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In this novelized version of one of the seminal events in American jurisprudence history, readers become witness to how a series of famous words came about. These are words almost everyone has heard on television and in movies over the last half-century. They begin with the phrase, "You have the right to remain silent."
This is the tale of two men who were extremely different. Miranda was a young man who endured a terrible childhood and became bitter and violent as he grew older. His attorney, Flynn, was a World War II veteran who mesmerized courtrooms and mangled multiple marriages. Flynn eventually got his life back on a meaningful track. Miranda wasn't as lucky. This chronicle delves deeply into their personal association, as well as the crimes, confession, punishment, and appeal to the United States Supreme Court that linked them. The flamboyance of Flynn's lifestyle—and often the brutality of Miranda's—are juxtaposed in this fascinating look at two individuals responsible for changing the American legal system.
Author Wallenstein has constructed his narrative with a primary emphasis on drama and speed. His chapters jump from one meaningful event to another, often non-sequentially. Pages get turned faster and faster as one itches to learn more about Flynn's scurrilous escapades or Miranda's dangerous run-ins. Dialogue, whether recounted or reconstructed, brims with black humor. Re-enactments of actual events come alive. Many depictions take on cinematic intensity. Wallenstein has done a commendable job of making history engrossing as well as informative. This is a book worth reading for both the information imparted and the style with which that information is delivered.