Anatomy of a Murder

In "Anatomy," there is never a question that army Lt. Manion is responsible for the death of tavern owner Barney Quill in a relatively remote "upper peninsula" Michigan locale. Witnesses to the shooting death are hardly in short supply; add to that the fact that Manion himself readily admits to the homicide. What is at issue -- and which, frankly, may remain at issue even after the last page is turned -- is the question of Manion's culpability; was his killing of Quill justified, in the strictest legal sense, or was it otherwise?

Travers leaves that question dangling in the minds of his reader, diverting our attention, rather, to the practice of criminal law and trial strategies; his protagonist, recently-deposed County Prosecutor Paul ('Polly') Biegler, faces an uphill battle against not only his successful rival, Mitch Lodwick, but a high-powered deputy from the state attorney-general's office (from 'downstate' in Flint, Michigan) who promptly emerges as his true antagonist. Relative issues of guilt vs. innocence quickly take a backseat to questions of "gamesmanship" in the trial as Biegler fights to introduce evidence that the prosecution fights equally hard to suppress. "Truth" quickly becomes a secondary issue -- if an issue at all.

Nor are Biegler's problems confined simply to the courtroom; he finds himself entertaining a hearty dislike for his client -- as would most people as well as, one suspects, the man's own wife --even as he finds himself compelled to 'coach' his client through a recounting of the events leading up to the death of Quill (while always remaining within the American Bar Association's canons of conduct) which may or may not provide an "affirmative defense."

Travers chooses to recount his narrative through the first-person, and wisely so. Biegler's account is delivered in a somewhat wry, and at times whimsical, voice that is nonetheless passionate in its love for -- and belief in -- the law and the way it is practiced in the courtroom.

"Anatomy Of A Murder" emerges -- and today, almost 50 years later, remains -- as a classic novel of the American legal process. Anyone who thinks to term this novel as "dated" or "trite" need only to look to the fact that the book is still in publication, and readily available, as opposed to far too many of its "successors" . . .


A dated potboiler.   August 23, 2001
 6 out of 22 found this review helpful

A bestseller in its day (the 1950s), this novel is of interest now mainly as a period piece and as the source for the celebrated Otto Preminger film. "Robert Traver" was the pen name of a former prosecutor and judge who wanted to write a novel that showed what *really* happens in a murder trial. He more or less succeeded in the accuracy department, but otherwise this novel is a fairly routine potboiler, with a touch of sex and violence, a wrongly slandered maiden whom only the hero appreciates, an alcoholic mentor who helps the hero behind the scenes, a scrappy secretary who never gets paid on time, etc.

Readers looking for a novel about a trial that is both accurate and well written would be better off buying *The Just and the Unjust,* by James Gould Cozzens. If you choose to read *Anatomy of a Murder* or to see the film, you would also benefit from reading the chapter on the film in *Reel Justice,* which points out some ways in which the story is less than accurate.


Of Bastards and Angels   June 11, 2001
 4 out of 7 found this review helpful

Up in Michigan, Laura Manion is raped by Barney Quill. Her husband, Army Lt. Manion kills Quill in a fit of irresistible impulse. Enter small town lawyer Paul Biegler. Assisted by his old friend, Parnell, and his able secretary, Maida, he brings order out of this human chaos. The story is a blend of sex, crime, and psychology. Dostoyevsky in the upper mid-West. It was a best seller in the late '50s. True to a real-life legal scenario, the pace is slow. The plot revolves around the investigation, and the trial. The methods of a defense attorney in building and defending a plausible case are interesting. Be aware, however, that talking and legal maneuvering comprise the main action of the novel. The exhaustive discourse and verbose courtroom dialogue get tiresome by the time the book rambles to a conclusion. The story's hard-hitting punch has been diminished by time. What was shockingly "adult" in the late '50s seems mundane today. Paul Biegler is a likable character, and his self-deprecating sense of humor keeps the story from getting too grim. The legal defense of "irresistible impulse" takes some effort to swallow. Perhaps conscious of the uncertain ethics of his case and his client, Biegler makes a wry observation that the lawyer's world is both of "bastards and angels." The setting is small town America rather than Big City, USA. The late summer-early fall setting adds earthy flavor to Biegler's quiet interludes of introspection. As diverting fiction, this novel has value. Nevertheless, it falls short of a powerhouse. ;-)