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Matthew's Reviews > The Innocent Man
The Innocent Man
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This True Crime story reads like a straight forward Master's thesis on the injustice some accused but innocent Death Row inmates have gone through. No embellishments or random filler, just the facts (Ma'am). While this could prove daunting if you look for a little extra color and storytelling in your True Crime, it is still a very good and enthralling book that will no doubt get your anger juices flowing.
As someone who gets very frustrated by stories of false accusations (I still yell at the TV every time I watch The Fugitive), this was a very hair-pulling experience. But, that is not necessarily a good or bad thing, it just means I was very engaged and invested in the story. Sometimes the best and most interesting stories have a lot of pain along the way. This is definitely one of those.
What makes this story particularly heartbreaking is all the waste of money/time/resources, all the ignored evidence, all the time behind bars for no reason, and, worst of all, complete apathy towards mental illness. There was a convenient "answer", so they went with it. It is scary to think that some day any of us could be in the wrong place at the wrong time and be the convenient "answer". I stress . . . SCARY!
There have been throughout history many stories of legal injustice. Some of these stories are worse than others. 2020 has been a particularly bad year for that, so you may feel like avoiding this one until later if you have had too much of it. But, this is a true story worth checking out if the subject of what the wrongly accused go through interests you.
As someone who gets very frustrated by stories of false accusations (I still yell at the TV every time I watch The Fugitive), this was a very hair-pulling experience. But, that is not necessarily a good or bad thing, it just means I was very engaged and invested in the story. Sometimes the best and most interesting stories have a lot of pain along the way. This is definitely one of those.
What makes this story particularly heartbreaking is all the waste of money/time/resources, all the ignored evidence, all the time behind bars for no reason, and, worst of all, complete apathy towards mental illness. There was a convenient "answer", so they went with it. It is scary to think that some day any of us could be in the wrong place at the wrong time and be the convenient "answer". I stress . . . SCARY!
There have been throughout history many stories of legal injustice. Some of these stories are worse than others. 2020 has been a particularly bad year for that, so you may feel like avoiding this one until later if you have had too much of it. But, this is a true story worth checking out if the subject of what the wrongly accused go through interests you.
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Reading Progress
March 6, 2014
– Shelved as:
to-read
March 6, 2014
– Shelved
December 12, 2018
– Shelved as:
own
August 1, 2020
–
Started Reading
August 1, 2020
– Shelved as:
2020
August 1, 2020
– Shelved as:
book-a-book-club
August 1, 2020
– Shelved as:
non-fiction
August 1, 2020
– Shelved as:
true-crime
September 24, 2020
–
Finished Reading
Comments Showing 1-19 of 19 (19 new)
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Kandice
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rated it 1 star
Sep 27, 2020 02:36PM
I'm glad you enjoyed it, but I couldn't for the very same reasons!
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Kandice wrote: "I'm glad you enjoyed it, but I couldn't for the very same reasons!""Enjoyed" is a strong word! Appreciated is more like it . . . and didn't dislike the learning experience.
Fair enough. It was actually painful for me to read!
Kandice wrote: "Fair enough. It was actually painful for me to read!"I can definitely see that being a reaction to this book!
I have had a hard copy of this book on my shelf for quite sometime. I attempted to read it, but it was too painful. Nothing wrong with Grisham's writing, though. He will always be my favourite author. I have read his other books, which are very touching - The Chamber, The street lawyer at least twice and cried buckets. But knowing that this is a true story probably makes it more difficult to read. I will give it another try soon.
Matt wrote: "Nice review, Matthew."Thank you, Matt! :D
Lata wrote: "I have had a hard copy of this book on my shelf for quite sometime. I attempted to read it, but it was too painful. Nothing wrong with Grisham's writing, though. He will always be my favourite auth..."It is a very brutal and sad story - and, as you say, the fact that it is true and could happen anywhere if the law is carried out inappropriately does make it a VERY difficult story to read. I can see a lot of people being unable to make it through this book.
James wrote: "Nice review, Matthew."Thank you, James! 🙂
I think Grisham did a wonderful job of laying out all the facts for us to assess for ourselves in this one.it's a testament that a really unlikeable character getting screwed over by the justice system really somehow fuels the empathetic fires and you become more and more amazed at the travesty of it all.
Terrific review, Matthew. Glad to see you enjoyed this one.
Mike wrote: "I think Grisham did a wonderful job of laying out all the facts for us to assess for ourselves in this one.it's a testament that a really unlikeable character getting screwed over by the justice ..."
Thanks, Mike!
Yes - so riveting and maddening - and you summarized it so well. I will say that while (view spoiler)
Guess we disagree on this book. I am definitely an outlier, but glad you enjoyed it.
Pat wrote: "Guess we disagree on this book. I am definitely an outlier, but glad you enjoyed it."I mentioned previously that "enjoyed" is not the right word for this book. A little too dark and frustrating for enjoy. I was enthralled, appalled, and very engaged the entire time. Grisham at least gave me an interesting True Crime story to read, even if it was hard to read at times.
And, I can completely and totally understand the 1 star reviews. Not a normal Grisham. Very depressing. Kind of dry and drawn out at times. Definitely not for everyone!
Thanks for spelling out what we are in store for in Grisham's first nonfiction. Sometimes I find nonfiction books about difficult subjects hard to read because I can't make myself feel better by telling myself that it's 'just a book'. Seems like a very relevant book to read in our current times...
Lilianne wrote: "Thanks for spelling out what we are in store for in Grisham's first nonfiction. Sometimes I find nonfiction books about difficult subjects hard to read because I can't make myself feel better by te..."Sorry I missed this comment when you first posted it in September, Lilianne!
I agree that it is hard sometimes to learn about real things when they are not pleasant. I avoid a lot of non-fiction books because I just don't want to know!
"Sometimes the best and most interesting stories have a lot of pain along the way." Wow, that is so true. Books like this aren't usually on my radar, but you have me intrigued!
"...any of us could be in the wrong place at the wrong time and be the convenient "answer". I stress . . . SCARY!" I agree! I haven't read this one yet - I've got enough stuff to be depressed about these days without "electing" to choose more! Nice review though!!
