Read it: The Innocent Man by John Grisham

I had been wanting to read this and finally made time for it as a book club selection. I am usually not a big Grisham fan (pretty indifferent, I guess) but I do like my non-fiction. This story is really compelling as he follows the life of Ron Williamson, an all-American small town boy whose only dream is to play major league baseball. Williamson is drafted to play but things don't go as planned. He turns to drugs and alcohol to assuage his lost dreams and mental illness (bipolar). He (and his friend Dennis Fritz-sentenced to life) spent 11 years on death row for a crime he did not commit.
The Innocent Man addresses the American justice system in a fact-based, thoughtful book. Whether or not you are for or against the death penalty, it is not hard to see that the judicial system constantly mocks justice with corruption, prejudice and inefficiencies.

What I also find is heartbreaking is the many years Ron spent getting inadequate care for his mental illness. Part of it you can definitely blame on the system (not being kept on meds while being incarcerated, being over medicated by prison staff, being taunted by prison staff, etc) , but also with mental health problems that is just the nature of the beast. It is very difficult for families to cope with adults who suffer from mental illness and get them the help they need.

Grisham does a great job stepping back and giving people a look at the big picture. I think knowing that the injustices suffered were part of the system is an important part of the book. Also, I think if the injustices were an anomaly, I would probably be less interested and outraged.
Grisham does a fair job writing this, not great but straightforward. I feel like he did the same job anyone else would do, but being John Grisham got some instant recognition.

My cold feels like it could be easing up some. I have an appetite for food with flavor and to celebrate Jerry is making Chicken Parmesan. I have a doctors appointment in the morning but who knows, maybe I will be able to skip it. I look forward to being less couch-ridden, however it did allow for some quality reading time:)