Reading Those Classics #12

Classic Courtroom Drama. The legal drama a.k.a courtroom drama can be a classic involving moral questions such To Kill a Mockingbird (1960), Compulsion (1956), or Inherit the Wind (1960). But elements of the courtroom drama can also be more sensational as in a mystery such as Anatomy of a Murder (1959) and Gardner’s Perry Mason novels.

A Woman Named Anne – Henry Cecil

This 1967 mystery hinges not on murder but on adultery. In a divorce case, the title character is accused of consensual sex with Michael Amberley, the husband of unhappy wife Jane. The main thread of the novel narrates the cross-examination between widow Mrs. Anne Preston and the barrister Mr. Coventry, conducted to ascertain whether or not she engaged in amatory pleasures in a hotel room and in a parked car with Mr. Amberley.

This is always entertaining even though the reader might doubt that a single cross-examination will sustain a full-length novel. Cecil’s crystal-clear prose uses everyday vocabulary and grammar so smoothly that the book is a pleasure to read. His humor is gently cynical as if his years of observing the antics ordinary people get up to have taught him to be skeptical and tolerant. Cecil has the ability to surprise in abundance, making his plot twists wonderful. For these reasons, the story is un-put-down-able.

In fact, however, Cecil does introduce a few diverting digressions. The omniscient narrator gives interesting and funny backstory on the unhappy couple and the barrister Coventry who finds Anne’s beauty distracting. The characterization of the titular character is the glue that holds the story together; he makes us feel sorry for her though, along with most of the other characters, we doubt her veracity.

A county court judge himself, Cecil gives insight into how judges think and why they “win" virtually every exchange with attorneys. Cecil also explains aspects of the British legal system that may confuse lay observers. He discusses why, given the vagaries of the legal system and its practitioners, we should expect justice only about 75% of the time. In curious aside we can apply generally, he discusses the necessity of not being a worrier for judges and legal professionals.

So, while this is not a conventional mystery novel, it still has the elements of a courtroom thriller and keeps our attention till the very last page. Highly recommended for vacations or situations where light but engaging stories are needed.

Click on the title to go to the review.

Prize Winning Classic: The Moviegoer – Walker Percy

Classic Novella: Old Man – William Faulkner

Classic Epistolary Novel: Augustus – John Williams

Classic Comic Novel: Thank you, Jeeves – P.G. Wodehouse

Classic Short Stories: New York Stories – John O’Hara

Classic Air Pilot Memoir: Wind, Sand, and Stars - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Classic Set in the Big Apple: Manhattan Transfer – John Dos Passos

Classic 19th Century Novel: Sir Harry Hotspur of Humblethwaite – Anthony Trollope

Classic Police Procedural: Wolf to Slaughter – Ruth Rendell

Classic War Memoir: Flight to Arras - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Classic American Mystery: Might as Well Be Dead - Rex Stout