A Lesson Before Dying

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Summary: A Death That Teaches A Lesson In Life
Review: Point blank, this book is excellent. The story will remain within you long after you finish reading it.

In A Lesson Before Dying, a young man named Jefferson is sentenced to death for a crime that he did not committ. He is referred to as a hog by his defense attorney, and his nannan, Emma, doesn't want him to be put to death feeling that way. She enlists the services of Grant Wiggins, the local black teacher to try and get Jefferson to learn that he is a man and that he has to set the record straight.

The transformation is not an easy one, but in his meetings with Jefferson, Grant teaches himself as well as the reader a remarkable life story. The journey is completed when we read the wonderful summary by Jefferson at the end.

All of the characters in the novel are so richly developed, and they intermingle extremely well with each other. Ernest Gaines uses such a wonderfully subtle language that places the reader right into Louisiana as a part of the story, which makes for a very entertaining read.

This is such a complete, well-written book with so many positive messages. It is an amazing piece of literature. A Lesson Before Dying will leave a lasting impression.

Rating:
Summary: A Lesson Before Dying
Review: Book review: A lesson before dying

A Lesson Before Dying, by Ernest J. Gaines, is set in the south in a dominantly white community in the 1940's. A young man, Jefferson is accused of a crime that he had nothing to do with. He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. During the trial, his lawyer calls him a hog. This insult hurts his family more than his sentence, which happens to be death by electrocution. Miss Emma, Jefferson's godmother is bound to repair his reputation. She will get someone to educate him and help restore his pride. Grant Wiggins is the man chosen for the job. Grant is persuaded by Miss Emma and his aunt to visit Jefferson in his last days in prison. During the time Jefferson and Grant spend together they form a bond and learn many lessons that can't be taught. I liked this book because it shows you what you could be missing if you pass up an opportunity to help someone. You might find out something about that person that you never knew. I also liked how the author shows that the teacher isn't the only one learning. Sometimes the teacher learns more from the student. I recommend this novel to anyone who likes realistic fiction. This novel received the National Book Critics Award For Fiction.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, subtle.
Review: After reading this I immediatly ordered another Gaines book, and will undoubtedly read everything else he's written. The character's struggles are so universal, even though the time and place are very specific and far removed from someone like myself, an Asian-American female who grew up in the Southwest.

Gaines gives us insight into the climate of pre-Civil Rights Louisiana, and for the version I read (just shy over the 200-page mark), less is definitely more. The barest details and subtle nuances picked up through dialogue and the very believable interpretations by the main character are extraordinarily strong and perceptive. The story managed to remind me that not everyone of Caucasian descent during that time was hostile and unreasonable toward African and Black Americans, and that their actions oftentimes were dictated by the conditioning in their environment rather than deep-seated personal hatred and bigotry.

The main point of the story involved a teacher's (Grant)commissioning to impart his learning and knowledge unto a man (Jefferson) sentenced to die for a crime he did not commit. What at first seems like an unlikely "overnight" transformation hits home later in the most poignant way, when readers are given a special gift from Jefferson himself.

Please read this book.

Rating:
Summary: A must read
Review: This story is amazing. A must read. The story will become a part of your life permanently!

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Summary: Lesson in Self-Worth
Review: This story fills its reader with a new appreciation for the ways one person can change another person's life, even in the most deperate, hopeless, and unfair circumstances.

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Summary: Truly a Lesson Before Dying!
Review: This book was one of the best that I have read in a very long time. It's heros and heroines are real people with real problems. Rarely do we ever get to experience the trials and tribulations of the teacher. Jefferson and Grant learn, ever so slowly, but surely, who they are and what they are meant to do. What makes this novel so realistic is Grant's hatred towards the prospect of having to teach Jefferson and Jefferson's cowardice and confusion in the beginning of the novel. Imagry and symbolism in this book are so artisticly that the novel becomes very true to life. I could not put this book down when I read it, and I plan to read more of Gaines' work. If you want to read a novel about racism, heroism, friendship, hatred, self identity, love, lessons and humanity; read this book!

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Summary: Useful for everyday life today
Review: I first got to know about this book, when the author was on television in Oprah Winfreys TV-show. I found the item interesting and ordered the book. When I read the book, yes, it was very interesting, and, in a passage, when Grant, the teacher talked to his schoolclass about his duty with Jefferson, he told them that his duty was to make Jefferson a decent, knowing and responsible person - this is quite what I try to teach You. When I read that, I understood, that this book is just about our community here and now, and not just and old tale. So I also got a lesson before dying. With love Gerda Vilholm [e-mail]

Rating:
Summary: destined to be a classic
Review: I read this book over two years ago.....and a lot of books I've already forgotten in the interim, but this one stays with me. Mr. Gaines is an incredibly talented author and he uses his talent to tell a story about being human, about the simple compassion for one person....and the larger impact that can have on a life, both for the giver and receiver. I hope that this book will become part of reading lists in high school and college curriculum...I believe it is that important. Other reviews here will tell you what the story is about....I'd like to simply convey how I believe this book will touch the heart of anyone who reads it.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent book, terribly sad
Review: A Lesson Before Dying made me so sad. However, it is well-written and holds your interest. Although I see racism every day as a I work in an urban school and my family is biracial, it is sad to realize as you read this book how some people are just stuck because of where they live. Some places in the US are worse than others. I think that this should be recommended reading in high schools.

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Summary: I understand what Oprah saw in this book.
Review: This book has so many good aspects to it. It deals with so much including racism, society, family, respect. It brings a lite these ideologies in a orginal and new fashion. You can't not see this book for what it is and must look beyond the words written. It is a definite think book. It is wonderful and a good, solid read. The basic plot deals with Grant, a black teacher, living in a small racial segregated town in the late 1940s. Jefferson, is a black man condemned to die for a crime that he says he didn't commit. It is a struggle between right and wrong and between responsibilty and free will. It will open your eyes.