THE ROOSTER BAR

5 stars out of 5

"O, what a tangled web we weave when first we practise to deceive!"
-- Sir Walter Scott

I lost count of the times that quote popped into my head as I followed the adventures (and misadventures) of law school students Todd, Mark and Zola. Just one semester away from graduation at the Foggy Bottom Law School in Washington, D.C., the friends realize their school is mostly a sham and they're hundreds of thousands of dollars in student loan debt with no hope of getting meaningful employment even if they pass the bar exam (which, not insignificantly, most graduates fail to do).

On top of that, Zola's parents, who have been in the United States as productive, but illegal, residents for nearly a quarter of a century, are in danger of being summarily rounded up and kicked back to their native Senegal. It's a bleak outlook all around, to say the least. But then comes the discovery that their for-profit diploma is one of several owned by a filthy rich guy who also owns a bank that hustles student loans. So as they gather 'round a table at the neighborhood Rooster Bar, a plan starts to hatch - one that begins with dropping out of school.

In a very real sense, though, their plan is nothing to crow about. From the start - with the tactics they'll take to earn money to live on - virtually everything they do is illegal and could land them in jail if they're caught. It's also a seat-of-the-pants operation; as one door closes, they're forced to find another one that opens - and so it continues until the end, when everything that goes around, comes around. How they pull everything off  admittedly tests the limits of credibiity here and there, but it also provides a wild but enjoyable romp for readers as well as a chance for the author to put the spotlight on injustices (as he sees them) in the student loan industry and immigration policies. Kudos for another one well done!

The Rooster Bar by John Grisham (Doubleday, October 2017); 368 pp.