John Grisham, best known for his legal thrillers, has strayed outside his normal genre on several occasions, and met with success each time. He has written Playing for Pizza, Bleachers, and this title, Skipping Christmas, all of which are beyond the scope of his usual fare.
Skipping Christmas details the story of the Kranks, a suburban family who decide to buck the yearly holiday traditions of overspending, overdoing and overstressing in favor of taking a luxury vacation. Their grown daughter has joined the Peace Corps, so will not be home for Christmas, giving Luther and Nora the perfect opportunity to escape. What Luther, who is the catalyst behind the plan, does not anticipate is the reaction of his neighbors, coworkers and friends who consider the Krank's antics high treason. When Luther and Nora discover that their daughter is coming home for Christmas after all, will they choose to stick with their master plan? Or will they manage to pull together a Christmas to remember?
While this is a nice, quick read for this busy time of year, the story lacks any real oomph. Luther is rather unlikable; Nora is much more sympathetic, so the reader wants things to work out for her sake. That being said, this might be just the sentimental light story that will make readers happy this time of year.
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