Post #19: Is The Firm Too Good to be True?

Hello! I'm back for this one last blog post (for now, we'll see what happens next year). Anyway, I'm finishing this school year with one last post about The Firm, the legal thriller that was the focus of my last post.

For those of you who chose not to read my last post, here's a recap of it: You may have noted that this quote comes from page one of the novel. That is the specialty of John Grisham; he draws you in. How he portrays the opening scene is unmatched. While the quote above may not be the best example, the opening chapter makes you not want to put the book down. That is why I love reading these books. (Bagadiong)  

So, as you can tell, I focused on Grisham's opening, and how he draws you in with great interest. So here's the thing; can he keep this kind of passionate, creative writing style up for the entire book? He could easily draw you in, the if the bulk of the story is dull, then why should I continue? Last year, I read one of these kinds of books, another John Grisham novel, The Street Lawyer. It certainly starts interesting, as a homeless man takes some lawyers and receptionists, including the protagonist, hostage at their firm (it's hard to explain why). Anyway, the protagonist, after this life-altering experience, becomes a lawyer for those who live on the streets. Grisham, like always, started out strong, and while I did finish it, it didn't have that great trial, nor great characters, and overall, declined in excitement. It was simply dull.

So, after reading a good portion of The Firm, where do I stand? Was the hook good just to draw you into a dull story, or is it an example of what's to come. In this case, it is easily the latter. The author throws in plot twists that definitely excite me, and the actual writing of this novel is amazing.

One of these plot twists comes into play, as after Mitch officially joins the firm, an FBI agent, Tarrance, approaches him at a deli Mitch is in, with a warning, as he says, "'Three things. Number one, don't trust anyone. There's not a single person in that firm you confide in. Remember that. It will become important later on. Number two, every word you utter, whether at home, at the office or anywhere in the building, is likely to be recorded. They might even listen to you in your car.' Mitch watched and listened intently. Tarrance was enjoying this. 'And number three?' Mitch asked. 'Number three, money don't grow on trees.'" (Grisham 105) This comes at about one-fourth of the way into the story, so you knew something interesting was bound to happen. This comes after, unknown to Mitch, there are times where some of the other lawyers have already been listening in on his conversations with Abby and others within his home.

The Firm has had success in other types of media as well, as it has been developed into a TV show and a movie starring Tom Cruise.

So, taking in all of this, my mind is racing, as I think "What's going on? Why are they listening in on him? This isn't normal. There must be some kind of crime? Or is this a sting? Maybe organized crime? I don't know, I NEED to keep reading!" This is my answer to my title, "Is The Firm too Good to be True?" No, it's not. One of the greatest books I have read is sitting on the desk, to my left. Grisham, say what you want, to me, is one of the greatest authors ever (especially if you like legal thrillers). Here is a trailer of the film:

The Firm is one of those books that grabs you at the beginning and doesn't let you go. It seems like this may be my favorite new book (by Grisham and in general).

This blog has been an interesting one throughout the year. I believe my writing has improved over the year, and will continue to improve.

Thank you for reading my blog throughout this year. It's been great!

Post #18: The Firm, Another John Grisham Novel

Hello World!

I'm am writing again about (what else) another John Grisham novel. Obviously, he is my favorite author. I loved Runaway Jury and The Chamber and The Client and The Street Lawyer and every other book he has written. They are all amazing books, and are great reads.

Now, onto today's book. It is The Firm, by Grisham. The protagonist is Mitchell Y. McDeere, "Mitch". He is studying to become a lawyer at Harvard, and ranks in the top five overall in his class. Not top five percent, but overall, out of three hundred. He is offered a lucrative deal by a small, but powerful and wealthy law firm in Memphis. However, with the investment in new lawyers, the firm is selective in who they hire, as Grisham writes, "The firm had never hired an unmarried lawyer, and it frowned heavily on divorce, as well as womanizing and drinking. Drug testing was in the contract" (Grisham 1). This shows that by not meeting one of the criteria listed in the quote, the potential new lawyer could be rejected.

You may have noted that this quote comes from page one of the novel. That is the specialty of John Grisham; he draws you in. How he portrays the opening scene is unmatched. While the quote above may not be the best example, the opening chapter makes you not want to put the book down. That is why I love reading these books.

Thank you for reading this post. Have a good week, until I blog and you read again!

Post #17: The Conclusion of The Chamber

Note: Spoilers will be within this post. BEWARE

Note: There will be spoilers in this post. BEWARE. Also, had to make sure you read the top. Even if you missed the bold print, the large size of the text, and the fact that the word "beware" was in all caps, I had to write out this paragraph to get my message across.

Actual beginning of post:

Note: There will be... nah I'm done with that.

Anyway, recently, I finished the novel, The Chamber, by the one and only John Grisham. The last time I talked about this book, I was only like a chapter into the story (See Post #12) This book is set in the 1960's, and a Jewish lawyer's firm is blown up by some KKK members. The explosion kills his sons, and the lawyer is seriously injured. The lawyer was Marvin Kramer, a civil rights activist in the south, which was not the most friendly of places as this time (obvious by the bomb). The KKK members were Sam Cayhall, Jerimiah Dogen, and Rollie Wedge.

Now, Cayhall, as I noted last time, was caught by the cops for having a bloody scene after blocking traffic. Here's where I have new information. Cayhall is tried for the double murder, and the trial is declared a mistrial. He goes on trial again, and again, it ends in mistrial. 

Finally, after 20 years since the bombing, the FBI opens up the trial again, and Sam is sent to death row. He eventually finds a lawyer, Adam Hall. However, there is a complication, as a coworker of his asks him, "'You didn't think, Mr. Hall, that you should've informed us that you were related to one of our clients?' (Grisham 52)" Yep, Adam Hall is the grandson of Sam Cayhall. He is also Jewish, which is ironic. Well, Adam does what he can to get Sam off of death row, while trying to learn more about his family history. Sam is reluctant at first, but opens up as the novel progresses. 

Adam finally goes to the governor of Mississippi to ask for a reprieve, and...

I said that there would be spoilers, but I'm ending my summary here. You can read the book to find out what happens. I know, but you can figure it out. You got this.

Gene Hackman as Sam Cayhall

Post #16: Columns

Okay, so lately, I've been reading some columns, about varying topics. from Kate Middleton's wedding dress to the Miracle on Ice to getting a dog. Today, I decided to talk about these columns.

Okay, first up is a piece by Mike Lupica, titled, "Winter Olympics: When USA hockey team beat Soviets in 1980, we knew it would last forever". Lupica talks about the importance of the US beating the Soviets, and how this event is still famous today. It also shows the American Spirit. I found this article to be quite interesting, as it definitely brings up a memorable event, the Miracle on Ice. But it got me thinking, what other major sporting events have I witnessed? Usain Bolt setting a world record, the Colts winning a Super Bowl, Michael Phelps and his gold medals, Etc. They all are memorable events in history.

Now, on to the next article. This one was written in 2010, and was titled "What will Kate Middleton's wedding dress look like?", and was written by Robin Givhan. What's actually found in this article, well, is in the title. What will Kate Middleton's wedding dress look like? This column goes into the tradition of the dress, possible makers, and possible styles of the dress. I'm not exactly one for this kind of stuff, but this reminded me of another dress that was a hot topic:

Yep. That's right. The black and blue (or white and gold) dress was a hot topic not too long ago. This column reminded me of this.

Finally, the last column I'll be talking about today: "A ruff and ready playmate", by Dave Berry. This column talks about Berry's reasons for why he and his wife should get a dog. She doesn't want one though. He talks about the experience he has when playing with other people's dogs, and how he wants one. I really liked this column because it reminded me of my life-long journey to get a dog, which I got one, when I was nine. I was so happy, I... was so happy. Simply put.

I found these columns to be very interesting pieces of writing, and these all were interesting to me. I can't wait to read more columns in the upcoming weeks.

This is my handout for my group's presentation

Fahrenheit 451 Theme: Technology can be dangerous in the wrong hands.
Bell 3: Jacob, Joey, Grace, Ishani, and Kayla

First Event: Mobile surgery is used to save Mildred’s life.
    Quote: ...starting a few years ago we had the special machines built. With the optical lens, of course, that was new; the rest is ancient. You don’t need an M.D., case like this; all you need is two handymen, clean up the problem in half an hour” (Bradbury 13).
Second Event: The activation of the Mechanical Hound.
    Quote: The Hound half rose in its kennel and looked at him with green-blue neon light flickering in its suddenly activated eye bulbs. It growled again, a strange rasping combination of electrical sizzle, a frying sound, a scraping of metal, a turning of cogs that seemed rusty and ancient with suspicion” (Bradbury 23). 
Third Event: Bombings and Atomic war.
    Quote: A bomber fight had been moving east all the time they talked and only now did the two men stop and listen feeling the great jet sound tremble  inside themselves (Bradbury 83). 
Fourth Event: Faber’s creation of the bluetooth.
    Quote: If you put it in your ear Montag I can sit comfortably home, warming my frightened bones, and hear and analyze the firemen’s world, find it’s weakness, without danger. I’m the Queen Bee, safe in the hive. You will be the drone, the travelling ear. Eventually, I could put out ears into all parts of the city, with various men, listening and evaluating” (Bradbury 87).
 Fifth Event: Montag is almost killed by teenagers driving the Beetle.
    Quote:The driver of that car, seeing Montag down, instinctively considered the probability that running over a body at such a high speed might turn the car upside down and spill them out. If Montag had remained an upright target…?(Bradbury 122)
Sixth Event: Advanced Programming in the Mechanical Hound
    Quote:-Mechanical Hound never fails. Never since its first use in tracking quarry has this incredible invention made a mistake. Tonight, this network is proud to have the opportunity to follow the Hound by camera helicopter as it starts on its way to the target-” “-nose so sensitive the Mechanical Hound can remember and identify ten thousand odor indexes on ten thousand men without resetting. (Bradbury 126-7)


How is this theme important to the story?: This theme shows how the advancement of technology can be dangerous, especially when in the wrong hands, such as when Montag was being chased by the Mechanical Hound who was trying to kill him.
How does this theme connect to our lives today?: The theme shows how our advanced technology can cause many negative changes to our society, and how even if they are supposed to be used for good, in the wrong hands it can cause a lot of damage.

Post #14: Fahrenheit 451 Review

Hello blogging world! I'm back, here to review the end of Fahrenheit 451!

Spoiler Alert:

I will reveal some spoilers to how the book ends.

Okay, on to the review itself. I thought parts 1 and 2 of this book were great, no reason to complain. But when I came to part 3, well, I found this to be the most interesting part. I thought that Montag's successful attempt to get out of the city was well-written and rivals any car chase. There was a cliche in his run, as he tripped when getting away from the police. Beside that, however, I believed that his chase was unpredictable, and rather, quite exciting.

Now, here is my problem with Part 3: Bradbury constantly refers to this chase as a "war". Montag finds out that this is a war, by "through the aluminum wall he heard a radio voice saying, 'War had been declared'. (Bradbury 119)." Look, I understand why this is being called a war, but it is hard to believe because this "war " is against one person. And it is a chase, it's not like Montag is attacking people (beside Captain Beatty). This is a manhunt, simple as that. I don't know why Bradbury couldn't refer to this as that (through the point of view of the government) rather than a war. It is somehow my biggest beef with Part 3, I don't know why.

Well, Fahrenheit 451 was a much better book than a I expected, but it wasn't the greatest book I've read. Still interesting, however.

Post #13: Fahrenheit 451: "I Am Mrs. Bowles."

From the point of view of Mrs. Bowles...

After one two three four five minutes I finally reached my house.

"I will never talk to Mildred and her nasty husband again!" I yelled as I slammed the door. "Who is HE to judge my lifestyle? Who is HE, to judge my choices?" I continued as I stormed up the stairs/

"What's wrong, mommy?" my child asked me, as I was in the middle of my furious rant.

"NOTHING! Why aren't you in bed?" I answered, screaming. He scurried off to his room, not a sound coming from him. I continued into my bedroom and took my sleeping pills. I laid down and went to sleep. Except I couldn't.

One two three four five six hours later I was still awake. The image of Guy reading that poem kept coming back into my head. I thought about my first husband, and our divorce. I felt "happy" then, but was I, was I actually happy then? I don't know. According to society, I was. Then I remarried. Only for my husband to die. While I wasn't happy then, I had no feelings for him. Why? Why didn't I really love him? And now, my third husband, why is it that I can't love him? Heck, I can't even remember the name of my children. Not even when I see them, like earlier.

I began to bawl uncontrollably, realizing that Guy had a point. Maybe he did read that poem for a reason. He was showing me my life choices gone wrong. Maybe society isn't what it seems to be. Maybe I need to actually care for my family. I should care more about others than what the walls say. Society just dictates that I shouldn't do any of these things. I mean, I've probably done more real thinking over the last one two three four five six hours than the government would want me to do over my lifetime!

Guy was right in telling me that poem. I finally have a real purpose in life. Not just one that society says I have. Thank you, Guy Montag, thank you.