A Time to Kill. Poster of the 1996 movie and cover of the 1989 book
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A Time to Kill
John Grisham, 1989
movie vs book
Joel Schumacher, 1996

In the town of Clanton, Mississippi, ten-year-old African American Tonya Hailey is abducted, raped, and beaten by two local white men, Billy Ray Cobb and Pete Willard. Carl Lee goes to the county courthouse and opens fire with an automatic rifle, killing both rapists and unintentionally injuring Deputy Dwayne Looney, whose leg is later amputated.


The Innocent Man. Poster of the 2018 TV series and cover of the 2006 book
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The Innocent Man
John Grisham, 2006
TV series vs book
Ross M. Dinerstein, Clay Tweel, 2018

In a story that gained national attention with John Grisham’s best-selling non-fiction book, The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town, the six-part documentary series The Innocent Man focuses on two murders that shook the small town of Ada, Oklahoma, in the 1980s — and the controversial chain of events that followed.


The Soul of America. Poster of the 2020 movie and cover of the 2018 book, The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels
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The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels
Jon Meacham, 2018
movie vs book
K.D. Davison, 2020

John Meacham, a respected author, journalist, and historian known for his Pulitzer Prize-winning works and biographies of presidents, provides valuable perspectives on the current political climate and historical context of the United States by delving into its past.


The Rainmaker. Poster of the 1997 movie and cover of the 1995 book
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The Rainmaker
John Grisham, 1995
movie vs book
Francis Ford Coppola, 1997

Rudy Baylor is a graduate of the University of Memphis Law School. Unlike most of his fellow grads, he has no high-paying job lined up and is forced to apply for part-time positions while serving drinks at a Memphis bar. However, Deck is resourceful in gathering information and is an expert on insurance lawsuits.


Runaway Jury. Poster of the 2003 movie and cover of the 1996 book, The Runaway Jury
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The Runaway Jury
John Grisham, 1996
movie vs book
Gary Fleder, 2003

In New Orleans, a shooting takes place at a stock brokerage firm. Two years later, with attorney Wendell Rohr, Jacob’s widow Celeste takes Vicksburg Firearms to court on the grounds that the company’s gross negligence led to her husband’s death.


The Firm. Poster of the 2012 TV series and cover of the 1991 book
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The Firm
John Grisham, 1991
TV series vs book
Lukas Reiter, 2012

The series continues the story of attorney Mitchell McDeere who, as a young associate 10 years earlier, had brought down the prestigious Memphis law firm of Bendini, Lambert & Locke, which had been operating as a front for the Chicago mob. After a difficult decade, which included a stay in the Federal Witness Protection Program, McDeere and his family now emerge from isolation to reclaim their lives and their future -only to find that past dangers are still lurking and new threats are everywhere.


The Firm. Poster of the 1993 movie and cover of the 1991 book
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The Firm
John Grisham, 1991
movie vs book
Sydney Pollack, 1993

Mitch McDeere, about to graduate near the top of his class from Harvard Law School, accepts a generous job offer from Bendini, Lambert & Locke, a boutique firm in Memphis, Tennessee. During a working trip to the Cayman Islands, Mitch hears a client state that the firm’s Chicago clients break people’s legs, and finds suspicious documents in a locked closet at Avery’s vacation house relating to four of the firm’s associates who died under suspicious circumstances.


The Client. Poster of the 1994 movie and cover of the 1993 book
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The Client
John Grisham, 1993
movie vs book
Joel Schumacher, 1994

Eleven-year-old Mark Sway and his little brother, Ricky, are smoking cigarettes in the woods near their home when they encounter mob lawyer W. Jerome Clifford. Authorities – and the mob – realize that Clifford may have told Mark where a Louisiana senator, murdered by Muldano, is buried.


The Pelican Brief. Poster of the 1993 movie and cover of the 1992 book
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The Pelican Brief
John Grisham, 1992
movie vs book
Alan J. Pakula, 1993

After two Supreme Court justices, Jensen and Rosenberg, are killed by an assassin named Khamel, Tulane University law student Darby Shaw writes a legal brief detailing her theory on why they were killed. An informant calling himself Garcia contacts Washington Herald reporter Gray Grantham with information about the assassinations, but suddenly disappears.


A Painted House. Poster of the 2003 movie and cover of the 2001 book
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A Painted House
John Grisham, 2001
movie vs book
Alfonso Arau, 2003

A young boy, his family, and the migrant workers they hire to work their cotton farm struggle against difficult odds to raise and sell the crop. Meanwhile, the boy dreams of living in better conditions. However, with this particularly tough farming season, the boy learns that his challenges guide him in discovering who he really is.


The Chamber. Poster of the 1996 movie and cover of the 1994 book
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The Chamber
John Grisham, 1994
movie vs book
James Foley, 1996

In April 1967, the office of Marvin Kramer, a Jewish civil rights lawyer in Indianola, Mississippi, is bombed by the Ku Klux Klan, killing Kramer’s five-year-old twin boys and leading to the amputation of Kramer’s legs and his later suicide. Adam is motivated to take the case in a search for some understanding of the dark secrets of his family, which prompted the suicide of Adam’s father the year Sam was sentenced to death.


Christmas with the Kranks. Poster of the 2004 movie and cover of the 2001 book, Skipping Christmas
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Skipping Christmas
John Grisham, 2001
movie vs book
Joe Roth, 2004

After Riverside, Illinois couple Luther and Nora Krank see their daughter, Blair, depart for a Peace Corps assignment in Peru on the Sunday following Thanksgiving, empty nest syndrome sets in. Luther insists that they completely boycott the holidays, and eventually Nora agrees.