Library of Congress

National Book Festival

Long before his name became synonymous with the modern legal thriller, John Grisham was working 60 to 70 hours a week at a small Mississippi law practice, squeezing in time before going to the office and during courtroom recesses to work on his hobby: writing his first novel, "A Time to Kill." It initially sold a modest 5,000 copies. His next book was the beginning of one of publishing's greatest success stories. When Grisham sold the film rights to "The Firm," he suddenly became a hot property among publishers, and book rights were bought by Doubleday. "The Firm" became the best-selling novel of 1991. Since first publishing "A Time to Kill" in 1988, Grisham has written one novel a year and all of them have become international best-sellers, with more than 235 million John Grisham books in print worldwide. His latest smash hit is "The Associate" (2009). Grisham lives in Mississippi and Virginia.

Previous National Book Festival Appearances

John Grisham