Using a word association psychological assessment, a fairly common response to the name “John Grisham” would be “court.” The acclaimed author has centered almost all of his bestselling books in, near or around a courtroom or courthouse. SOOLEY is his 36th novel for adults, and while a great deal of the action takes place on a court, it is not where attorneys work their magic --- it is a basketball court where college athletes dribble, shoot and score.

When you have almost a permanent position on bestseller lists around the world, you are entitled to some latitude in the books you write and the characters you create. SOOLEY is not Grisham’s first foray into sports. Three previous novels --- BLEACHERS, PLAYING FOR PIZZA and CALICO JOE --- were football- and baseball-themed. His latest effort tells the story of Samuel Sooleymon, a 17-year-old South Sudanese basketball player who journeys from his African homeland to the United States to participate in a tournament against national and international opponents. Recently interviewed in the New York Times, Grisham made his case for his latest novel simply by stating, “I’ve been wanting to write a book about college basketball for a long time. I love sports. I love sports stories. I especially love college sports, and I especially love sad sports stories.”

"I admire an author who presents stories and characters created from his heart and conscience."

Grisham might have added one other point to his explanation. His books tend to address wickedness in society, ranging from cultural and political to just plain wrong behavior. When he sees evil, he writes about it. The civil wars in Africa are a tragedy that the continent has endured for decades. SOOLEY vividly describes the ongoing brutality confronting the citizens of the Sudanese and other African nations. In that same interview, Grisham makes clear that he hopes readers will respond to his novel by perhaps contributing to one of the organizations aiding those in Africa whose lives have been devastated in perpetual conflict.

The life and times of Samuel Sooleymon make for thoughtful and poignant reading. We meet him on the mud-packed outdoor basketball courts of South Sudan as he lands an invitation to try out for the Under 18 National Team. During that summer, he grows from a scrawny, unpolished athlete to a superstar. Tragically, while he is in America, his homeland is ravaged by the ongoing civil war. His father is murdered, and the remainder of his family must flee their village and relocate to a refugee camp. Millions of his people --- 80% are women and children --- have been displaced by decades of war, fleeing to neighboring Uganda, Ethiopia, Sudan and Kenya.

As the fighting continues, Samuel is still in the US but feels stripped of his homeland. He cannot return to South Sudan because his village no longer exists, and he has no idea where his family fled. But the basketball coach of North Carolina Central University, a historically Black college, takes a gamble on the young player and offers him a full basketball scholarship. Samuel is maturing both as an athlete and as a person, and eventually he is given the nickname “Sooley.”

While SOOLEY may be his first basketball story, Grisham has decades of experience presenting readers with entertaining morality plays. The issues that strike a chord in his writing are often the ones discussed and debated in the national media. Here, readers move between basketball exploits in America and the suffering in African refugee camps. While making a name for himself in college basketball, Samuel keeps in touch with his family and works tirelessly to bring them to America.

I have read and reviewed most of Grisham’s books, with the exception of A PAINTED HOUSE, SKIPPING CHRISTMAS and his Theodore Boone series of young adult novels. Long ago, I understood that his work requires some ‘willing suspension of disbelief.’ That level might be a bit higher here, but I am fine with it. I admire an author who presents stories and characters created from his heart and conscience.