Just Mercy in Around the World in 80 Books

Mar 18, 2019 Sera rated it it was amazing

Shelves: kindle, favorites, own, non-fiction

One of the best (if not the best) books that I have read on the subject of how the criminal justice has been used in the United States to punish many people who are in the most need of our help. Stevenson is a remarkable man, who has dedicated his life to the pursuit of equal justice, where he has had much success in getting the laws changed or struck down as unconstitutional as they relate to children, race and the mentally ill. His crusade for trying to make our country a better place to live ...more

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Sep 21, 2019 Mansir rated it it was amazing

I am clearer about why a book would merit 5 stars here after reading this one.

Five stars not only is well written, compelling and well-crafted but it hits me emotionally - it speaks of the human experience where I see details, begin to understand new experiences and feel deeply (empathy, sorrow, happiness, etc.)

This book exposes a major element of institutional racism that forms our country’s history and underlies our current affairs - a faulty justice system where grave mistakes are made and ...more

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May 07, 2018 Pam rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2018-books-read, nonfiction

AUTHOR Stevenson, Bryan
TITLE Just Mercy
DATE READ 05/05/2018
RATING 5/A
GENRE/ PUB DATE/PUBLISHER / # OF Non-Fiction/2014 / Random House/ 316 pgs
FIRST LINES: I wasn't prepared to meet a condemned man.
TIME/PLACE 1980's/ Alabama
COMMENTS Book club choice -- excellent! I can not say how many times I cried over the injustice in this book. Bryan Steven son is a saint! Mr. Stevenson is an attorney and founder of the EJI -- Equal Justice Initiative -- a legal practice dedicated to defending the poor, t ...more

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Jun 02, 2018 Barondestructo rated it it was amazing

Similar to Alexandria Marzano-Lesenevich's "The Facts of a Body" in that both are non-fiction accounts of a young lawyer's attempt to save a convicted murderer from death row. Still, as much as I enjoyed Marzano-Lesenevich's book, it didn't cause me to reconsider my long-held stance on capital punishment. This book did and, for that, it earns 5 stars.

The statistics and true stories that pepper Just Mercy are as staggering as they are outrageous in their indictment of a justice system stacked ag ...more

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Apr 05, 2021 Jana rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: book-club, x2021-reading-challenge

Absolutely horrifying what this country has done to the justice system and the difficulties that are placed in the way of achieving justice for inmates who were wronged.

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May 17, 2020 Joanne rated it it was amazing

Shelves: nonfiction

This book should be required reading for every student in America. The stories are so powerful. The emotions were overwhelming as I read. Thank God or Allah or Yahweh or whoever you believe in that there are people like Bryan Stevenson and organizations like Equal Justice Initiative to do such soul- and heart-breaking work. But, oh when they succeed. It is a triumph for us all.

READ THIS BOOK!

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Feb 05, 2022 Sarah rated it really liked it

Shelves: nonfiction, page-to-screen, bipoc

An incredibly powerful and, at times, difficult to digest look into the absolute dumpster fire that is our criminal justice system. Bryan Stevenson has devoted his life to helping inmates on death row, children facing life in prison, the mentally ill and disabled, and others who are the most vulnerable to the abuses and inequalities of the legal system.

This book primarily tells the story of Walter McMillan, a man wrongfully convicted of murder and sentenced to death (despite the jury recommendi ...more

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