Defending Jacob by William Landay

 

I quite enjoy courtroom dramas. When I chanced upon this show on Apple TV, I was excited to note that it was a book adaptation. Very few book to movie adaptations are good and this was surely one of them.

Andy Barber is a top notch district attorney. The books opens to a typical day in a normal family setting. His son, Jacob is a normal high school teenager. His wife, Laurie works as a teacher in the local school. 

“The interior of a teenager’s mind is an endless war between Stupid and Clever.”

One fateful day, there is utter chaos and fear in the quiet, influential, safe neighbourhood of the Barber family. A young boy, Ben Rifkin is found murdered in the nearby woods. Shock rips through the families of young children as the case is handed over to Andy. Unfortunately on probing and further investigation and involvement of forensics, it is come to light that there are finger prints on Ben's jacket and they are of Jacob's. Jacob claims that he had found Ben lying face down and only went up to him to see if he was okay. 

“We both love him. I’m just saying, you can love your child and still see his flaws. You have to see his flaws, otherwise how can you help him?”

What follows is a high-intensity drama, legal battle to prove investigation wrong and save Jacob from being tried for first-degree murder. As the case progresses, the Barber family face various trials and tribulations, shattering the peaceful ambience they prided themselves to have.

“A jury could only declare my son 'not guilty', never 'innocent'.”

It is now a question of do I know my child enough to say he cannot kill someone in cold blood? Is my child capable of that? Did Jacob kill his classmate in a fit of teenage rage and angst? Some scenes were heart breaking. When you see your child behind the bars, their entire childhood flashes before your eyes and you as a parent are broken beyond words. Your child flits between being just a child with one leg into almost being considered an adult.

The story ends slightly abruptly and leaves the viewer/reader to decipher for themselves as to what could have happened and if it happened at all. I was hoping to God that there would be an additional episode to bring the suspense to a close but if wishes were horses...

Overall, great storyline, wonderful characters. The book is available on Kindle, Audible and Scribd and you can watch the series on Apple TV.