false <![CDATA[A Civil Action]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167880583m/27397.jpg 27397 14 In America, when somebody does you wrong, you take 'em to court. W. R. Grace and Beatrice Foods had been dumping a cancer-causing industrial solvent into the water table of Woburn, Massachusetts, for years; in 1981, the families of eight leukemia victims sued. However, <I>A Civil Action</I> demonstrates powerfully that--even with the families' hotshot lawyers and the evidence on their side--justice is elusive, particularly when it involves malfeasance by megacorporations. Much of the legal infighting can cause the eyes to glaze. But the story is saved by great characters: the flawed, flamboyant Jan Schlichtmann and his group of bulldogs for the prosecution; Jerome Facher, the enigmatic lawyer for Beatrice, who proves to be more than a match; John J. Riley, the duplicitous, porcine tannery owner; and a host of others. It's impossible not to feel the drama of this methodical book, impossible not to grieve for the parents who lost children, and impossible not to share Schlichtmann's desperation as he runs out of money. <I>A Civil Action</I> reads like one long advertisement for a few well-placed Molotov cocktails. (But that wouldn't make for a very long book, now would it?) 227861 27 8 1995 A Civil Action total:2328|5:434|4:931|3:792|2:153|1:18| 2328 8594 2787 253 4 0 false true Wed Oct 28 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Nov 01 20:27:17 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 01 22:37:15 -0800 2009 ...more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Thu Dec 04 20:29:44 -0800 2008 Thu Dec 04 20:32:13 -0800 2008 2007, and I'm now on book #58 of 2008, and frankly it's not going to happen.

I will say this -- it was fascinating, and I think I apprec...more...]]> 5 1 false false Fri Dec 19 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Mon Dec 01 15:35:17 -0800 2008 Fri Dec 19 06:46:40 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Jul 26 18:31:23 -0700 2009 Sun Jul 26 19:22:29 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false true Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Sat Jun 20 13:06:29 -0700 2009 Sat Jun 20 13:12:14 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 1 false false Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1997 Wed May 20 06:37:45 -0700 2009 Wed May 20 06:51:51 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 1 false false Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1999 Tue Apr 28 13:36:30 -0700 2009 Tue Apr 28 13:46:02 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Nov 22 12:05:00 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 22 12:13:38 -0800 2009
A Civil Action provides a detailed account of a lawsuit involving townspeople from Woburn, MA, who believe their drinking wat...more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jun 15 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Jun 16 12:41:41 -0700 2009 Tue Jun 16 12:46:06 -0700 2009 In Cold Blood and while their subject matter is different they're both non-fiction accounts of the investigation of crimes. Jonathan Harr is great but he isn't quite Truman Capote. Having said that, A Civil Action was great. It was paced well, and struck the rig...more...]]> 4 1 false false Fri Nov 13 10:37:14 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 20 10:48:13 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Jun 09 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Jun 05 11:58:49 -0700 2009 Tue Jun 09 14:50:43 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Nov 03 18:44:59 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 03 18:44:59 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 1 false false Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1999 Mon Aug 13 08:26:14 -0700 2007 Tue Nov 25 08:33:34 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Sun Nov 08 20:07:25 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 08 20:10:17 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Wed May 28 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue May 27 06:31:47 -0700 2008 Thu May 29 06:45:00 -0700 2008 A Civil Action is a perfect example of why I intend to absolutely avoid a private legal practice.

Jonathan Harr tells the intersecting (true) stories of Woburn, Massachusetts, and recently minted plaintiff's attorney (or ambulance chaser, in the popular parlance) Jan Schlichtmann. Upon t...more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu Jan 31 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Mon Jan 28 04:49:10 -0800 2008 Thu Jan 31 07:30:44 -0800 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Wed Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed Oct 03 19:53:57 -0700 2007 Mon Oct 08 07:22:19 -0700 2007 A Civil Action is the retelling of a large environmental lawsuit in Woburn, MA. Jan Schlictmann, the lawyer protagonist, is a dynamic, deeply flawed character alternately eliciting empathy and frustration from the reader.

Plaintiffs' lawyers invited the author to follow their case from th...more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 1998 Mon Sep 03 22:21:14 -0700 2007 Thu Sep 06 16:34:32 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2002 Wed Jul 11 20:55:50 -0700 2007 Wed Jul 11 21:00:07 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Jun 26 16:34:19 -0700 2007 Fri Jul 13 09:30:41 -0700 2007
A Civil Action describes the real-life lawsuit against W.R. Grace and Beatrice Foods who dumped cancer-causing chemicals into the river and wells used by neighborhoods in Woburn, Massachusetts, and which was...more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=27397