Some of jacob s fellow students post messages on facebook suggesting hes guilty of the crime, and jacob also admits to having shown a cool knife to his friends. In the publicity material for william landays defending jacob, its publisher and several advance readers liken the novel to scott turows presumed innocent, arguably the finest of. These book discussion questions are highly detailed and will ruin plot points, if you have not read the book. In the book jacob s father describes his physical characteristics by saying, now, under my arms he is impossibly big and bony and coltish. He is respected in his community, tenacious in the courtroom, and happy at home with his wife, laurie, and son, jacob. Jacob didnt know him either, as far as i was aware. Jacob barber, the main character in the book, is living a normal life until ben rifkin is murdered in the park in their small town. Defending jacob was the perfect book club book and a must read. Defending jacob william landay, 2012 random house 616 pp.
His 14yearold son is charged with the murder of a fellow student. Tragic and shocking, defending jacob is sure to generate buzz. Themes defending jacob by william landay, literary analysis. I usually served lunch in my kitchen, but this time i decided to use my dining room. Defending jacob is very much in the suspense genre. I should point out, by the way, that my kids are perfectly well behaved. With chris evans, michelle dockery, betty gabriel, sakina jaffrey. The library hosts a book discussion group on the third tuesday of every month at 10. What to read after defending jacob posted by eliza on january 08, 20 its been nearly a year since defending jacob, william landays third novel, was publishedbut this chilling psychological thriller doesnt show any signs of slowing down. Defending jacob is an american crime drama novel written by novelist william landay.
There were a few surprises in the end that gave me the goosebumps susan r. Named one of the best books of the year by entertainment weekly the boston globe kansas city star. Yet, theyre incredibly meaty and will spark lively book club discussions despite their brevity. But, the books on this list are especially shortaround 300 pages or less. The theme is first introduced in the beginning of the book when a young teen named ben rifkin is found dead in a nearby park, with three stab wounds across his. Defending jacob 3 this is the kind of book that is great for 95% of the novel and then the ending goes awry. The book was published in january 2012 by random house. Zach theme 1 not all things are as they appear one theme developed in william landays defending jacob is not all things are as they appear. The friday morning bookclubs favorite book for 2012. I just finished the book a week ago read it for a book club. I tend to think all book club selections should be on the short side to accommodate a variety of reading schedules for book club members. I find inspiration in the outdoors and love to bring the outside in to decorate my home. Part one let us be practical in our expectations of the criminal law for we have merely to imagine, by some trick of time travel, meeting our earliest hominid ancestor, adam, a protoman, short of stature, luxuriantly furred, newly bipedal, foraging about on the african savannah three million or so years ago.
Second place goes to state of wonder by ann patchett and the story of beautiful girl by rachel simon. It tells the story of a father dealing with the accusation that his 14yearold son is a murderer. Defending jacob tv tiein edition by william landay reading. Short book club recommendations sarahs bookshelves. It doesnt go completely, wildly off the rails, but the ending was out of sync with the rest of the book. The interview gives some information and insight into the authors writing, and there is also a list of questions for a study guide. Defending jacob book fraser valley regional library. I felt bad for the mom, and andy, besides being a stick in the mud, had his head buried in the sand at anything to do with his family. And in a book called defending jacob, rest assured that it does. The second half of the book actually brings up a very controversial idea that keeps things moving, but doesnt explore it as fully as i would have liked. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading defending jacob. Along the way to the courtroom, andy is forced to cough up an unfortunate fact. Defending jacob book club discussion questions for july. This was my first opportunity to read landays work, but i look forwarding to reading more from him and highly recommend defending jacob to anyone who, like me, loves a gripping legal thriller that unabashedly.
To ask other readers questions about defending jacob, please sign up. But when a shocking crime shatters their new england town, andy is blindsided by what happens next. Following bens murder, jacob is suddenly charged with first degree murder of his fellow classmate. I do think jacob was guilty and just had zero remorse for anything. Defending jacob book club discussion questions for july 9, 20. This book was far more fascinating than id expected with a focus on family. This brilliant novel by the author of the strangler 2007 and the earlier awardwinning mission flats 2003 is equal parts legal thriller and dysfunctional family saga, culminating in a shocking ending. How should we think about ourselves in light of these new discoveries. Andy barber, a respected first assistant da who lives in newton, mass. My experiences stirred together the worlds of criminal law and the world of young families. Reading guide for defending jacob by william landay. The limited drama series is a gripping, characterdriven thriller based on the 2012 new york times best selling novel of the same name by william landay. Content includes books from bestselling, midlist and debut authors.
When his 14yearold son is charged with the murder of a fellow student, assistant district attorney andy barber is torn between loyalty and justice as facts come to light that lead him to question how well he knows his own son. When andy finds the knife, he quickly disposes of it, but even hes not sure if he does this because he suspects his son is innocent or because he suspects his son is guilty. A legal thriller that s comparable to classics such as scott turow s presumed innocent. In the book, its not a spoiler to say that the barber family, respected members of the community, are faced with the very real prospect of losing everything when their son jacob.
As far as book club books go, defending jacob is the grand poobah of book choices, giving you as many controversial topics to discuss as any jodi picoult novel. Todays novel is one i read five years ago, and it is still one of the best books ive read in quite a while. Reading guide for defending jacob by william landay discussion guide for book clubs. But after jacobs best friend provides evidence against him, jacob is arrested. Our book club page for defending jacob by william landay includes book club discussion questions, author website, book summary. Praise for defending jacob a novel like this comes along maybe once a decade. The book we were discussing was defending jacob by william landay. Andy is taken off the case and suspended, but he is determined to prove his sons innocence. In an interview with the author at the back of the book, he says he wanted this story to be one of those what if situations, and he met that goal with defending jacob. Our book club selection for january was defending jacob, which i had hoped to take out of the library, but even with putting my name on the waiting list months ago, still only ended up being 10th as of last week, so i broke down and bought it without giving too much away, its the story of a man a family really whose lives get turned upside down when their 14 yearold son is accused of. Defending jacob, by william landay the new york times.
How would you have handled this situation if you were andy. Defending jacob book club discussion questions i hate my. The hour i first believed in that it brought to light the danger of rumors on social media and. My facetoface book discussion group has chosen this for its next discussion and therell certainly be plenty. He has messy hair, he is tall and handsome, and is definitely a bruting teenager. A site dedicated to book lovers providing a forum to discover and share commentary about the books and authors they enjoy. Macdonald public library book club 1 defending jacob explores the emerging science of behavioral genetics and neurocriminology the notion that, as a predictor of criminal behavior, nature may indeed be as significant as nurture. Awardwinning author william landay has written the consummate novel of an embattled family in crisis a suspenseful, characterdriven mystery that is also a spellbinding tale of guilt, betrayal, and the terrifying speed at which our lives can spin out of control. Defending jacob by william landay book club discussion.
The main character is andy barber, a massachusetts assistant district attorney, who finds his personal and professional life thrown into turmoil when his son, jacob barber, is accused of murdering his classmate ben rifkin. Defending jacob is a 2012 crime novel by william landay. My books have always been about family, but with defending jacob i wanted to write something even closer to my heart, something that would bring together the crime world of my d. The novel opens with a bang the death of a 14yearold boy and andy barber, the protagonist, is the assistant district attorney. With its relentless suspense, its mesmerizing prose, and a shocking twist at the end, its every bit as good as scott turows great presumed innocent. Defending jacob is a fascinating tale to which any parent will be able to relate and readily lends itself to book club discussion.