Once again while traveling the happy trails of Interstate 80 to Lincoln, I enjoyed listening to an audio book. This time I selected one of John Lescroart’s novels, "A Certain Justice". John Lescroart writes thrillers, and I must admit he grabbed my attention from the get-go. I was so tense while listening to the opening chapters my hand was in a fist, which makes driving a car more difficult.

As I left Scottsbluff, I noticed my gas tank was half-full or half-empty, depending upon your perspective. (My perspective should have been half-empty this time.) This is something I completely forgot about until I had passed the last truck stop at North Platte. At that point, my gas warning light beeped. As I looked around to discover where I was—half way between North Platte and Maxwell—I pondered the wisdom of making a U-turn on the interstate. Having been involved in an accident some years ago when this was attempted, I thought better of it. Sweating bullets would describe my general demeanor until I reached the Maxwell exit and discovered an open gas station. This was an occasion when purchasing gas for nearly $3.00 a gallon was not an aggravation but a pleasure. God Bless the Maxwell Sinclair station! I think there is a lesson in this somewhere, but I don’t know what it is. Perhaps, fill-up before you leave town.

Back to the book, it is an understatement to say it was engrossing. I had figured out "whodunit" and why by about North Platte but still wanted to listen to the end of the book. Did I say John Lescroart writes thrillers? Yes, I think I did. "A Certain Justice" is one of his older books. It is set in San Franciso and is a Lt. Abe Glitsky novel. Lescroart writes a series of novels, featuring Abe Glitsky and Dismas Hardy. In "A Certain Justice" Glitsky is the featured character.

As I said, I was so tense in the opening chapters that my hand formed a fist, here’s why. In the opening pages an African American lawyer is lynched by a mob of drunk Irish Americans. One of their friends was murdered by a black career criminal and got off scott free. Kevin Shea, a disaffected grad student, tries to stop the lynching. Unfortunately for him, he is photographed attempting to lift the lawyer to save his life. The photo appears on the front page of the San Francisco paper, but in it Shea appears to be pulling on the hanging man. Shea becomes a scapegoat and a symbol for racial unrest. He runs for his life assisted by his girl friend and a down and out lawyer.

The whole city begins looking for Shea as rewards are posted for his capture—

dead or alive. Now, throw in a few politicians who have much to gain by railroading Shea, and you’ve got yourself a slam bang thriller. Lescroart’s style is intense. Even if a reader dissects the plot and figures out the solution, the writer’s intensity grabs and won’t let go. I encourage you to read "A Certain Justice" by John Lescroart or try another of his many novels.

Finally, Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. in the library meeting room the Leo Daly architectural team will do a public presentation of their revised design for the Scottsbluff Public Library. This is an exciting milestone for all who have invested so much time, energy and hope in this project. The library is the community’s living room, and we want to share our enthusiasm with the community at this landmark occasion.

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