creating a scene from their own interpretation and understanding of the book. There is a certain emphasis on the media within the book so the book can be used to promote interest in one of the powerful sources of society which acts as a social change. Students can be divided into groups to talk about the media, focusing on the power of the media and how their intervention changed the course of events. This can lead to intellectual discussions and also may get young adults to engage in conversations over every day events and how they are portrayed in the news and newspapers today. This book can be used with young people for many activities. Reading this book can be viewed as both relaxing and fun, but at the same time educational. It is insightful, interesting and thrilling, all at the same time.
3 measly stars compared to what it could have been.************First off, I think this would have been a great book, not great as in ‘gonna be a classic one day’ or a ‘bookshelf must have’, but great as in ‘an abrupt reality check right up close and personal’. But it wasn’t. What put me off was: 1. Michael’s apparent racism which Candice, a fellow goodreads reviewer, had aptly put it:What was particularly disgusting was the protagonist's racism. There were remarks about a jury consisting of "12 black faces" ('cause there can't possibly be any white people in DC, right?) and the incredulous thought "a handsome white boy thrown in the pit!" and "the shoes in question were old Nike cross-trainers. They were not basketball shoes, and should not have appealed to [him.]" (because ALL black people play basketball, right?) Ugh.I can’t say if Grisham had intended his guy to be such a jerk, I doubt it though. What if he just stated what he did (refer to the quote above) for descriptive purposes because later he befriends a coloured lawyer who for years has passionately advocated people who can’t afford much representation at all. Then again he, Grisham, is supposed to be this kick-butt writer of courtroom action and by now think he should be an expert at this sort of literary maneuver. Or fact is he might not be all that kick-butt after all but I can’t judge as yet because this would be the second book of his that I’ve read so far.2. and lack of character development and Candice once again seemed to have read my thoughts:Michael Brock may have developed a conscience by accident after the incident at his office, but he failed to develop a personality. He was a flat and boring character who babbled and whined incessantly. Was I supposed to feel sorry for him? I didn't. Not for a second. Okay, maybe I felt a little sorry for Michael but it’s negligible. I’m glad that he was woken up from that crazy cycle lawyers run in almost like hamsters in suits and expensive haircuts. Also about the ‘accidental conscience’ otherwise we wouldn’t have a story and he actually advanced as a good human being. Yay, Mikey. Something what I suspect Grisham got almost right was the poverty, the glimpses of the life of street people seen through Michael’s eyes. The corruption. The profits that are being raked up at the expense of the less fortunate whose voices are leaves in the wind. Michael became didn’t really become that voice because it was already there, what he did was add to it and made it stronger and brought down the hand of justice. At the end of the day he might not be making much as he had before but it’s worth it. I liked him more for it.I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone who wants a thriller because it isn’t, doesn’t really come close but I wouldn’t tell anyone not to read it either, for me it fell in to the ‘okay’ category.
What do You think about The Street Lawyer (2005)?
What started as a casual not so interested read turned out to be a great book that really touched me with its beautiful story. If you could ever fall in love with a character of a story, then i will be with Michael brock ; the protagonist(after prince of persia of course).Anyway the story talks about this multibillion law firm lawyer Brock who after a hostage situation by a man of the street decides to dig into the dirt taking pity on the man's story only to find out the darkest and the dirtiest secrets his own firm holds.he leaves his big job and money to work for the people on the street. The story goes on from there combining drama and suspense . Each scene is nicely done and is sure to touch the heart of any humane reader.I was left thinking about the story long after i finished reading it. And would infact remain one of my best loved books of all time.
—Nishana Sujith
Interesting premise, a high priced lawyer becomes an advocate for the homeless after being held hostage by a man wronged by his firm. Interesting, decent paced story. My only complaint is the occasional tirade blaming the republicans for everything that led up to the homeless problem in D.C. (not wanting to get political, but seriously I'd say there's a lot of blame that can be laid all the way around for homelessness, not just on the doorstep of one political party or even one group of people. It's a bigger problem than that, with no quick easy fixes as we've seen again and again. OK...rant done).I was happy to note a happier ending than the last Grisham book I've read. Solid characters, a mess of a problem with a fairly neat solution. There's no Perry Mason theatrics here, but the ending makes a lot of sense. Don't you wish you had a Mordecai Green you could call if you ever got into trouble?
—Kristine Pratt
Boring. Preachy. Heartbreaking. Disgusting. What was particularly disgusting was the protagonist's racism. There were remarks about a jury consisting of "12 black faces" ('cause there can't possibly be any white people in DC, right?) and the incredulous thought "a handsome white boy thrown in the pit!" and "the shoes in question were old Nike cross-trainers. They were not basketball shoes, and should not have appealed to [him.]" (because ALL black people play basketball, right?) Ugh. Michael Brock may have developed a conscience by accident after the incident at his office, but he failed to develop a personality. He was a flat and boring character who babbled and whined incessantly. Was I supposed to feel sorry for him? I didn't. Not for a second. I am a Grisham fan - or at least I was once upon a time - but I would not recommend this book to people looking for a thriller. The facts about homelessness are heartbreaking, and the struggles of the 14th Street Legal Clinic inspire sympathy, but other than that it's not worth reading.
—Candice
