Wednesday, July 2, 2014

The Color of Justice - A Review




The Color of Justice




by
Ace Collins


A Review


It was 1964 and the civil rights movement was starting to impact some parts of the country, just not Justice, Mississippi.  And the death  of a young white girl, Becky Booth, was going to prove that point.  When Calvin Ross, a young, intelligent, black, and poor, high school student was charged with the crime, he needed a lawyer - a good lawyer.  Cooper (he went by the name of Coop) Lindsay was asked to be that lawyer.  But if he were to take the case, there would be a cost - a high cost - and no income.


It is now July 2014, 50 years later.  There had been changes, but maybe not enough.  Clark Cooper Lindsay (he, too, went by the name of Coop) was about to be dragged into another trial.  A trial that, like the one his grandfather faced, would change his life.  


The town had changed - a change that began with a sermon on Luke 10:25-37 - the story of The Good Samaritan.  The sermon had been preached in the years before the elder Cooper Lindsay had set up shop in town, but even now it was changing the town of Justice, Mississippi, for the better. As the younger Coop said, “There is work Grandpa began here and it needs to be finished.  And I feel at home in his old office.”  


The Color of Justice is the perfect read for a slow fall day. The two timelines, from 1964 and 2014, integrate well into a single story. It finishes with the reader wanting more - not because the book is incomplete, but because the characters are not done with their lives. I might hope, though do not expect, to see more books from Ace Collins featuring Coop Lindsay and his family and friends as they influence the culture in and around Justice.  Perhaps, those changes will need to be left to the imagination. The final version of the book is scheduled to include a set of discussion questions - which can only add  value to the book.
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This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review.  The opinions expressed are my own.

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