divine angst

A Civil Action, Jonathan Harr

I picked this up at Half Price Books before we moved and have been reading through it a bit at a time ever since.

I liked the first half; the middle was very dense, with lots of description of the trial; the end was maddening. I know this isn’t fiction, but it’s a hell of a book that leaves the reader with such a sense of dissatisfaction at the end of it all. Perhaps I was expecting something different because I’ve seen the movie (and the movie DOES have a nicer ending than the book), but I was just annoyed when I finished the last few pages.

One more thing: I was pretty sure I did not want to be a litigator BEFORE reading this book; now I am certain.

I can’t really recommend this book. I am sure a lot of my readers have read it already; some of you HAD to read it for your first year of law school. It’s not a bad book, but it’s not a book I’d suggest anyone run out and read right away.