Customer Reviews

Brain Storm

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

...Dooling has made a serious attempt to show how poorly the law reflects the workings of the human mind. Changes must be made and the changes must be based on firmer understanding.

A story of a struggling lawyer isn't unusual, although this one is tempered by a grasping wife and her Big Money father, a lush suburban house and a position with the city's leading law firm. The case itself seems simple. A vocal racist is accused of murdering a "African American" [the "scare quotes" are an essential facet of this book] - who happens to be deaf. There are heavy implications in this event, not the least of which is conviction for a provable "hate crime" invokes the death sentence. How is a young lawyer, with neither criminal law nor trial experience to cope with the enormity of this situation?

The legal issues are more than words in the statute books. Dooling's knowledge of science and technology introduces some fresh twists. The circumstances, convoluted enough, become even more intricate as Joe Watson becomes mired in trying to understand the new "hate" legislation permeating American law. How is "hate" defined? As he researches the case, he meets neuroscientist Rachel Palmquist [whose name becomes an essential factor in their relationship]. Palmquist tries to educate Watson on the latest findings in human cognition as part of her efforts to seduce him. Watson is better at cognition than seduction, as you will likely be as you follow her lectures on why we lack free will and what happens when electrodes are used to stir emotions. All this cognitive studies material is, of course, the basis for the book's title.

The issue in this story isn't attorney Watson's struggles with morality nor the respective merits of corporate or criminal law. What's really at stake is how the law defines and treats "hate" crimes and other politically correct issues. Dooling's point is what laws are now on the books and the prospects for future legislation. He wants proposed laws to consider the recent advances in behaviour studies. Can the cure be implemented before the symptoms come to light? Dooling, through his projection Watson, examines the science, the implications and the possible outcomes. We are shown how some of the studies are done, not always a pleasant vista, but with human and legal implications. Reading this book, it's easy to dismiss Watson as an over-focused simpleton. When you realize he's speaking for lawyer Dooling, however, who likely went through much of the introspection Watson relates, this book gains in importance as a social statement. Dooling uses several good sources for material for this book, although you have to go to his web site to discover who they are.

Dooling has given us an entertaining view of law and science brought in conjunction. How good a job he's done depends on your tastes. This is certainly not escapist crime fiction. His concentration on legal and neuroscience issues far outweighs the specific crime involved. His characters try fervently to express the many concepts this book deals with, but fall short of the mark. The one success is Federal Judge Stang, whose seniority and astute understanding of law and lawyers make him the star of the book. If you want "mysteries", go elsewhere. ...Dooling's ideas and discussions of practical issues, however, are an excellent start in either direction. Read it, but don't stop here.

Brainstorm reminds me of Bonfire of the Vanities in the way it is dealing with real issues with over the top characters.The book has terrific dialogue in the Elmore Leonard tradition and the defendent and the judge are two of the most enjoyable characters I've encountered in recent years.This is an enjoyable read that doesn't take itself too seriously and still deals with relevant issues.

Richard Dooling's new book "Brainstorm," is a roller coaster ride of a young attorney in an appointed case that he cannot win. The book delves into America's obsession with political correctness, finding someone to blame and our expectation that between government and science all of societies problems should be fixed without us lifting a finger.

Dooling's sardonic style and cynical wit come through again and again in all of his characters but ecpecially the Federal Court Judge who is presiding over the young lawyers case. Dooling's Judge dispenses wisdom, wit and occasionally justice in a manner that makes you smile as he makes the lawyers squirm. The authors unspoken commentary on our judicial system, though sometimes heavy handed is always amusing and his characterization of life in a large law firm will strike home with anyone who has ever dealt with the creatures that are the product of these firms creation.

Although I preferred "White Man's Grave," this book is a more than adequate follow up to that National Book Award nominee and I would suspect that this book could be one of this years sleepers. Do not miss it.

Dooling showed his command of black comedy with his first novel, Critical Care. In his second book, White Man's Grave (a National Book Award finalist), Dooling turned his pen to a comparison between West African witch doctory and one of the the West's own institutions of magic and religion--bankruptcy law.

In Brain Storm, Dooling gives wonderful evidence that he has further sharpened both his comic skills and his already razor keen cultural commentary. He also adds a tight plot and more than a dollop of vivid sex that may tempt the undiscerning to accuse him of writing a market-driven book (which will also no doubt convert well to film--another curse to those same killjoys).

If that is so, then may all "market" books evince such romping comic gifts and insightful social commentary. Don't hold your breath, though. Dooling's prose is rare and fine, despite being cross-dressed in market attire.

In Brain Storm, Dooling puts the law, law firms, prosecutors and the judicial system squarely in his sights and then plugs them right where they deserve. Particularly appealing are his peeks into the workings of large law firms (of which he is a veteran) and the politics of prosecution. He also has some delightfully over-the-top characters, such as Judge Stang--a modern-day Roy Bean who would rather hang lawyers than criminals--and Myrna Schweich--a foul-mouthed, pint-sized criminal lawyer who can change from Urban Decay-accessorized grunge to pleated pinstripes in the back of a car on the way to the courthouse.

Dooling's filter for sorting out our society's take on the law is neurology, specifically the neurology of criminal conduct. His guide through this area is a centerfold-eligible Ph.D. who becomes an expert neurology witness in the criminal case at the heart of the book. As you might guess from the decolletage on the book's cover, Dr. Brains is also Dr. Sex. But just as the cover is a poke at Harlequin Romance cover art, Dooling's sexy doctor is something of a poke at the law novel genre, which is rich with gratuitous sex. Sex in this case is just part of the fun, not the book's reason for being.

I highly recommend Brain Storm. You can read it as a law novel, but one with a brain...and a sense of humor.

A stranger next to me on a plane finished Brain Storm and handed it to me because she wanted someone else to enjoy it as much as she did. Lucky me. Dooling combines a medical novel, a legal thriller, a sex comedy, and a sf novel while providing genuine character development ... and a book-length consideration of the meaning of free will. It's a funny, thoughtful, provocative book and total fun to read.

After I finished, I went back and read everything Dooling has written. What a find! This one is my favorite, but the others are terrific, too.

I listened to the unabridged audiobook version of Brainstorm and was absolutely intoxicated by the contoversial Judge Stang. Although Joe is the protagonist, Stang was so outrageous and hilarious, I feel complelled to listen to the portions he dominates repeatedly. It is quintessential vengence on a legal system that has long ago subverted moral justice, by an errant judge -- with impunity. His scenarios for torturing attorneys and their overstuffed egos are unbridled. George Guidall's performance on audio sends this character's persona over the top.

Buy this book for Chapter 28 alone. If you don't laugh out loud at Chapter 28, with tears rolling down your cheeks and your three-year old pounding on your home office door asking "what's wrong with you, Daddy?" well then, you and I would never get along.

Absolutely delightful! With one of the cheekiest pens this side of Carl Hiassen, Dooling spins out a terrific mystery that pulls the leg of every "classic" young-lawyer novelist of the past ten years. He manages to meld his sharp tongue with an accute observation of current debate between reductionist biology and mind-body philosophies. The book got off to a shaky start: it took some 50-or-so pages to realize what he was trying to do. The leaden dropping of techno-geek terms seemed careless. But as the reader finds the right register--this is not a serious detective novel--it becomes clear. If you relax, there's a lot of fun ahead. If you're all tensed up, you're going to miss the roller coaster thrills as this novel rockets around the curves of today's trends, allusions and illusions. Good stuff!

Yep, this is a winner. I don't know what all those humor- less reviewers were thinking of. This is satire at its biting best. Yes, Judge Stang is one of the funniest characters I have ever come across in a novel - heck, all the characters are brilliantly drawn. This guy is a super writer. I am a writer myself, and I must admit to being a little jealous of his witty ease with words.

I learned a lot about computers and biological and social anthropology. But mostly, I laughed. And wanted to keep reading. I think this is a classic about Law Biz. More from Richard Dooling, please.

This was my first encounter with Richard Dooling and was not my last. I've read each of his books and look forward to more. This is atill my favorite and I have read it several times over the years.
He tackles difficult subjects here and does it with wit and courage. Far more than a legal thriller, this novel explores the a schism in the American psyche as relates to hate crimes and the unintended consequences of legislating morality.