A Painted House
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| Author | John Grisham |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Thriller |
| Publisher | Doubleday |
| Released | 6 February 2001 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 400 pp |
| ISBN | ISBN 038550120X |
A Painted House is a novel by American author John Grisham. Published on February 6, 2001. Seven-year-old Luke Chandler is witness to many atrocities in the fall of 1952 as his struggling family of cotton farmers works hard to earn enough to pay their debts. The novel portrays the experiences that bring this child from a world of innocence into one of reality.
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[edit] Plot summary
The story begins to unfold as Luke Chandler and his grandpa, "Pappy," search for "hands" to help them with the cotton picking. They initially consider themselves lucky to find the Spruills, a family of "hill people", looking for some work. Along with the Spruills, the family hires a few of the Mexicans that come to the area annually looking for work.
Luke gets caught up in trouble with these two groups as he first sees Hank Spruill attack three of the notorious Siscos, boys from an irreligious farming family who constantly picked fights, and beat them so severely that one of them died from the wounds. Luke also witnesses the awful killing of Hank Spruill by a Mexican nicknamed Cowboy, who catches him watching the murder and threatens to kill his mother if he reveals anything. Apart from these killings, Luke also learns that his admired Uncle Ricky has fathered a child with a daughter of their extremely poor sharecropping neighbors. With each event, he grows and realizes that the life he once lived could no longer be perceived in the same light. The story has a very unexpected ending, with Hank Spruill's sister running off with Cowboy, not knowing Cowboy had killed her brother
The title A Painted House, refers to the house which Luke and his family live in, which wasn't painted at the beginning, but was painted by Luke and his family; symbolizing a change in the way that the Chandlers live their lives.
[edit] Characters in "A Painted House"
- Luke Chandler - One of the Chandlers' children, protagonist of the story.
- Eli "Pappy" Chandler - Luke's grandfather. Highly respected and hard-working. Seems to be head of the Chandler household.
- Ruth "Gran" Chandler - Luke's grandmother. Quiet, conservative and waits daily for her youngest son, Ricky, to come home from the war.
- Jesse Chandler - Luke's father, served during World War II. Very responsible of the Chandler farm as he tries to overcome the outrageous debt of his property.
- Kathleen Chandler - Luke's mother. She tends a nice garden. She was raised in a town, and doesn't like farming.
- Hank Spruill - Probably the oldest Spruill son. He is very large and rude to anyone who dares offends him or his heritage.
- Tally Spruill - Seventeen year-old daughter of the Spruill who enjoys spending time with Luke. The only civilized one of the Spruills.
- Cowboy - Leader of the Mexicans that came to help the Chandlers with their cotton picking. Due to the rumor of his relationship with Tally, he gets into disputes with Hank.
[edit] Other Characters
- Ricky Chandler - Luke's nineteen year-old uncle. Scandalous and Fun. His family desperately waits for him to come home from the Korean War.
- Mr. Spruill - Father to the controversial family who came to assist the Chandlers during harvest season.
- Mrs. Spruill - Mother to the Spruills. She is overcome by her unrighteous son, Hank.
- Bo and Dale Spruill - The younger Spruill sons. Lazy and cowardly.
- Trot - Crippled son of the Spruills. Despised upon by his family. Due to Hank's remarks, he secretly paints the Chandlers' farmhouse.
- Pop and Pearl Watson - Merchants at the local store. Pearl befriends Luke and their store is a gossip center for the townfolk.
- Miguel - Mexican second-in-charge under Cowboy. He seems to be the tender to the group.
- Reverend Akers - Minister of the Black Oak Baptist Church.
- Jimmy Dale - Luke's cousin. He left cotton picking to work at a Buick plant "up north" in Michigan.
- Stacy - Jimmy Dale's bride. Arrogant and unpleasable. She takes an immediate dislike to Luke.
- Stick Powers - Black Oak sheriff. He urgently wants to respond to the call of duty and put the murderer of the Sisco boy behind bars.
- The Latchers - Poor sharecropping family. One of the many daughters, Libby Latcher is thought to pregnant. The family is ignored due to the fact that Ricky Chandler may be the child's father.
- Dewayne - Luke's friend. Luke and Dewayne spend time together at the cinema when they go to town on Saturday.
- The Siscos - Untamed family who also live in Craighead County. The Sisco boys pick a fight whenever they can.
[edit] Film, TV or theatrical adaptations
A made for television movie premiered on the Hallmark Channel on April 27, 2003. It starred Robert Sean Leonard and was directed by Alfonso Arau.
| Preceded by The Brethren |
John Grisham Novels 2000 |
Succeeded by Skipping Christmas |
| John Grisham's novels (as of 2006) | |
|---|---|
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1980s: A Time to Kill |
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| Non-Fiction | |
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2000s: The Innocent Man |
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