The
ABA Journal and the University of Alabama School of Law have announced the
finalists for the fifth annual Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction. The books
picked as this year’s finalists are My
Sister’s Grave, by Robert Dugoni; Terminal
City, by Linda Fairstein; and The
Secret of Magic, by Deborah Johnson. The prize, which is co-sponsored by
the two groups and authorized by Harper Lee, has been awarded each year
since To Kill a Mockingbird’s
50th anniversary to the novel that best illuminates the role of lawyers in
society and their power to effect change.
The
panelists who will vote to select a winner from the group of finalists are Roy
Blount Jr., author and humorist; Wayne Flynt, author and Alabama historian;
Mary McDonagh Murphy, independent film and television writer and producer; and
Michele Norris, NPR host and special correspondent. The public is invited to
cast their own votes on the book they think most deserves the prize; the public
vote will act as a fifth judge. Voting closes on Friday, June 5 at 11:59 p.m.
The
2015 prize will be awarded Sept. 3 at the Library of Congress in Washington,
D.C., in conjunction with the Library of Congress National Book Festival. The
winner will be announced prior to the ceremony and will receive a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird signed by
Harper Lee. Previous winners include John
Grisham, for The Confession
(2011) and Sycamore Row (2014); Michael
Connelly for The Fifth Witness
(2012); and Paul
Goldstein for Havana Requiem
(2013).
You
can vote here.
The Finalists
My Sister’s Grave by
Robert Dugoni
Tracy
Crosswhite has spent 20 years questioning the facts surrounding her sister
Sarah’s disappearance and the murder trial that followed. She doesn’t believe
that Edmund House—a convicted rapist and the man condemned for Sarah’s
murder—is the guilty party. Motivated by the opportunity to obtain real
justice, Tracy became a homicide detective with the Seattle PD and dedicated
her life to tracking down killers. When Sarah’s remains are finally discovered
near their hometown in the northern Cascade mountains of Washington State,
Tracy is determined to get the answers she’s been seeking. As she searches for
the real killer, she unearths dark, long-kept secrets that will forever change
her relationship to her past—and open the door to deadly danger.
Terminal City by Linda Fairstein
From
the world’s largest Tiffany clock decorating the 42nd Street entrance to its
spectacular main concourse, Grand Central has been a symbol of beauty and
innovation in New York City for more than 100 years. But “the world’s loveliest
station” is hiding more than just an underground train system. When the body of
a young woman is found in the tower suite of the Waldorf Astoria—one of the
most prestigious hotels in Manhattan—assistant DA Alex Cooper and detectives
Mike Chapman and Mercer Wallace find themselves hunting for an elusive killer
whose only signature is carving a carefully drawn symbol into his victims’ bodies,
a symbol that bears a striking resemblance to train tracks.
The Secret of Magic by Deborah Johnson
Regina
Robichard works for Thurgood Marshall, who receives an unusual letter asking
the NAACP to investigate the murder of a returning black war hero. It is signed
by M. P. Calhoun, the most reclusive author in the country. As a child, Regina
was captivated by Calhoun’s The
Secret of Magic, a novel in which white and black children played together
in a magical forest. Once down in Mississippi, Regina finds that nothing in the
South is as it seems. She must navigate the muddy waters of racism,
relationships, and her own tragic past.
2 comments:
Surprised to see a Linda Fairstein book as a finalist for this award - either this one is a big step up from her usual fare, or there was a thin pool of choices this year. I keep reading her books being hopeful, but always end up disappointed and thinking they're pretty mediocre (nice evocation of interesting parts of New York though). I've heard great things about Dugoni.
I, on the other hand really like Linda Fairstein's books. She has in my opinion a very good sense of place and knows her law which she does not spread on with a heavy trowel. I wouldn't say they are in the same boat as some best-selling authors I could name but I would certainly not rate them as medicore.
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