Skipping Christmas / Christmas with the Kranks

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John Grisham

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Pages: 227 (Mass Market Paperback)

ISBN: 0440242576

Pub: Dell Publishing Company

Pub date: 2004-10-31

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 199893

Editorial Review:

John Grisham has turned a satirical eye on the overblown ritual of the festive season, and the result is Skipping Christmas, a modest but funny novel about the tyranny of December 25. Grisham's story revolves around a typical middle-aged American couple, Luther and Nora Krank. On the first Sunday after Thanksgiving they wave their daughter Blair off to Peru to work for the Peace Corps, and suddenly realise that "for the first time in her young and sheltered life Blair would spend Christmas away from home".
Luther Krank sees his daughter's Christmas absence as an opportunity. An accountant, Luther quickly estimates that "a year earlier, the Luther Krank family had spent $6,100 on Christmas", and had "precious little to show for it". Luther makes an executive decision, telling his wife, friends and neighbours that "we won't do Christmas". Instead, Luther books a 10-day Caribbean cruise. All goes well until people get wind of the Kranks' subversive scheme. Everyone, from Christmas card salesmen to horrified neighbours, besieges the couple with questions; what about the Christmas party, carols and the erection of Frosty the Snowman? Things start to turn nasty in the local neighbourhood.

Grisham builds up a funny but increasingly terrifying picture of how the tightknit community turn on the Kranks, who find themselves under increasing pressure to conform. As the tension mounts, will they ever manage to board their plane on December 25? Skipping Christmas is Grisham-lite, with none of the serious drama of earlier books such as The Pelican Brief, but a funny poke at the craziness of Christmas. --Jerry Brotton

Reader Reviews:

My Favourite John Grisham book (0/0 people found this helpful)

I've read a few John Grisham books and this is my favourite so far.

It's very different to his usual genre. The subject and plot are original. It is funny and easy to relate to. This story has really stuck in my mind and I look back on it with fondness.

A Christmas Story! (2/2 people found this helpful)

This is a very fast read. You will not want to put it down. Read this book in November and you will look at Christmas differrent. I alwasy thought Christmas was a little too comercial. And have always thought of skipping Christmas. But friends and family will not let me.

In this book a couple, The Kranks, decide to skip Christmas and go on a trip instead. Sounds good to me, but the neighbors cannot believe anyone would actually skip Christmas. The story allows itself to send the readers a message about the true meaning of holidays and friendships.

Here's one I made earlier... (4/4 people found this helpful)

Someone bought this for me a few years ago as a Christmas present and as so often happens, I put it to one side to read later. I've just finished it, and I'm glad I did.

Skipping Christmas follows the fortunes of Luther Krank and his wife Nora. Their daughter Blair has gone off to Peru to do voluntary service and with Christmas approaching, Luther has a brainwave. They will skip Christmas this year, save the money, and hasten off on a Caribbean cruise. (I confess I have often thought the same!) He dashes downstairs, fires up the computer and stares at his spreadsheets. Christmas last year cost him a whopping $6,100, heck a top line cruise for two costs only $5,000! They will skip Christmas and cruise the seas, and already Luther Krank can see string bikini clad tanned girls everywhere.

But nothing is ever as straight forward as that. This is a short novel by Mister Grisham's standards, indeed by anyone's standards, being only 178 pages and small pages at that. It is almost as if this is a throwaway one "he made earlier" when he had nothing better to do, but that would be unfair. I read it in a weekend. The writing is crisp; the dialogue spot on, and as in all of Grisham's books, the narrative is delivered very much tongue in cheek, through his unmistakeable dry wit.

For me, this wit has never been successfully reproduced in the accompanying Grisham adapted movies, resulting in the books, almost invariably, being considerably better than the films. This book made me laugh out loud several times, and anything that can do that, makes it money well spent. I liked it a lot, and hope you will too.

Laugh? I thought I would vomit (0/8 people found this helpful)

When this came up as a topical (December) book club choice, I had never read a John Grisham book. Now I never want to - although I'm aware this (thankfully) sparse novella is a departure from his usual style.

Ignoring the cover blurb but aware of the basic premise of the book, I continued beyond the scene-setting early pages of lightly-drawn middle-American sit-com snapshots expecting that such a prolific and well-known author of thrillers would develop the tale into something dark and interesting. Once it became clear that this was not to be, every gooey slide towards the saccharine ending was predictable and I realised the book was presented as humour. It was not funny or clever and only book club etiquette (must read the whole book) compelled me to finish it.

This offering wastes both the reader's time and money. I suspect it was written with an eye to its potential earning power through film rights. Perhaps the twist to the tale is that Grisham portrayed the lemming-like adherence of Americans to the commercialism of phoney Christmas rituals confident that the very sheep he hung up for ridicule will flock to see/buy the movie and add it to their Christmas canon. Now, the thought of WASPs lining Grisham's pockets by reading or watching their silly customs being mocked DOES make me smile.

Is Christmas worth it? (5/5 people found this helpful)

Anyone who has asked, "Is Christmas worth it?" or been horrified by its materialism and excessive spending will love this book. Anyone who thinks it would be easy to get away from it all will here be warned. Skipping Christmas is not easy. The Kranks attempt is an hilarious disaster with a wonderful twist and a delightful ending. Just the book to give before the festivities.

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