Author:  John Grisham

Title:  Ford County: Stories

Publisher:  Doubleday

Contrary to popular opinion, most novelists have no trouble finding story ideas. The problem lies in choosing which ones to develop.

Some ideas turn out to be unsuitable and are tossed in the trash. Some linger in a drawer until the time is ripe. And some aren't quite long enough to rate an entire book on their own. What do you do with those in the last category? John Grisham solved the problem by turning seven of them into his latest book, Ford County: Stories.

Grisham returns to his boyhood home (and the setting of his debut novel, A Time to Kill) in this series of tales about the denizens of Ford County, Mississippi. They're a motley crew of bubbas, shysters, and ne'er-do-wells—in other words, not the sort of people you'd bring home to meet your mama. But that won't stop you from falling headlong into their lives and reading with eager anticipation to see what happens next.

Calling them "short" stories may be something of a misnomer; they're longer than that description might lead you to expect. If you're offended by drunkenness, sex, crime, and the like, give Ford County a pass. There's nothing too explicit, but it's obvious what's going on. However, if you can see past all that to the stories (and morals) that lie beneath, you're in for a treat.

Be advised:  these are not artificially sweetened fables of the tired and poor yearning to breathe free in the rural South. Still, even when the characters are criminally-inclined, dumb as a box of rocks, or just plain pitiful, Grisham's affection for his flawed creations shines through.

Nowhere is that more obvious than in "Fetching Raymond." A mother and two sons borrow an upholstery shop van to visit the third son in prison—and to take his body home for burial after execution. It's a story that transcends its grubby circumstances to reveal the innate dignity of being human.

For pure fun, my favorite story was "Casino." A mild-mannered accountant finds his true calling and surprises everyone, including the wife who left him because he was boring. I won't spoil the ending, but rest assured that a well-deserved comeuppance is right on cue and everyone gets exactly what they deserve. And really, isn't seeing that one of the reasons we read fiction in the first place?

Other offerings in Ford County run the gamut of emotions. "Michael's Room" will break your heart while "Quiet Haven" will make you think long and hard about what really constitutes morality. I found the final tale, "Funny Boy," unexpectedly beautiful. I think it should be required reading.

Ford County. While I don't want to live there, it's definitely worth a visit.

**This review first published on November 17, 2009.