Editing John Grisham

{{Short description|American writer (born 1955)}}
{{Redirect|Grisham|other people with the name|Grisham (surname)|other uses}}
{{Use American English|date=May 2024}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox writer
| name             = John Grisham
| image            = Grisham John by C Harrison (cropped).jpg
| image_size       = 
| caption          = John Grisham in 2016
| birth_name       = John Ray Grisham Jr.
| birth_date       = {{birth date and age|1955|2|8}}
| birth_place      = [[Jonesboro, Arkansas]], U.S.
| death_date       = 
| death_place      = 
| education        = [[Mississippi State University]] ([[Bachelor of Science|BS]])<br />[[University of Mississippi School of Law|University of Mississippi]] ([[Juris Doctor|JD]])
| period           = 1989–present
| genres           = [[Legal thriller]]<br />[[Mystery fiction|Mystery]]<br/>[[Crime fiction]]<br />[[Southern Gothic]]<br />[[Baseball]]<br />[[American football|Football]]<br />[[Basketball]]<br/>[[Young Adult Fiction]]
| spouse           = {{marriage|Renee Grisham|1981}}
| children         = 2
| website          = {{URL|http://www.jgrisham.com/|jgrisham.com}}
| module           = {{Infobox officeholder |embed = yes
| state_house      = Mississippi
| district         = 7th
| term_start       = 1983
| term_end         = 1990
| predecessor      = Don Chambliss
| successor        = [[Greg Davis (Mississippi politician)|Greg Davis]]
| party            = [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
}}
}}

'''John Ray Grisham Jr.''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|ɡ|r|ɪ|ʃ|ə|m}}; born February 8, 1955)<ref name="Academy of Achievement">{{cite web |title=John Grisham: Master of the Legal Thriller (Interview) |work=[[American Academy of Achievement]] |url=https://www.achievement.org/achiever/john-grisham/#interview |date=June 2, 1995 |access-date=June 22, 2022 }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |title=Monitor |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=February 8, 2013 |issue=1245|page=22}}</ref> is an American novelist, lawyer, and former member of the [[Mississippi House of Representatives]], known for his best-selling [[legal thriller]]s. According to the [[Academy of Achievement|American Academy of Achievement]], Grisham has written 37 consecutive number-one fiction bestsellers, and his books have sold 300 million copies worldwide.<ref>{{cite web |title=John Grisham |url=https://achievement.org/achiever/john-grisham/#:~:text=John%20Grisham%20has%20sold%20more,embarked%20on%20his%20professional%20career.|website=Academy of Achievement |access-date=1 October 2020}}</ref> Along with [[Tom Clancy]] and [[J. K. Rowling|J.{{nbsp}}K. Rowling]], Grisham is one of only three anglophone authors to have sold two million copies on the first printing.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.writerswrite.com/john-grisham-galaxy-awards-329071 |title=John Grisham Wins Galaxy Award |date=March 29, 2007 |work=Writers Write |access-date=June 22, 2022 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Motoko |first1=Rich |author-link=Motoko Rich |date=July 22, 2007 |title=Record First-Day Sales for Last 'Harry Potter' Book |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/22/books/22cnd-potter.html |access-date=October 14, 2018}}</ref>

Grisham graduated from [[Mississippi State University]] and earned a [[Juris Doctor]] from the [[University of Mississippi School of Law]] in 1981. He practiced criminal law for about a decade and served in the [[Mississippi House of Representatives]] from 1983 to 1990.<ref name="The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture">{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/entries/john-grisham-1089/ |encyclopedia=The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture |title=John Grisham (1955–) |access-date=June 22, 2022 }}</ref> Grisham's first novel, ''[[A Time to Kill (Grisham novel)|A Time to Kill]],'' was published in June 1989, four years after he began writing it. It was later adapted into the 1996 feature film of the [[A Time to Kill (1996 film)|same name]]. Grisham's first [[bestseller]], ''[[The Firm (novel)|The Firm]]'',<ref>{{Cite book |last=Grisham |first=John |title=The Firm |date=1991 |publisher=[[Century First]] |isbn=978-0-09-983000-9 |location=United Kingdom}}</ref> sold more than seven million copies,<ref name="Academy of Achievement" /> and was also adapted into a 1993 feature film of the [[The Firm (1993 film)|same name]], starring [[Tom Cruise]], and a [[The Firm (2012 TV series)|2012 TV series]] that continues the story ten years after the events of the film and novel.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.nbc.com/the-firm/about |title= About 'The Firm' |publisher= NBC.com |access-date= January 22, 2012}}</ref> Seven of his other novels have also been adapted into films: ''[[The Chamber (novel)|The Chamber]]'', ''[[The Client (novel)|The Client]]'', ''[[A Painted House]]'', ''[[The Pelican Brief]]'', ''[[The Rainmaker (novel)|The Rainmaker]]'', ''[[The Runaway Jury]]'', and ''[[Skipping Christmas]]''.<ref name="John Grisham">[http://contemporarylit.about.com/cs/authors/p/grisham.htm "John Grisham by Mark Flanagan"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723220446/http://contemporarylit.about.com/cs/authors/p/grisham.htm |date=2011-07-23 }}, About.com; retrieved December 9, 2011.</ref>

==Early life==
Grisham, the second of five children, was born in [[Jonesboro, Arkansas]], to Wanda (née Skidmore) and John Ray Grisham.<ref name="The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture"/> His father was a construction worker and a cotton farmer, and his mother was a homemaker.<ref name="Biography">[http://www.jgrisham.com/bio John Grisham biography], jgrisham.com; retrieved December 9, 2011.</ref> When Grisham was four years old, his family settled in [[Southaven, Mississippi]], near [[Memphis, Tennessee]].<ref name="The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture"/> As a child, he wanted to be a baseball player.<ref name="John Grisham" /> As noted in the foreword to ''[[Calico Joe]]'', Grisham gave up playing baseball at the age of 18, after a game in which a pitcher aimed a [[beanball]] at him and narrowly missed doing the young Grisham grave harm.

Although Grisham's parents lacked formal education, his mother encouraged him to read and prepare for college.<ref name="Academy of Achievement" /> He drew on his childhood experiences for his novel ''[[A Painted House]]''.<ref name="The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture" /> Grisham started working for a plant nursery as a teenager, watering bushes for $1.00 an hour. He was soon promoted to a fence crew for $1.50 an hour. He wrote about the job: "there was no future in it". At 16, Grisham took a job with a plumbing contractor but says he "never drew inspiration from that miserable work".<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/06/opinion/06Grisham.html|title = Opinion &#124; Boxers, Briefs and Books |newspaper=The New York Times |date=September 6, 2010 |last1 = Grisham |first1=John}}</ref>

Initially, Grisham attended Horn Lake High School, a school that was so overcrowded some classes met in a church or a gymnasium.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Mitchell |first=Jerry |title=John Grisham: College, lawmaking & 'A Time to Kill'* |url=https://www.clarionledger.com/story/magnolia/2015/07/03/john-grisham-college-lawmaking-and-a-time-to-kill/29679103/ |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=The Clarion-Ledger |language=en-US}}</ref>  In 1971, he transferred to [[Southaven High School]], where he played football, basketball, and baseball.<ref name=":0" />  He credits his 12th grade English teacher, Frances McGuffey, for inspiring his love for reading and for introducing him to the works of [[John Steinbeck]] in particular.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Randall |first=Mark |date=2022-01-20 |title=John Grisham's literary legacy to be honored with historical marker at county courthouse |url=https://www.desototimes.com/news/john-grishams-literary-legacy-to-be-honored-with-historical-marker-at-county-courthouse/article_9c304cca-7969-11ec-b0d3-13e46d6530b0.html |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=DeSoto Times-Tribune |language=en}}</ref>

Through one of his father's contacts, Grisham managed to find work on a highway [[Asphalt concrete|asphalt]] crew in [[Mississippi]] at age 17. It was during this time that an unfortunate incident got him "serious" about college. A fight with gunfire broke out among the crew, causing Grisham to run to a nearby restroom to find safety. He did not come out until after the police had detained the perpetrators. He hitchhiked home and started thinking about college. His next work was in retail, as a sales clerk in a [[department store]] men's underwear section, which he described as "humiliating". By this time, Grisham was halfway through college. Planning to become a tax lawyer, he was soon overcome by "the complexity and lunacy" of it, deciding instead to return to his hometown as a trial lawyer.<ref name="BoxersBriefsBooks">{{cite news |last=Grisham |first=John |date=September 6, 2010 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/06/opinion/06Grisham.html |title=Boxers, Briefs and Books |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=November 2, 2017}}</ref>

Grisham attended the [[Northwest Mississippi Community College]] in [[Senatobia]], Mississippi, where he hoped to launch his baseball career but was benched instead.<ref name=":0" />  He and two close friends, Bubba Logan and Parker Pickle, transferred to [[Delta State University]] in [[Cleveland, Mississippi|Cleveland]] where Grisham hoped to revive his baseball career as a walk on player, but he was cut from the team and he left school after one semester.<ref name="The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture" /><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=John Grisham, Mississippi author of court room drama and legal thriller writer |url=https://www.mswritersandmusicians.com/mississippi-writers/john-grisham |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=www.mswritersandmusicians.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-11-07 |title=What I’ve Learned: John Grisham |url=https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/books/a41456526/john-grisham-what-ive-learned/ |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=Esquire |language=en-US}}</ref> Ultimately, Grisham changed colleges three times before completing a degree.<ref name="Academy of Achievement" /> Although he started there as an economics major, he eventually graduated from [[Mississippi State University]] in 1977 with a [[Bachelor of Science]] in [[accounting]] after being inspired by a fellow student, a Vietnam veteran, who planned to go to law school.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> He later enrolled in the [[University of Mississippi School of Law]] intending to become a tax lawyer, but his interest shifted to general civil litigation. He graduated in 1981 with a [[Juris Doctor|J.D.]] degree.<ref name="The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture" />

==Career==
===Law and politics===
Grisham practiced law for about a decade and won election as a [[Democratic Party (USA)|Democrat]] to the [[Mississippi House of Representatives]], serving from 1983 to 1990.<ref name="The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture"/><ref name="John Grisham Biography">Miller, Erin Collazo [http://bestsellers.about.com/od/authorprofilesaz/p/grisham_bio.htm Biography of John Grisham] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717105732/http://bestsellers.about.com/od/authorprofilesaz/p/grisham_bio.htm |date=2011-07-17 }}, Bestsellers.about.com (February 8, 1955); retrieved 2011-12-09.</ref> He challenged the incumbent after becoming embarrassed by Mississippi's national reputation and inspired by the passage of the [[Mississippi Education Reform Act of 1982|Education Reform Act of 1982]].{{sfn|Nash|Taggart|2009|p=161}} Grisham represented the 7th District, which included [[DeSoto County, Mississippi]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Mississippi Official and Statistical Register|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7HUkAQAAIAAJ|year=1989|publisher= Mississippi Secretary of State|page=162}}</ref> By his second term in the state legislature, he was the vice-chairman of the Apportionment and Elections Committee and a member of several other committees.<ref name="Academy of Achievement"/> He supported Representative Ed Perry's unsuccessful bid for the House speakership in 1987. With a different speaker elected at the beginning of the 1988 legislative session, Grisham was out of favor with the new legislative leaders and assigned to more minor committee roles. Not as busy with political affairs, he devoted more time to his novel, ''The Firm''. Grisham later reflected that if Perry had become speaker he might have been given more committee responsibilities and thus unable to write.{{sfn|Nash|Taggart|2009|pp=194–195}}

Grisham's writing career blossomed with the success of his second book, ''The Firm'', and he gave up practicing law, except for returning briefly in 1996 to represent the family of a railroad worker who was killed on the job.<ref name="Academy of Achievement"/> His official website states: "He was honoring a commitment made before he had retired from the law to become a full-time writer. Grisham successfully argued his clients' case, earning them a jury award of $683,500 — the biggest verdict of his career."<ref name="Biography"/>

===Writing career===
[[File:Lepanto AR 26.jpg|thumb|This house in [[Lepanto, Arkansas]], was the house used in the Hallmark Hall of Fame movie ''A Painted House''.]]
Although he failed English in community college, Grisham received praise for his writing while taking a business correspondence course during law school.<ref name=":0" /> Grisham said a case that inspired his first novel came in 1984, but it was not his case. He heard a 12-year-old girl telling a jury what had happened to her. Her story intrigued Grisham. He saw how the members of the jury cried as she told them about having been raped and beaten. "I remember staring at the defendant and wishing I had a gun." It was then, Grisham later wrote in ''[[The New York Times]]'', that a story was born.<ref name=BoxersBriefsBooks/> Over the next three years, he wrote his first book, ''A Time to Kill''. The book was rejected by 28 publishers before Wynwood Press, an unknown publisher, agreed to give it a modest 5,000 copy printing. It was published in June 1988.<ref name="The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture" /><ref name="Academy of Achievement"/>

The day after Grisham completed ''A Time to Kill'', he began work on his second novel, ''The Firm''.<ref name="Biography"/> ''The Firm'' remained on ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list for 47 weeks,<ref name="Academy of Achievement"/> and became the seventh [[List of bestselling novels in the United States in the 1990s|bestselling novel of 1991]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bestsellers.about.com/od/readingrecommendations/tp/grisham_picks.htm|title=Bestseller Books of the 1990s|access-date=December 1, 2007|work=About.com|archive-date=July 7, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707074957/http://bestsellers.about.com/od/readingrecommendations/tp/grisham_picks.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> This would begin a streak of having one of the top 10 best selling novels of the year for nearly the next two decades. In 1992 and 1993 he had the second-bestselling book of the year with ''[[The Pelican Brief]]'' and ''[[The Client (novel)|The Client]]'', and from 1994 to 2000 he had the number one bestselling book every year. In 2001 Grisham did not have the bestselling book of the year, but had both the second and third books on the list with ''[[Skipping Christmas]]'' and ''[[A Painted House]]''.

In 1992, ''The Firm'' was made into a [[The Firm (1993 film)|film]] starring [[Tom Cruise]] and [[Ed Harris]] and was released in June 1993, grossing $270 million.<ref>{{Mojo title |id= firm|title=The Firm|access-date = August 9, 2020}}</ref> A feature film version of ''[[The Pelican Brief (film)|The Pelican Brief]]'' starring [[Julia Roberts]] and [[Denzel Washington]] was released later that year and grossed $195 million.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=pelicanbrief.htm |title=The Pelican Brief (1993)|website=[[Box Office Mojo]] |access-date=August 9, 2020}}</ref> Following their success, [[Regency Enterprises]] paid Grisham $2.25 million for the rights to ''The Client'' which was released in 1994 starring [[Susan Sarandon]] and [[Tommy Lee Jones]]. [[Universal Pictures]] then commissioned Grisham with the highest amount ever for an unpublished novel, paying $3.75 million for the rights to ''The Chamber''. In August 1994, [[New Regency]] paid a record $6 million for the rights to ''A Time to Kill'', with Grisham asking for a guarantee that [[Joel Schumacher]], the director of ''[[The Client (1994 film)|The Client]]'', would direct.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Daily Variety]]|date=January 12, 1995 |page=12|edition=61st anniversary|title=John Grisham}}</ref>

Beginning with ''A Painted House'', Grisham broadened his focus from law to the more general rural South but continued to write legal thrillers at the rate of one per year. In 2002 he once again claimed the number one book of the year with ''[[The Summons (Grisham novel)|The Summons]]''. In 2003 and 2004 he missed the number one bestseller of the year due to the success of ''[[The Da Vinci Code]]'' by [[Dan Brown]], but he once again produced two novels which ended the year [[List of bestselling novels in the United States in the 2000s|in the top 5]]. In 2004, ''[[The Last Juror]]'' ended the year at number four, and in 2005 he overtook ''The Da Vinci Code'' and returned to number one for the year with ''[[The Broker]]''. The year 2006 marked the first time since 1990 that he did not have one of the top-selling books of the year, but he returned to number two in 2007, number one in 2008, and number two in 2009. Grisham has also written sports fiction and comedy fiction. He wrote the original [[screenplay]] for and [[Film producer|produced]] the 2004 baseball movie ''[[Mickey (2004 film)|Mickey]]'', which starred [[Harry Connick Jr.]]<ref>{{Citation|title=Mickey (2004) |url=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0277895/fullcredits|work=IMDb|access-date=2019-12-31}}</ref>

In 2005, Grisham received the [[Helmerich Award|Peggy V. Helmerich Distinguished Author Award]], which is presented annually by the [[Tulsa City-County Library|Tulsa Library Trust]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Peggy V. Helmerich Distinguished Author Award |url=http://helmerichaward.org/winners/2005_john-grisham.php |work=Tulsa City-County Library |access-date=February 2, 2018}}</ref> In 2010, Grisham started writing a series of legal thrillers for children. They feature [[Theodore Boone]], a 13-year-old who gives his classmates legal advice on a multitude of scenarios, ranging from rescuing impounded dogs to helping their parents prevent their house from being repossessed. He said, "I'm hoping primarily to entertain and interest kids, but at the same time I'm quietly hoping that the books will inform them, in a subtle way, about law."<ref name="Middleton">{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/authorinterviews/7770412/Exclusive-best-selling-author-John-Grisham-explains-why-hes-courting-children-with-his-latest-legal-thriller.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/authorinterviews/7770412/Exclusive-best-selling-author-John-Grisham-explains-why-hes-courting-children-with-his-latest-legal-thriller.html |archive-date=2022-01-11 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Exclusive: best-selling author John Grisham explains why he's courting children with his latest legal thriller |access-date=July 16, 2012 |work=The Telegraph |location=London |first=Christopher|last=Middleton |date=May 28, 2010}}{{cbignore}}</ref> He also stated that it was his daughter, Shea, who inspired him to write the Theodore Boone series. "My daughter Shea is a teacher in North Carolina and when she got her fifth grade students to read the book, three or four of them came up afterwards and said they'd like to go into the legal profession."<ref name="Middleton" />

In an October 2006 interview on the ''[[Charlie Rose (TV series)|Charlie Rose]]'' show, Grisham stated that he usually takes only six months to write a book, and his favorite author is [[John le Carré]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Rose|first=Charlie|title=An hour with author John Grisham|url=http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/179 |work=Charlie Rose Show |date=October 13, 2006|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130127065631/http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/179|archive-date=January 27, 2013}}</ref> In 2011 and 2012, his novels ''[[The Litigators]]'' and [[The Racketeer (novel)|''The Racketeer'']] claimed the top spot in ''The New York Times'' best seller list.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2011/11/13/ |title=Best Sellers - Books |date=November 13, 2011  |work=The New York Times }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2012/11/11/hardcover-fiction/ |title=Hardcover Fiction Books - Best Sellers - Books |date=November 11, 2012 |work=The New York Times }}</ref> The novels were among the best selling books of those years, spending several weeks atop various best seller lists.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970204840504578089231030636740 |title=Best-Selling Books, Week Ended Oct. 28 |date=November 3, 2012 |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |access-date=June 22, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970203513604577140620731981302 |title=Best-Selling Books, Week Ended Jan. 1 |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |date=January 7, 2012 |access-date=June 22, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970204394804577010123989961992 |title=Best-Selling Books, Week Ended Oct. 30 |date=November 5, 2011 |work=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |access-date=June 22, 2022}}</ref> In 2013, he again reached the top five in the [[Publishers Weekly list of bestselling novels in the United States in the 2010s|US best-seller list]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-books-bestsellers-idUSBRE9BB13420131226 |date=December 26, 2013 |title='Sycamore Row' holds top spot on U.S. best-sellers list |work=Reuters |access-date=June 22, 2022 }}</ref> In November 2015, his novel ''[[Rogue Lawyer]]'' was at the top of the ''New York Times'' Fiction Best Seller for two weeks.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2015/11/15/combined-print-and-e-book-fiction/ |title=Combined Print & E-Book Fiction - Best Sellers - Books |date=November 15, 2015  |work=The New York Times }}</ref>

In 2017, Grisham released two legal thrillers. ''Camino Island'' was published on June 6, 2017.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/31/books/review/john-grisham-camino-island.html |title=Plot Twist! John Grisham's New Thriller Is Positively Lawyerless |last=Maslin |first=Janet |date=May 31, 2017 |work=The New York Times |access-date=April 18, 2018|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The book appeared at the top of several best seller lists including ''USA Today'', ''The Wall Street Journal'', and ''The New York Times''. ''The Rooster Bar'', published on October 24, 2017, was called "his most original work yet", in ''[[The News-Herald (Southgate, Michigan)|The News Herald]]'',<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.thenewsherald.com/2018/04/08/john-grisham-pens-another-exciting-legal-drama-with-the-rooster-bar/ |title=John Grisham pens another exciting legal drama with 'The Rooster Bar' |last=O’Neill |first=John |work=News-Herald |location=Sterling Heights, Michigan |access-date=April 18, 2018}}</ref> and a “buoyant, mischievous thriller” in ''The New York Times''.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/25/books/review-john-grisham-rooster-bar.html |title=John Grisham Prosecutes For-Profit Law Schools in 'The Rooster Bar' |first=Janet |last=Maslin |work=The New York Times |date=October 25, 2017 |access-date=June 22, 2022}}</ref>

====Southern settings====
Several of Grisham's legal thrillers are set in the fictional town of Clanton, Mississippi, in the equally fictional Ford County, a northwest Mississippi town still deeply divided by racism. The first novel set in Clanton was ''[[A Time to Kill (Grisham novel)|A Time to Kill]]''. Other stories set there include ''[[The Last Juror]]'', ''[[The Summons (Grisham novel)|The Summons]]'', ''[[The Chamber (novel)|The Chamber]]'', ''[[The Reckoning (Grisham novel)|The Reckoning]]'', ''[[A Time for Mercy]]'' and ''[[Sycamore Row]]''. The stories in the collection ''[[Ford County (short story collection)|Ford County]]'' are also set in and around Clanton. Other Grisham novels have non-fictional Southern settings, for example ''[[The Partner (Grisham novel)|The Partner]]'', ''[[The Runaway Jury]]'', and ''[[The Boys from Biloxi]]'' are set in [[Biloxi]], and large portions of ''[[The Pelican Brief]]'' in [[New Orleans]]. ''A Painted House'' is set in and around the town of Black Oak, Arkansas, where Grisham spent some of his childhood.

==Personal life==
===Marriage===
Grisham married Renee Jones on May 8, 1981. The couple have two children.<ref name="The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture"/>

===Real estate holdings===
The family splits their time among their home in Charlottesville, Virginia, a home in [[Destin, Florida]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=Murray |first=Jocelyn |date=July 27, 2012 |title=Top 10 Best Beaches on the Gulf Coast USA |url=http://www.totsandtravel.com/2012/07/10815/top-10-best-beaches-on-the-gulf-coast-usa |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307185422/http://www.totsandtravel.com/2012/07/10815/top-10-best-beaches-on-the-gulf-coast-usa/ |archive-date=March 7, 2016 |access-date=January 14, 2016 |website=Tots and Travel}}</ref> and a condominium in [[Chapel Hill, North Carolina]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://triangle.bizjournals.com/triangle/stories/2008/07/07/tidbits1.html|title=John Grisham and wife buy home in Chapel Hill|access-date=September 16, 2009|newspaper=Triangle Business Journal|first=Dale|last=Gibson|date=July 7, 2008|archive-date=September 14, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090914050846/http://triangle.bizjournals.com/triangle/stories/2008/07/07/tidbits1.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Their former and longtime [[Victorian architecture|Victorian]] home on a farm outside [[Oxford, Mississippi]],<ref name="Biography"/> was given to the University of Mississippi after 2011.
Grisham owns a beachfront home on Amelia Island in Florida.

===Religion===
Grisham is a member of the University Baptist Church in [[Charlottesville, Virginia]], itself a constituent of the [[Cooperative Baptist Fellowship]].<ref name="baptistnews.com">ABP, [https://baptistnews.com/article/authorjohngrishamjoinslineupofnewbaptistconvenantspeakers/ Author John Grisham joins lineup of New Baptist Convenant speakers], baptistnews.com, USA, January 9, 2008</ref> Grisham opposes a [[Biblical literalism|literalist understanding of the Bible]], and endorses the American [[separation of church and state]].<ref>[https://www.au.org/church-state/march-2008-church-state/people-events/novelist-john-grisham-says-church-politicking "Novelist John Grisham Says Church Politicking Hurts Baptist Image"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190924215348/https://www.au.org/church-state/march-2008-church-state/people-events/novelist-john-grisham-says-church-politicking |date=2019-09-24 }}. Americans United for Separation of Church and State.</ref> In 1993, he created with his wife a foundation, entirely financed by his royalties, which contributes to Baptist missionaries in [[Brazil]] for the purchase of medicines and the construction of chapels, clinics and schools.<ref name="baptistnews.com" /> He also participated in some [[missionary]] work in [[Brazil]], under the First Baptist Church of Oxford.<ref>Norton, Will Jr. (October 3, 1994). [http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/1994/october3/4tb014.html?start=2 "CONVERSATIONS: Why John Grisham Teaches Sunday School"], ''[[Christianity Today]]''. Vol. 38, No. 11</ref>

===Baseball===
Grisham has a lifelong passion for [[baseball]], demonstrated partly by his support of [[Little League]] activities in both [[Oxford, Mississippi]], and in [[Charlottesville]]. In 1996, Grisham built a $3.8 million youth baseball complex.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/2000/05/01/diamond-solitarie-the-grass-is-always-greener-at-author-john-grishams-38-million-gem-of-a-youth-baseball-field-in-virginia/|title=Diamond Solitarie|work=The Baltimore Sun|date=May 1, 2000|access-date=November 2, 2017}}</ref> In ''[[A Painted House]]'', a novel with strong autobiographical elements, the protagonist, a seven-year-old farmer boy, manifests a strong wish to become a baseball player. He remains a fan of Mississippi State University's baseball team and wrote about his ties to the university and the Left Field Lounge in the introduction for the book ''Dudy Noble Field: A Celebration of MSU Baseball''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Take Me Out to the Ballpark |url=http://lib.msstate.edu/grisham/takemeout.php |website=Mississippi State University University Libraries |publisher=Mississippi State University |access-date=December 31, 2019 |archive-date=December 31, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191231075232/http://lib.msstate.edu/grisham/takemeout.php |url-status=dead }}</ref> Since moving to the [[Charlottesville]] area, Grisham has become a supporter of [[Virginia Cavaliers]] athletics and is regularly seen sitting courtside at basketball games.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.si.com/extra-mustard/photo/2016/02/09/night-sports-february-9-photo-essay|title=The Night In Sports (Feb. 9)|magazine=Sports Illustrated}}</ref> Grisham also contributed to a $1.2 million donation to the [[Virginia Cavaliers baseball|Cavalier baseball team]] in Charlottesville, Virginia, which was used in the 2002 renovation of [[Davenport Field]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/06/sports/06virginia.html|title=Virginia Baseball Team Back in Business|first=Mark|last=Viera|newspaper=The New York Times|date=June 5, 2010}}</ref> His son Ty played [[college baseball]] for the [[Virginia Cavaliers baseball|University of Virginia]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Viera|first1=Mark|date=June 5, 2010|title=Virginia Baseball Team Back in Business|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/06/sports/06virginia.html|access-date=December 31, 2017}}</ref>

==Political activism==
Grisham is a member of the board of directors of the [[Innocence Project]], which campaigns to free and exonerate unjustly convicted people on the basis of DNA evidence.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.innocenceproject.org/about/Board-of-Directors.php |title=About Us: Board of Directors |work=The Innocence Project |access-date=June 16, 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070217092311/http://www.innocenceproject.org/about/Board-of-Directors.php|archive-date=February 17, 2007}}</ref> The Innocence Project contends that wrongful convictions are not isolated or rare events but instead arise from systemic defects. Grisham has testified before Congress on behalf of the Innocence Project.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.innocenceproject.org/Content/John_Grisham_Calls_for_Forensic_Improvement.php|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120310162653/http://www.innocenceproject.org/Content/John_Grisham_Calls_for_Forensic_Improvement.php|url-status=dead |archive-date=March 10, 2012|title=Innocence Blog: John Grisham Calls for Forensic Improvement |work=Innocenceproject.org|date=December 8, 2011|access-date=June 16, 2014}}</ref>

Grisham has appeared on ''[[Dateline NBC]]'',<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.innocenceproject.org/Content/John_Grisham_discusses_wrongful_convictions_tonight_on_Dateline_NBC.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100706013148/http://www.innocenceproject.org/Content/John_Grisham_discusses_wrongful_convictions_tonight_on_Dateline_NBC.php|url-status=dead |archive-date=July 6, 2010 |title=Innocence Blog: John Grisham discusses wrongful convictions tonight on Dateline NBC |work=Innocence Project |date=May 22, 2007 |access-date=June 16, 2014}}</ref> ''[[Bill Moyers Journal]]'' on [[PBS]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/01252008/profile.html|title=Bill Moyers Journal |work=PBS |access-date=June 16, 2014}}</ref> and other programs. He wrote for ''The New York Times'' in 2013 about an unjustly held prisoner at [[Guantanamo Bay detention camp|Guantanamo]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/11/opinion/sunday/after-guantanamo-another-injustice.html|work=The New York Times |first=John|last=Grisham|title=After Guantánamo, Another Injustice|date=August 10, 2013}}</ref> Grisham opposes [[capital punishment]], a position very strongly manifested in the plot of ''[[The Confession (novel)|The Confession]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.law.virginia.edu/html/news/2006_fall/grisham.htm |title=Author John Grisham Finds Troubled Story Behind "Innocent Man" |date=September 18, 2006 |first=Hannah |last=Woolf |work=University of Virginia School of Law |access-date=February 21, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312230127/http://www.law.virginia.edu/html/news/2006_fall/grisham.htm |archive-date=March 12, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |first=Allen |last=Pusey |date=September 23, 2011 |url=https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/john_grisham_awarded_inaugural_harper_lee_prize |title=John Grisham on Grappling with Race, the Death Penalty; and Lawyers 'Polluting Their Own Profession' |journal=ABA Journal}}</ref><ref>Crawford, Melanie L. "A Losing Battle With The 'Machinery Of Death': The Flaws Of Virginia's Death Penalty Laws And Clemency Process Highlighted By The Fate Of Teresa Lewis." ''Widener Law Review'' 18.1 (2012): pp. 71–98. Academic Search Complete.</ref><ref>John Grisham (September 12, 2010). "Why is Teresa Lewis on Death Row?", ''[[The Washington Post]]'', pg. B-5</ref> He believes that prison rates in the United States are excessive, and the justice system is "locking up far too many people". Citing examples including "black teenagers on minor drugs charges" to "those who had viewed child porn online", he controversially added that he believed not all viewers of child pornography are necessarily pedophiles. After hearing from numerous people against this position, he later recanted this statement in a [[Facebook]] post.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Foster|first1=Peter|title=John Grisham: men who watch child porn are not all paedophiles|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/11165656/John-Grisham-men-who-watch-child-porn-are-not-all-paedophiles.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/11165656/John-Grisham-men-who-watch-child-porn-are-not-all-paedophiles.html |archive-date=2022-01-11 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=October 20, 2014|newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]|date=October 15, 2014}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/2014/10/16/millionair-author-john-grisham-says-not-all-men-who-watch-child-porn-are-pedophiles/#72a524c649e8|title=Millionaire Author John Grisham Says Not All Men Who Watch Child Porn Are Pedophiles|first=Natalie|last=Robehmed|website=[[Forbes]] }}</ref> He went on to clarify that he was defending a former friend from law school who was caught in a sting thinking he was looking at adult porn but it was in reality sixteen- and seventeen-year-old minors and went on to add, "I have no sympathy for real pedophiles. God, please lock those people up. Anyone who harms a child for profit or pleasure ... Should be punished to the fullest extent of the law."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/news/john-grisham-apologizes-for-child-pornography-comments|title=John Grisham apologizes for child pornography comments|work=CBS News|date=16 October 2014 }}</ref>

The [[Mississippi State University Libraries]], Manuscript Division, maintains the John Grisham Room,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://library.msstate.edu/grisham_room/room/room.htm|title=The John Grisham Room » Mississippi State University Libraries|website=library.msstate.edu|access-date=2007-03-19|archive-date=2013-12-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203021803/http://library.msstate.edu/grisham_room/room/room.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> an archive containing materials generated during the author's tenure as Mississippi State Representative and relating to his writings.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.msstate.edu/web/media/detail.php?id=515|title=John Grisham Room now open in library|access-date=December 1, 2007|publisher=Mississippi State University}}</ref> In 2012, the Law Library at the University of Mississippi School of Law was renamed in his honor. It had been named for more than a decade after the late Senator [[James Eastland]]. In 2015, Grisham, along with about 60 others, signed a letter published in the ''[[Clarion-Ledger]]'' urging that an inset within the [[flag of Mississippi]] containing [[Flags of the Confederate States of America|a Confederate flag]] be removed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/17/us/grisham-freeman-mississippi-confederate-flag|title=John Grisham, Morgan Freeman, others call for change to Mississippi flag|publisher=[[CNN]]|date=August 15, 2015|access-date=September 7, 2015}}</ref> He co-authored the letter with author [[Greg Iles]]; the pair contacted various public figures from Mississippi for support.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://time.com/3999835/john-grisham-confederate-flag-mississippi/|magazine=[[Time magazine]]|date=August 16, 2015|title=John Grisham: Why Mississippi Will Pull Down the Confederate Flag|access-date=September 11, 2015}}</ref> Grisham supported [[Hillary Clinton 2016 presidential campaign|Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign]] in 2016.<ref>{{cite news |title=John Grisham on President Trump: 'These are the easy days' |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/av/entertainment-arts-41763378 }}</ref> In his 2018 Fall Convocation address to new students, Grisham described Mississippi State University as a place where he felt at home, noting, "I loved the big lecture halls, and I came to enjoy the professors. For the first time, after being at several schools, I was on a real campus with a diverse student body, different professors from around the world, big time sports, all of the activities that a big college can bring, and I really fell in love with State."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Team |first=ITS Web Development |date=2018-08-28 |title=John Grisham to new Bulldogs: ‘I found my home here at State’ |url=https://www.msstate.edu/newsroom/article/2018/08/john-grisham-new-bulldogs-i-found-my-home-here-state |access-date=2024-10-27 |website=Mississippi State University |language=en}}</ref>

==Awards and honors==
*1993 Golden Plate Award of the [[American Academy of Achievement]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement: The Arts |work=[[American Academy of Achievement]] |url=https://www.achievement.org/our-history/golden-plate-awards/ |access-date=June 22, 2022 }}</ref>
*2005 [[Helmerich Award|Peggy V. Helmerich Distinguished Author Award]]
*2007 [[British Book Awards|Galaxy British Lifetime Achievement Award]]
*2009 [[Library of Congress Creative Achievement Award for Fiction]]
*2011 The inaugural Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction for ''The Confession''<ref>{{Cite journal |url=https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/john_grisham_wins_first_harper_lee_prize_for_legal_fiction |title=John Grisham Wins First Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction |date=July 28, 2011 |first=Allen |last=Pusey |journal=ABA Journal |access-date=June 22, 2022 }}</ref>
*2014 Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction for ''Sycamore Row''<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.law.ua.edu/programs/harper-lee-prize-for-legal-fiction/archive-2015 |title=Archive 2014  |work=Alabama Law, The University of Alabama |date=7 August 2015 |access-date=November 2, 2017}}</ref>

==Bibliography==
A complete listing of works by John Grisham:<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.jgrisham.com/books|title=John Grisham books|access-date=2010-09-11|archive-date=2020-04-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411024855/https://www.jgrisham.com/books/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

† <small>''Denotes novels not in the legal genre''</small>

===Novels===
''Jake Brigance'' series:
# ''[[A Time to Kill (Grisham novel)|A Time to Kill]]'' (1989)
# ''[[Sycamore Row]]'' (2013)
# ''[[A Time for Mercy]]'' (2020)
# ''"Homecoming"'' (2022), novella

''Rogue Lawyer'' series:
: 0.5. "Partners" (2016), short story
# ''[[Rogue Lawyer]]'' (2015)

''The Whistler'' series:
: 0.5. "Witness to a Trial" (2016), short story
# ''[[The Whistler (novel)|The Whistler]]'' (2016)
# ''[[The Judge's List]]'' (2021)

''Camino Island'' series:
* ''[[Camino Island]]''<sup>†</sup> (2017)
* ''[[Camino Winds]]''<sup>†</sup> (2020)
* ''Camino Ghosts'''<sup>†</sup> (2024)
''[[Mitch McDeere]]'' series:

* ''[[The Firm (novel)|The Firm]]'' (1991)
* ''[[The Exchange: After The Firm|The Exchange]]'' (2023)

Stand-alones:
{{div col}}
* ''[[The Pelican Brief]]'' (1992)
* ''[[The Client (novel)|The Client]]'' (1993)
* ''[[The Chamber (novel)|The Chamber]]'' (1994)
* ''[[The Rainmaker (novel)|The Rainmaker]]'' (1995)
* ''[[The Runaway Jury]]'' (1996)
* ''[[The Partner (Grisham novel)|The Partner]]'' (1997)
* ''[[The Street Lawyer]]'' (1998)
* ''[[The Testament (John Grisham novel)|The Testament]]'' (1999)
* ''[[The Brethren (Grisham novel)|The Brethren]]'' (2000)
* ''[[A Painted House]]''<sup>†</sup> (2001)
* ''[[Skipping Christmas]]''<sup>†</sup> (2001)
* ''[[The Summons (Grisham novel)|The Summons]]'' (2002)
* ''[[The King of Torts]]'' (2003)
* ''[[Bleachers (novel)|Bleachers]]''<sup>†</sup> (2003)
* ''[[The Last Juror]]'' (2004)
* ''[[The Broker]]'' (2005)
* ''[[Playing for Pizza]]''<sup>†</sup> (2007) 
* ''[[The Appeal]]'' (2008)
* ''[[The Associate (novel)|The Associate]]'' (2009)
* ''[[The Confession (novel)|The Confession]]'' (2010)
* ''[[The Litigators]]'' (2011)
* ''[[Calico Joe]]''<sup>†</sup> (2012)
* ''[[The Racketeer (novel)|The Racketeer]]'' (2012)
* ''[[Gray Mountain (John Grisham novel)|Gray Mountain]]'' (2014)
* ''[[The Rooster Bar]]'' (2017)
* ''[[The Reckoning (Grisham novel)|The Reckoning]]'' (2018)
* ''[[The Guardians (2019 novel)|The Guardians]]'' (2019)
* ''Sooley''<sup>†</sup> (2021)
* ''The Boys from Biloxi'' (2022)
* ''The Widow'' (2025)
{{div col end}}

===Young adult novels===
''[[Theodore Boone]]'' series:
# ''[[Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer]]'' (2010)
# ''[[Theodore Boone: The Abduction]]'' (2011)
# ''[[Theodore Boone: The Accused]]'' (2012)
# ''[[Theodore Boone: The Activist]]'' (2013)
# ''[[Theodore Boone: The Fugitive]]'' (2015)
# ''[[Theodore Boone: The Scandal]]'' (2016)
# ''Theodore Boone: The Accomplice'' (2019)

===Short stories===
Collections:
* ''[[Ford County (short story collection)|Ford County]]'' (2009), collection of seven short stories:
*: "Blood Drive", "Fetching Raymond", "Fish Files", "Casino", "Michael's Room", "Quiet Haven", and "Funny Boy"
* ''Sparring Partners'' (2022), collection of three novellas:
*: "Homecoming", "Strawberry Moon", and "Sparring Partners"
Uncollected short stories:
* "[[The Tumor]]"<sup>†</sup> (2016)

===Non-fiction===
* ''The Wavedancer Benefit: A Tribute to [[Frank Muller]]'' (2002) — with [[Pat Conroy]], [[Stephen King]], and [[Peter Straub]]
* ''[[The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town]]'' (2006) — story of [[Ronald Williamson|Ronald "Ron" Keith Williamson]]
* ''Don't Quit Your Day Job: Acclaimed Authors and the Day Jobs They Quit'' (2010) — with various authors
* '' Framed: Astonishing True Stories of Wrongful Convictions'' (2024) - with Jim McCloskey

==Adaptations==
===Feature films===
{{Div col|colwidth=30em}}
* ''[[The Firm (1993 film)|The Firm]]'' (1993)<ref name="John Grisham Movies">[http://www.jgrisham.com/movies/ John Grisham Movies] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160409105122/http://www.jgrisham.com/movies/ |date=2016-04-09 }}. Jgrisham.com. Retrieved on December 9, 2011.</ref>
* ''[[The Pelican Brief (film)|The Pelican Brief]]'' (1993)<ref name="John Grisham Movies"/>
* ''[[The Client (1994 film)|The Client]]'' (1994)<ref name="John Grisham Movies"/>
* ''[[A Time to Kill (1996 film)|A Time to Kill]]'' (1996)<ref name="John Grisham Movies"/>
* ''[[The Chamber (1996 film)|The Chamber]]'' (1996)<ref name="John Grisham Movies"/>
* ''[[The Rainmaker (1997 film)|The Rainmaker]]'' (1997)<ref name="John Grisham Movies"/>
* ''[[The Gingerbread Man (film)|The Gingerbread Man]]'' (1998)
* ''[[Runaway Jury]]'' (2003)<ref name="John Grisham Movies"/>
* ''[[Mickey (2004 film)|Mickey]]'' (2004)
* ''[[Christmas with the Kranks]]'' (2004)<ref name="John Grisham Movies"/>
{{div col end}}

===Television===
* ''[[The Client (TV series)|The Client]]'' (1995–1996) 1 season, 20 episodes
* ''A Painted House'' (2003) television film
* ''[[The Street Lawyer]]'' (2003) TV pilot
* ''[[The Firm (2012 TV series)|The Firm]]'' (2011–2012) 1 season, 22 episodes
* ''[[The Innocent Man (2018 TV series)|The Innocent Man]]'' (2018) miniseries, 6 episodes

==See also==

* [[List of bestselling novels in the United States]]

==References==
{{Reflist|35em}}

== Works cited ==
* {{cite book|last1=Nash |first1=Jere |last2=Taggart |first2=Andy |title=Mississippi Politics: The Struggle for Power, 1976-2008 |edition=second |publisher=[[University Press of Mississippi]] |date=2009 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=avs12QS3EZ4C |isbn=9781604733570}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
{{wikiquote}}
{{Library resources box}}
* {{Official website|http://www.jgrisham.com/}}
* {{IMDb name|0001300|John Grisham}}
* {{C-SPAN|44142}}
* [http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7475330856017077809&q=innerviews InnerVIEWS with Ernie Manouse: John Grisham] (TV Interview)
* [http://www.law.uga.edu/profile/donald-e-wilkes-jr Donald E. Wilkes Jr.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718194903/http://www.law.uga.edu/profile/donald-e-wilkes-jr |date=2011-07-18 }}, [http://digitalcommons.law.uga.edu/fac_pm/118/ "Kafka (and Grisham) in Oklahoma"], ''Flagpole Magazine'', February 7, 2007, pg 9.

{{John Grisham}}
{{Bancarella Prize}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grisham, John}}
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