A Trial by Jury

When Princeton historian D.

Graham Burnett answered his jury duty summons, he expected to spend a few days catching up on his reading in the court waiting room.

Instead, he finds himself thrust into a high-pression role as the jury foreman in a Manhattan trial.

There he comes face to face with a stunning act of violence, a maze of conflicting evidence, and a parade of bizarre witnesses.

But it is later, behind the closed door of the jury room, that he encounters the essence of the jury experience — he and eleven citizens from radically different backgrounds must hammer consensus out of confusion and strong disagreement.