Anatomy of a Murder
by Robert Traver
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Book Summary Information
Author: Robert TraverEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Format: Deluxe Edition
Published: 1983-03-15
ISBN: 0312033567
Number of pages: 448
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Book Reviews of Anatomy of a Murder
Book Review: "A murder trial is a fascinating pageant."
Summary: 5 Stars
Robert Traver's 1958 classic, "Anatomy of a Murder," is a prototype of the legal thriller/courtroom drama that has long been a mainstay of popular fiction. However, its value goes beyond its historical importance as a groundbreaking work. It is an engrossing tale of a sensational murder trial that pits a wily prosecutor against a clever and tenacious defense attorney.
Forty-year-old Paul Bieglar (dubbed "Polly" by his cronies) is an ex D. A. who has been replaced by a young upstart, Mitch Lodwick. Paul is at loose ends, with no wife, a faltering legal practice, and little to occupy his time other than drinking and fishing. One day, he gets a telephone call from Laura Manion, whose husband, U. S. Army Lieutenant Frederic Manion, sits in a county jail cell after admitting that he killed the man who allegedly raped his wife. Although Manion has no money to hire a lawyer, Paul believes that this case will bring him valuable publicity. He decides to defend Manion, and Parnell McCarthy, a hard-drinking attorney whose career has faded but who still loves the law, becomes Polly's unofficial partner. Squaring off against them is the aforementioned Lodwick and a much more experienced state attorney named Claude Dancer. As the case proceeds, it becomes a legal morass, with contradictory eyewitness testimony, dueling psychiatrists, heated and, at times, eloquent courtroom exchanges, and an unexpected last-minute witness whose testimony may change the trial's outcome.
Traver accomplishes what few authors of legal thrillers these days even attempt. He creates an indelible sense of time and place as well as fully fleshed out three-dimensional characters. The book is set in a small logging and resort town on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan near Lake Superior. With his evocative descriptive writing, the author captures the atmosphere of this isolated area of wild and untouched beauty, a quiet rural village where everyone knows everyone else, rumors fly around at the speed of light, and old friends sit around in taverns late into the night, swapping stories. The Manion trial rocks the town to its foundations and generates a tidal wave of public interest and excitement.
Besides Polly and Parnell, another notable character is Barney Quill, the alleged rapist, who presumably was a prominent citizen, a man of means, and a tavern and hotel owner known to be an expert marksman, fisherman, and martial arts expert. Why would such an individual suddenly attack a defenseless woman? Claude Dancer, the brains behind the state's case, is articulate, ambitious, and not above pulling a few rabbits out of his hat to catch his opponent off guard. One of the most memorable individuals in the book is Judge Weaver, a brilliant and fair-minded man who bends over backwards to make sure that justice is served in this convoluted case.
The writing in "Anatomy of a Murder" is ornate and old-fashioned by modern standards, but it is also literate and laced with delicious homespun humor as well as fascinating legal arcana. The lawyers resemble boxers who strike blows and are hit in return. Although each man is occasionally bloodied, no one manages to deliver a knockout punch.
A central question posed in this book is one that can never be answered: How sound is a criminal justice system in which charismatic lawyers can bend the truth and manipulate juries? Courtroom dramas are popular because they present humanity at its most elemental, with attorney/gladiators fighting valiantly to win, and willing to do or say anything to achieve victory. Robert Traver wisely recognized the inherent drama that a work of fiction set in a courtroom during a controversial murder trial can generate. "Anatomy of a Murder" was written almost half a century ago and it contained subject matter that was extremely daring for its time. It remains an immensely entertaining and satisfying novel that will fascinate fans of quality courtroom thrillers.
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