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Book Description

He gave up the money. He gave up the power. Now all he has left is the law.

Michael Brock is billing the hours, making the money, rushing relentlessly to the top of Drake & Sweeney, a giant D.C. law firm. One step away from partnership, Michael has it all. Then, in an instant, it all comes undone.

A homeless man takes nine lawyers hostage in the firm's plush offices. When it is all over, the man's blood is splattered on Michael's face--and suddenly Michael is willing to do the unthinkable. Rediscovering a conscience he lost long ago, Michael is leaving the big time for the streets where his attacker once lived--and where society's powerless need an advocate for justice.

But there's one break Michael can't make: from a secret that has floated up from the depths of Drake & Sweeney, from a confidential file that is now in Michael's hands, and from a conspiracy that has already taken lives. Now Michael's former partners are about to become his bitter enemies. Because to them, Michael Brock is the most dangerous man on the streets....

Amazon.com

Looking for a romantic, hardboiled legal drama with a social conscience? Look no further. This audio version of John Grisham's blockbuster The Street Lawyer is narrated by Michael Beck (The Golden Seal, Xanadu), whose portrayal of the similarly named Michael Brock, with his squeaky-clean voice and crisp annunciation, is in perfect pitch with the corporate attorney's Ivy League image. Beck's believable, engaging performance is compelling, drawing the listener into Brock's charmed life and his decision to quit the firm after being held hostage by a disgruntled homeless man. Moved by a crisis of conscience, Brock seeks out the gravel-throated, streetwise legal aid counselor Mordecai Green. Green shows him the ropes, and Brock soon becomes part of the scenery he used to look down on from his plush 14th-floor office. Meanwhile, our hero is on the lam for stealing an important file that holds the secret to an illegal eviction--one that may lead to a murder charge. Faced with a failing marriage, a client on crack, and the threat of disbarment, Michael has plenty to think about as he and Mordecai negotiate a fair settlement for the victims of an inexcusable crime. (Running time: 360 minutes; 4 cassettes)

From Publishers Weekly

America's most popular author is arguably its most popular crusader as well, tilting his pen against myriad targets, including big law (The Firm, etc.), big tobacco (The Runaway Jury), big insurance (The Rainmaker) and now, in perhaps his sweetest, shortest novel, against anyone, big or little, who treats the homeless as less than human. The expected powerhouse opening involves the hostage-taking?by an armed, homeless man who calls himself Mister?of nine attorneys of a huge law firm headquartered in D.C. Among the nine is narrator Michael Brock, an antitrust lawyer who receives a faceful of blood when a police sniper blows away Mister's head. "I'm alive! I'm alive," Michael cries like Ebenezer Scrooge, but, like Scrooge, this greedy hotshot is ripe for a moral awakening. The next day, Michael visits the shabby offices of Mister's attorney, Mordecai Green, who explains that Mister and others had been illegally evicted from makeshift housing on orders from a real-estate development company represented by Michael's firm. Inspired by Green and shaken by his firm's complicity, Michael volunteers at a homeless shelter. When a family he meets there dies on the street, and turns out to have been among the evictees, Michael quits his job, goes to work for Green and, using as evidence a file he steals from the firm, aims to sue his former employer on behalf of the evictees. In turn, the firm places Michael in its crosshairs, pressuring him to give up the file through legal maneuvers, having him arrested and hints of darker means. The cat-and-mouse between Michael and the firm is vintage Grisham, intricately plotted, but the emphasis in this smoothly told, baldly manipulative tale is less on action and suspense, which are moderate, than on Michael's change of heart and moving exploration of the world of the homeless. Dickens would be well pleased, and so will Grisham's fans. 2.8 million first printing.

From School Library Journal

YA-Michael Brock, a successful young attorney for a large, prestigious law firm in Washington, DC, is taken hostage by a homeless veteran in the dramatic opening chapter of Grisham's newest novel. In an effort to understand the motives of his assailant, who dies as the hostages are freed, the young man volunteers at a soup kitchen and works at a legal-aid society. There he begins to recognize the plight of the homeless. However, serious questions remain as to the role Brock's firm had in evicting Mister and other homeless people during a cold winter. In an effort to delve into this mystery, Brock steals a file, thus cutting himself off from friends and his former way of life. The author's reputation assures the popularity of The Street Lawyer, and it is an excellent choice for teens as the plot is relatively simple and fast moving. However, those readers hoping for as much excitement or suspense as there was in The Firm will be disappointed. Michael's transformation from greedy attorney to a sympathetic social worker is gradual and credible. Other characters are not as well developed. As Grisham includes many statistics and other relevant information on the homeless, this is an good choice for sociology students.

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Claudia Moore, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VA

From AudioFile

A high-powered lawyer leaves a Washington, DC, firm to practice "street law." Unlikely, but Grisham has concocted a believable story that may signal that his latest bestseller has something more to say to his readers than legal maneuvering and intrigue. Michael Beck does an admirable job with the abridged edition, giving an especially appealing voice to homeless advocate Mordecai Green. The story is a great choice for recording as it unfolds in deliberate storytelling style and doesn't have too many characters or scene shifts. THE STREET LAWYER is a departure from Grisham's norm and is highly recommended for great listening. R.F.W.

Book Dimension

length: (cm)17.3 　　　 　　　　　 　　　　　 width:(cm)10.7