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# To Kill a Mockingbird

## (To Kill a Mockingbird)

by
Harper Lee
4.27 · Rating details
· 5,382,362 ratings · 105,081 reviews
The unforgettable novel of a childhood in a sleepy Southern town and the crisis of conscience that rocked it. "To Kill A Mockingbird" became both an instant bestseller and a critical success when it was first published in 1960. It went on to win the Pulitzer Prize in 1961 and was later made into an Academy Award-winning film, also a classic.
Compassionate, dramatic, and dee The unforgettable novel of a childhood in a sleepy Southern town and the crisis of conscience that rocked it. "To Kill A Mockingbird" became both an instant bestseller and a critical success when it was first published in 1960. It went on to win the Pulitzer Prize in 1961 and was later made into an Academy Award-winning film, also a classic.
Compassionate, dramatic, and deeply moving, "To Kill A Mockingbird" takes readers to the roots of human behavior - to innocence and experience, kindness and cruelty, love and hatred, humor and pathos. Now with over 18 million copies in print and translated into forty languages, this regional story by a young Alabama woman claims universal appeal. Harper Lee always considered her book to be a simple love story. Today it is regarded as a masterpiece of American literature. ...more

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Paperback, 336 pages
Published May 23rd 2006 by Harper Perennial Modern Classics (first published July 11th 1960)
More Details...
Original Title
To Kill a Mockingbird
Edition Language
English
Series
To Kill a Mockingbird
Characters
Scout Finch, Atticus Finch, Jem Finch, Arthur Radley, Mayella Ewell...more, Aunt Alexandra, Bob Ewell, Calpurnia (housekeeper), Tom Robinson, Miss Maudie Atkinson, Judge John Taylor, Dill Harris, Heck Tate, Stephanie Crawford...less
Setting
Maycomb, Alabama, 1933 (United States)
Alabama (United States)
Literary Awards
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction (1961), Audie Award for Classic (2007), National Book Award Finalist for Fiction (1961), Alabama Author Award for Fiction (1961)
Other Editions (685)

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Popular Answered Questions
Is there any way I could find out if this was turned into a movie.. High school demands it!!

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- 7 years ago
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Samuel Edwards With all due respect, if you can't even read the entire description of the book here on Goodreads (which clearly states that it was made into a movie)…more With all due respect, if you can't even read the entire description of the book here on Goodreads (which clearly states that it was made into a movie), then it is no wonder you need to cheat in your English class. I weep for the future. (less)
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Is this classic on the reading list at your local high school?

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- 8 years ago
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Katrina yes, I'm currently reading ti right now for my 9th grade English class.…more yes, I'm currently reading ti right now for my 9th grade English class.(less)
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## Community Reviews

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Apr 08, 2018 Miranda Reads rated it it was amazing
Shelves: audiobook

Looking for a new book but don't want to commit? Check out my latest BooktTube Video: One & Done - all about fabulous standalones!
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The Written Review :
If you haven't read this as an adult - pick it up today

> I think there's just one kind of folks. Folks.

I (along with millions of other kids) first read this in grade-school. And I (along with those millions) didn't really get the point.
I remember

Looking for a new book but don't want to commit? Check out my latest BooktTube Video: One & Done - all about fabulous standalones!
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The Written Review :
If you haven't read this as an adult - pick it up today

> I think there's just one kind of folks. Folks.

I (along with millions of other kids) first read this in grade-school. And I (along with those millions) didn't really get the point.
I remember thinking, Well... I already know discrimination is wrong. I don't get why I have to read a book about it...
Oh Lordy, if I could go back in time...
Rereading led to a (unsurprisingly) wholly different interpretation of this novel. I am in awe of Harper Lee and what she's written.
How could I have so completely missed the point back in fifth grade?

> People generally see what they look for, and hear what they listen for.

We follow Jean Louise "Scout" Finch, the daughter of Atticus Finch - a prominent lawyer. Scout narrates the great and terrible tragedies of her life - namely the trial of Tom - an upstanding "colored" man accused of raping a white woman.
Atticus is appointed to defend Tom and soon, nearly the whole town turns against the Finch Family.

> I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what.

Much like Scout, I was simply too young to understand much of what was going on the first time through.
I tell you, there were so, so many moments this time through where the light bulb turned on and everything just clicked.

> As you grow older, you’ll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and don’t you forget it—whenever a white man does that to a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is, or how fine a family he comes from, that white man is trash

My entire life, I never truly understood why this was such a classic, why people read it over and over, and why this (of all books) is forced upon kids year after year. I get it now. And I'm disappointed that I hadn't reread it sooner.
P.s. Sorry to my teachers for being such a sulky kid - they sure picked a great one. I was just so enthralled with reading other things that I didn't read this one as well as I should've.

> Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing.

Audiobook Comments
Exceptionally well-read by Sissy Spacek. I felt like I was in the story. If you are itching for a reread - pick up the audio!
YouTube | Blog | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Snapchat @miranda_reads ...more
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Jun 28, 2009 Ahmad Sharabiani rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: classics, historical, novels, 20th-century, academic, united-states, fiction
To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
To Kill a Mockingbird one of the best-loved stories of all time, is a novel by Harper Lee published in 1960.
It was immediately successful, winning the Pulitzer Prize, and has become a classic of modern American literature.
The plot and characters are loosely based on Lee's observations of her family, her neighbors and an event that occurred near her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama, in 1936, when she was 10 years old.
The story is told by the six-year-old Jean L To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
To Kill a Mockingbird one of the best-loved stories of all time, is a novel by Harper Lee published in 1960.
It was immediately successful, winning the Pulitzer Prize, and has become a classic of modern American literature.
The plot and characters are loosely based on Lee's observations of her family, her neighbors and an event that occurred near her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama, in 1936, when she was 10 years old.
The story is told by the six-year-old Jean Louise Finch.
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز بیست و هشتم از ماه آوریل سال1994میلادی
عنوان: کشتن مرغ مینا؛ نویسنده: هارپر لی؛ مترجم: فخرالدین میررمضانی، تهران، توس، سال1370، در378ص؛ چاپ دیگر تهران، امیرکبیر، سال1390، در414ص؛ شابک9789640013816؛ چاپ دیگر: تهران، علمی فرهنگی، سال1393، در378ص؛ شابک978600121573؛ موضوع داستانهای نویسندگان ایالات متحده آمریکا - سده20م
مترجم دیگر: بابک تیموریان، تهران، ناس، سال1390، در504ص، شابک9789649917733؛
مترجم دیگر: روشنک ضرابی، تهران، انتشارات میلکان، سال1394، در360ص، شابک9786007845196؛
باور کردنی نیست، تا روز بیست و هشتم ماه دسامبر سال2015میلادی یا همان روز هشتم دیماه سال1395هجری خورشیدی، تنها در گودریدز بیش از سه میلیون کاربر همین کتاب را ستاره باران کرده اند؛ در تاریخ ششم ماه فوریه سال2020میلادی برابر با روز هفدهم ماه بهمن سال1398هجری خورشیدی این تعداد به4,184,604؛ مورد رسیده است؛ «مرغ مینا» پرنده‌ ای کوچک است، که توان تقلید صدا دارد، «مرغ مقلد» هم، صدای پرندگان دیگر را تقلید میکند؛
کتاب «کشتن مرغ مقلد»، نوشته ی بانوی روانشاد «هارپر لی»، که با عنوان: «کشتن مرغ مینا» در «ایران» منتشر شده، نخستین بار در جهان در سال1960میلادی، به نشر سپرده شد، یکسال بعد، جایزه ی پولیتزر را برد؛ در سال1962میلادی نیز، «رابرت مولیگان»، فیلمی با اقتباس از متن همین کتاب ساختند، و در همان سال، ایشان هم توانستند، سه جایزه اسکار را، از آن خود کنند؛ فیلم جایزه ی بهترین بازیگر مرد را برای «گریگوری پک»، و جایزه های بهترین کارگردان هنری، و بهترین فیلمنامه ی اقتباس شده را، از آن خود کرد؛ بد نیست بیفزایم، خانم «هارپر لی»، تا یک دو سال مانده به پایان عمر پرفروغ خویش، تنها همین رمان را نوشته بودند، براساس واگویه ای از ایشان، بنوشته اند (در عصری که همه ی مردمان «لپ ‌تاپ»، «موبایل»، و «آی پاد» دارند، اما ذهنهاشان، همچون یک اتاق، خالیه؛ ترجیح میدهم، وقتم را با کتابهایم سپری کنم.) پایان نقل
ایشان در سال2007میلادی نیز، نشان آزادی را، از دست «رئیس جمهور آمریکا»، دریافت کردند؛
نقل از متن کتاب: (حواستون باشه کشتن مرغ مقلد گناهه؛ این را برای نخستین بار از «اتیکاس» شنیدم، که انجام کاری گناه داره، واسه همین هم به خانوم «مودی» گفتم؛ اون هم جواب داد پدرت درست گفته، مرغ مقلد، هیچکار نمیکنه، تنها برایمان میخونه، تا لذت ببریم؛ با تمام وجودش هم برامون میخونه؛ واسه همین هم کشتنش گناه داره) پایان نقل
هشدار: اگر کتاب را میخواهید بخوانید، از خوانش چکیده، پرهیز کنید
چکیده: «اسکات» و «جیم»، خواهر و برادر کوچکی هستند، که مادرشان سالها پیش از درب این سرای فانی بگذشته است، آن دو با پدرشان «اتیکاش»، در شهر کوچکی زندگی میکنند؛ پدر وکیل شهر هستند، و برای انسانیت، و باورهای مردمان احترام میگذارند؛ ایشان هماره کوشش میکند تا فرزندانش را انسان بار آورد؛ داستان از زبان کودک، و به زیبایی روایت میشود، قرار است یک سیاهپوست به نام: «تام»، به جرم تجاوز به دختری سفیدپوست، محاکمه شود، در حالیکه معلوم است، «تام» آن کار را نکرده است، و «آتیکوس» میخواهد، از ایشان دفاع کند، مردمان شهر، بر علیه «آتیکوس» هستند، و ایشان به عنوان یک پدر، میخواهند فرزندانش، در شرایط دشوار درست رفتار کنند؛
تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 18/05/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 19/09/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی ...more
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Mar 11, 2008 Kim rated it it was amazing
Shelves: cultured, simpatico, mmix
Why is it when I pick up To Kill A Mockingbird , I am instantly visited by a sensory memory: I’m walking home, leaves litter the ground, crunching under my feet. I smell the smoke of fireplaces and think about hot cider and the wind catches and my breath is taken from me and I bundle my coat tighter against me and lift my head to the sky, no clouds, just a stunning blue that hurts my eyes, another deep breath and I have this feeling that all is okay.
Why? Why this memory? I mean, this takes pla Why is it when I pick up To Kill A Mockingbird , I am instantly visited by a sensory memory: I’m walking home, leaves litter the ground, crunching under my feet. I smell the smoke of fireplaces and think about hot cider and the wind catches and my breath is taken from me and I bundle my coat tighter against me and lift my head to the sky, no clouds, just a stunning blue that hurts my eyes, another deep breath and I have this feeling that all is okay.
Why? Why this memory? I mean, this takes place in Alabama and mostly in the summer, well there is that one climatic scene on Halloween, but I bet it’s still hot enough to melt the balls off a brass monkey.
It must be the school thing, my daughter just finished reading it, prompting me to give it another go, to fall back into Scout’s world and pretend to be eight and let life simply be.
How is that? How can life for Scout be simple? I mean, she lives in the south, during the depression, she has to deal with ignorant schoolteachers and town folk, her ideas of what is right, what is what it should be are laughed at by her schoolmates… man, and I thought my childhood was rough.
Still, she lives in this idyllic town, I mean, except for the racism and the creepy neighbors and the whole fact that it’s, you know, the south…(forgive me… I’m not immune to the downfalls of the north, I mean, we had witches and well, Ted Bundy was born here…) But, there’s this sense of childlike innocence to this book that makes me believe in humanity… even in the throes of evil. What am I saying here? I guess, that this is a good pick me up.
What I also get from this book is that I have severe Daddy issues. I consume Atticus Finch in unnatural ways. He is the ultimate father; he has the perfect response for every situation. He is the transcendent character. My heart melts at each sentence devoted to him and I just about crumble during the courtroom scene.
Am I gushing? I sure am. I was raised by a man who thought that Budweiser can artwork was the epitome of culture. That drinking a 6-pack was the breakfast of champions. That college was for sissies. He could throw out a racial slur without a single thought, care or worry to who was around. I won't even get into the debates/rantings of a 16 yr old me vs a 42 yr old him... What a role model.
So, I thank Harper Lee for giving me Atticus. I can cuddle up with my cider and pretend that I’m basking in his light. I can write this blurb that makes sense to maybe a handful but that is okay, I am approved of and all is good.
...more
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Black Snake If you like Audiobooks then please check out and subscribe to my audiobook youtube channel The Audiobook Library. You will find some great Audiobooks If you like Audiobooks then please check out and subscribe to my audiobook youtube channel The Audiobook Library. You will find some great Audiobooks there to listen.. Thanks a lot!😊 ...more
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Jun 03, 2017 leynes rated it did not like it · review of another edition
/// gentle reminder that this is not the time to read this book ///
This is my first re-read of 2017, and I don't regret it one bit. When I first read this book three years ago, I really liked it. Sadly, I didn't write my thoughts down in an elaborate way back in the day, but I know for sure, that I didn't read critically then. Upon my re-read of this book, I honestly don't have good things to say. I am aware that some of my criticism is not a critique of the book itself, but about its perception /// gentle reminder that this is not the time to read this book ///
This is my first re-read of 2017, and I don't regret it one bit. When I first read this book three years ago, I really liked it. Sadly, I didn't write my thoughts down in an elaborate way back in the day, but I know for sure, that I didn't read critically then. Upon my re-read of this book, I honestly don't have good things to say. I am aware that some of my criticism is not a critique of the book itself, but about its perception, and how it is, up to this day, held up as the one true book about race relations in the United States of America.
And that really infiruates me. This book was written by a white woman, from a white perspective, about white characters, for a white audience. This book is a pat on the back for the white middle class. This book gives comfort to the white middle class. Comfort that they, especially back in the 1960s, didn't need, and allow me to be so bold, didn't deserve.
Harper Lee's focus is purely white. While the white characters in this book are the subjects, who take action into their own hands, who suffer and make sacrifices, the Black characters in this book are objects. They have little to no agency. Things happen to them. They are harmless, defenseless, and just there – waiting for the white knight hero, Atticus Finch, to save them. This book is a disgrace in the face of the Black liberation movements that existed back in the day, and the solidarity within Black communities. Black people stood up for themselves and fought for their rights, and only due to their voices, their protests, their sit-ins, their marches, their demonstrations, their conferences, was racial segregation made unconstitutional in the United States.
Black people, back then and now, know that Atticus Finch doesn't exist. And because no one put in better words than the one and only James Baldwin, I will quote a passage from one of his amazing interviews on the Dick Cavett Show in 1968. One could say that this is Baldwin's response to the cry of "not all white people":

> James Baldwin: I don't know what most white people in this country feel. But I can only conclude what they feel from the state of their institutions. I don't know if white Christians hate Negroes or not, but I know we have a Christian church which is white and a Christian church which is black. That says a great deal for me about a Christian nation. [...] I don't know whether the labor unions and their bosses really hate me - that doesn't matter - but I know I'm not [allowed] in their union. I don't know whether the real estate lobby has anything against black people, but I know the real estate lobby is keeping me in the ghetto. I don't know if the board of education hates black people, but I know the textbooks they give my children to read and the schools we have to go to. Now, this is the evidence. You want me to make an act of faith, risking myself, my wife, my woman, my sister, my children on some idealism which you assure me exists in America, which I have never seen.

This right here is what I'm talking about. To Kill A Mockingbird plays into this idealism. Although the book touches on the horrors of racism in the Deep South, it’s a strangely comforting read. A terrible injustice is done, but at the end the status quo is reassuringly restored. The final message is that most (white) people are nice when you get to know them.
As a reader you are never allowed to feel with Tom Robinson, the Black man who is innocently convicted for raping a white woman, because all the Black characters in this tale are sidelined. This story should be about them, because how else would you be able to convince the white moderate (in the 1960s) that Black people are actually people. The closest insight we get to a Black character is the family's cook Calpurnia. Calpurnia is in the fictional tradition of the "happy black", the contented slave – the descendent of the ever-loyal Mammy in Gone With the Wind. And the rest of the Black community is depicted as a group of simple, respectful folk – passive and helpless and all touchingly grateful to Atticus Finch – the white saviour. We never see any of them angry or upset. We never see the effect of Tom Robinson’s death on his family up close – we don't witness Helen, Tom's wife, grieving and Scout never wonders about his children. Their distress is kept at safe distance from the reader.
I was very angry after finishing this book, and I'm still angry up to this day. Not necessarily at Harper Lee, but at our society as a whole, and at our educational system. Why do we constantly uplift white narratives, whilst brushing over marginalized ones? Why aren't our kids reading If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin – a book dealing with the exact same topic (a Black man getting falsely accused of raping a woman)? Why isn't Lorraine Hansberry required reading? Why are we still relying on white narratives, when talking about Black people and their struggles?
Since finishing this book, I started reading The History of Legal Education in the United States and I wanted to share some interesting facts, because I couldn't believe how absurd To Kill A Mockingbird was. This story is, supposedly, set in the Deep South in the 1930s, where Atticus Finch, our white saviour, takes it upon himself to defend a Black man at court. By the end of Lee's novel we are led to believe that Atticus had a great chance of actually getting Tom Robinson acquitted, if the latter had just been a "good n*gger" and didn't try to escape on his own. (Yes, I'm a little petty. I swear, I'm not turning bitter over this.) So, I just wanted to know how realistic that scenario is. All of the information is related to the 1930s Southern setting. Here's what I've learned:
Most Southern lawyers readily accepted Black clients for routine economic cases – property, tort, contract, dept, insurance – and minor criminal cases that did not threaten the South's system of racial hierarchy. It was virtually impossible, however, to find a Southern white lawyer who would accept a major criminal case involving a white victim or a politically charged case that in any way challenged segregation.
Only the combination of direct action, community organizing and legal strategy with the help of Black lawyers, made the defense of Black men and women at court possible. In the Lockett-case, the Black community in Tulsa survived largely because Black lawyers were able to defend the community's interests. In 1934, Black lawyers represented George Crawford, a Black man accused of brutally murdering a wealthy white woman – no white lawyer would take Crawford's case. In the end, Crawford got a sentence of life imprisonment instead of a death sentence. And this verdict had to be seen as an accomplishment by the Black lawyers and the Black community as a whole, because life imprisonment was as good as it was going to get.
Oftentimes, Black lawyers took serious criminal cases without a fee or at a very reduced rate. This was well appreciated by their communities, but also a given. It is admirable how well Black communities were organized. None of that got translated on the pages of Lee's novel. The Black characters do absolutely nothing, except sending Atticus food, because they're so grateful. [*insert snort here*]
This book appears to uphold the standard of racial equality; de facto it is about the white middle class patting themselves on the back for not thinking racist thoughts. I'm sorry to break it to you, Miss Maudie, but you won't get a sugar cookie for that. I am not saying that this is not a realistic portrayal of the white middle class, it is, it totally is. If you do just a little research on the Civil Rights movement, the moral apathy of the white middle class becomes crystal clear. However, we shouldn't portray these characters in a positive light, there is nothing admirable about them. After all...

> He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against is really cooperating with it.
> - Martin Luther King, Jr.

...more
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Apr 03, 2016 Brina rated it it was amazing
Shelves: southern, all-time-favorites, classics, pulitzer-winner, rereads, 500-great-books-women, race-relations
With endless books and infinitely more to be written in the future, it is rare occasion that I take the time to reread a novel. As women’s history month is upon us (2019), I have kept revising my monthly lineup to feature books by remarkable women across the spectrum. Yet, none of these nonfiction books pay homage to the writers of the books themselves. Even with memoirs, the prose focuses on the author’s achievements in her chosen field. Last week a goodreads friend and I paid tribute to women With endless books and infinitely more to be written in the future, it is rare occasion that I take the time to reread a novel. As women’s history month is upon us (2019), I have kept revising my monthly lineup to feature books by remarkable women across the spectrum. Yet, none of these nonfiction books pay homage to the writers of the books themselves. Even with memoirs, the prose focuses on the author’s achievements in her chosen field. Last week a goodreads friend and I paid tribute to women authors in a daily literary journal. In one of my friend’s posts, she pointed out that as recently as 1960, the author of the most endearing of American novels had to use a masculinized version of her name in fear of not being published. Nelle Harper Lee of Monroeville, Alabama published To Kill a Mockingbird under her middle name, so only those well read readers are aware of the author’s full name. It is in this regard, that I included Pulitzer and Presidential Medal of Freedom winner Nelle Harper Lee in my Women’s History month lineup. It is as auspicious of a time as any to reread one of America’s greatest novels.
When I was in ninth grade English class, I read Harper Lee’s novel for the first time. At age fourteen I was hardly a polished writer and struggled with many of the assignments. Yet, I do remember that the top essay in the class focused on the overarching theme of courage and how Harper Lee showed how each of the characters, major and minor, embodied this trait in the trying times associated with the novel. It was courageous of a southern woman to write a novel with this subject matter prior to the passage of the civil rights act. It is of little wonder to me looking back now that she chose to publish under a gender neutral name. Perhaps, she feared a lynch mob or being outcast in her home town. It was a trying time as the federal government asserted itself against states still grieving from the war between the states and holding out as the last bulwarks of white superiority. Harper Lee exhibited as much courage as the characters in her novel, and rightfully was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for her work. As such, being courageous starts from the top and works its way down to each and every character of this timeless work.
In 1930s rural Maycomb, Alabama people were pretty much set in their way of life. Town folk had received an education and worked as lawyers, doctors, bankers, and businessmen. The country folk may or may not have received an education because they had to work the fields and many were illiterate. Even the majority of those educated white folk still saw themselves as superior to blacks, and few, if any, had the audacity to take a black’s word over a white’s even if it were the correct moral thing to do. Yet, the crux of Lee’s novel is a court case threatening to disrupt this way of life, having the town divide along both racial and moral lines, and having each character step into others’ shoes and view the world from another’s perspective. Maycomb at the time embodied many rural American cities, isolated from progress as town set in its ways with few people who were willing to see the world from another perspective. One man was, however, a lawyer named Atticus Finch who is among the most revered fictional characters ever created. Even though this court case should not have been his, his superiors selected Atticus to counsel a black defendant because they realized that he was the one man in Maycomb who had both the ability to empathize and the courage to do so. His neighbor Mrs Maudie Atkinson noted that Atticus was the same man in the court house as he was at home and had nothing to fear. A widower, he instilled these values to his children Jeremy Atticus (Jem) and Jean Louise (Scout) from a young age, passing a strong moral compass onto his children.
In addition to critiquing southern race relations, Lee’s novel has endeared itself to children with the legend of Boo Radley. From the time they were young, Jem, Scout, and their summer friend Dill had courage to go to the Radley house trying to get Boo to come out even though all the other kids said the house was spooked. Atticus told them to put a halt to these childish games and explained Boo Radley’s background to them. The town claimed that Boo Radley was a ghost, but perhaps the reason he did not leave the house is because he did not want to. As the children grew older, Atticus warned them that there would be darker times ahead and they would have to be courageous in the face of what people said to them behind their backs. From the time Scout began school in first grade, she inhibited Atticus’ ability to stand up for what was right. Her teacher Miss Robinson was new to Maycomb and did not understand people’s ways. Scout explained about the Cunninghams, the Ewells, as well as other families at a personal cost to herself. As Scout grew older and was able to step into other people’s’ shoes more, she grew to understand differences between folks; however, she and Jem realized that differences did not make the world distinctly black and white or right and wrong. During an era when children were looked upon as unintelligent, Scout and Jem were wise beyond their years and following in their father’s footsteps.
Harper Lee created strong archetypal characters and had each embody their own courage. Each’s courage allowed Atticus to teach his children a life lesson that would endure for the rest of their lives. The family’s neighbor Mrs. Henry Lafayette DuBose demonstrates courage as she battles a final illness. Third grade teacher Mrs. Gates exhibits courage as she teaches Scout’s class about the rise of Nazism in Germany and th encourages her students to think for themselves about the differences between prejudices at home and abroad. The African American characters all demonstrate strong courage as well. The Finch’s housekeeper Calpurnia is a bridge between the white and black communities of Maycomb and does not hesitate to teach Scout and Jem life lessons as they arise. The Reverend Sykes welcomes Jem and Scout into his congregation as though they were his own and invites them to sit in the colored balcony at time when segregation was still the law. He risked a lynching and knew that the Finch family could possibly be labeled as negro lovers, yet Reverend Sykes played a small role in proving that one’s skin color should not determine whether someone is right or wrong. Of course, as part of the overarching story line, Boo Radley can be viewed as the most courageous character of them all. It is through the courage of an author to create characters who will stand up for what is morally right at a large cost to themselves that she created an award winning novel that was ahead of its time for its era. It is little wonder that the courage of these fictional characters has made the novel as beloved as it is today.
I believe that the courage exhibited by all these characters has made the town of Maycomb, Alabama stand the test of time and remain the timeless classic that it is. Most people can relate to those who have the courage to stand up for what they think is right or to fight against those tougher than them. This character trait has endeared the Finch family to millions of readers and will continue to do so for generations to come. Whenever a person asks what book would you give as a gift or what is the perfect book, To Kill a Mockingbird is my first choice. I find that it is perfect for any time but most appropriate in spring as in addition to courage there is an underlying theme of hope. Harper Lee won the Pulitzer for this timeless classic, and it also won first place in the Great American Read as America’s best novel. Thus I can think of no better way to honor women’s history month than with a timeless book that has and will continue to capture the hearts and minds of all of its readers.
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Dec 25, 2014 Claudia Ramírez rated it really liked it
Shelves: 2015
So... I don't really know what to say.
I think I loved this book, but for a reason beyond my understanding, it never hooked me, and it took me AGES to finish it! Some chapters (especially at the beginning) were tedious and hard for me to get through them... but then there were some chapters that I devoured (the whole Tom Robinson trial and the last ones).
I definitely learned a lesson or two from this book. Atticus is my new role model, he is really incredible. I also love Scout and Jem, those kid So... I don't really know what to say.
I think I loved this book, but for a reason beyond my understanding, it never hooked me, and it took me AGES to finish it! Some chapters (especially at the beginning) were tedious and hard for me to get through them... but then there were some chapters that I devoured (the whole Tom Robinson trial and the last ones).
I definitely learned a lesson or two from this book. Atticus is my new role model, he is really incredible. I also love Scout and Jem, those kids will be in my heart forever. Oh! And I loved the Boo Radley storyline, it left me in awe.
This book surely deserves 5 solid stars, and I kinda feel bad for giving it 4 stars, but the thing is... I was struggling to finish it, I swear I let out a relieved sigh when I read the last sentence.
But all in all, it was a great read <3. And can't tell you how much I loved the last chapters, (view spoiler)[the part were Scout stands in Boo Radley's house and realizes the way he sees everything almost made me cry (hide spoiler)]. ...more
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May 02, 2010 Nataliya rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: my-childhood-bookshelves, 2015-reads, favorites, awesome-kickass-heroines, for-my-future-hypothetical-daughter, i-also-saw-the-film
Life gives you a few things that you can count on. Death (for all), taxes (for most), and the unwavering moral character of Atticus Finch (for me). "What would Atticus do?" is not just a meme; for eleven-year-old me it became a real consideration after I feigned an illness to cut school and stay home to finish To Kill a Mockingbird — while a decidedly non-Atticus-like move, choosing Harper Lee's book over sixth grade math was probably a wiser life choice.

> For my thoughts on the shameless money gr

Life gives you a few things that you can count on. Death (for all), taxes (for most), and the unwavering moral character of Atticus Finch (for me). "What would Atticus do?" is not just a meme; for eleven-year-old me it became a real consideration after I feigned an illness to cut school and stay home to finish To Kill a Mockingbird — while a decidedly non-Atticus-like move, choosing Harper Lee's book over sixth grade math was probably a wiser life choice.

> For my thoughts on the shameless money grab by the money-greedy publishers recently published first draft of the novel inexplicably (or read: cash grab) marketed as a sequel... Well, I think I just said it all.

I cannot be objective about this book - I don't think you can ever be about the things you love. I've read it many times as a child and a few times as an adult, and it never lost that special something that captivated me as a kid of Jem Finch's age.

> “[...] Before I can live with other folks I've got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience.”

To me, this book is as close to perfect as one can get.
It found a place in school curriculum because of its message, undoubtedly - but it's not what makes it so powerful. After all, if you have even a speck of brains you will understand that racism is wrong and you should treat people right and that “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.”
No, what makes it wonderful is the perfect narrative voice combining adult perspective while maintaining a child's voice, through which we glimpse both the grown-up woman looking back through the lessons of years while still seeing the unmistakable innocence and incorruptible feistiness of young Scout Finch. And then there is the magic of the slow measured narration painting the most vivid picture of the sleepy Southern town where there's enough darkness lurking inside the people's souls to be picked up even by very young, albeit quite perceptive children.

> "If there's just one kind of folks, why can't they get along with each other? If they're all alike, why do they go out of their way to despise each other? Scout, I think I'm beginning to understand something. I think I'm beginning to understand why Boo Radley's stayed shut up in the house all this time. It's because he wants to stay inside.”

And then there's Atticus Finch. Yes, there may be countless articles all fueled by Lee's first draft about his 'transformation' into a bigot - but I refuse to jump on that bandwagon. I stand behind him the way Lee developed him in the book she *did* publish. Because I sleep better knowing that there are people out there who are good and principled and kind and compassionate, who will do everything they can with the utmost patience to teach their children to be decent human beings.

> “I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what."

What shines in this book the most for me is the amazing relationship between parent and child. It's the amazing guidance that the Finch children get in becoming good human beings that many of us would give up a lot for. I know I would. Because to me it will never be a story of a white man saving the world (and some, especially with the publication of that ridiculous first draft, would dismiss it as such). To me, it's the story of a child growing up and learning to see the world with the best possible guidance. It's a story of learning to understand and respect kindness and forgiveness and that sometimes you do right things not just because you're told to but because they are right things to do.

I see enough stupidity and nonsense and injustice in this world. And after all of it, what I often do need is Atticus Finch and reassurance that things can be right, and that with the few exceptions, even if I struggle to see it, "[...] there's just one kind of folks. Folks." and that, disillusioned as we become as we go on in life, "Most people are [nice], Scout, when you finally see them.”
Five stars from both child and adult me. ...more
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Jun 13, 2008 Petra cyborg with holes & screws in her skull now rated it it was amazing
Shelves: 2015-reviews, reviewed, fiction
Even in the evil times when John Crow ruled the South and the Blacks were scarcely more free than in times of slavery and were allowed no civic power nor respect from their erswhile masters who were White, good men did their best.
As regards this book, the last phrase is a lie.
Atticus, a lawyer and good and caring father, a moral man, represented a Black man accused of raping a White woman. He lost, but he'd done his best.
That last paragraph is a lie.
Atticus belonged to the KKK, thought that Bla Even in the evil times when John Crow ruled the South and the Blacks were scarcely more free than in times of slavery and were allowed no civic power nor respect from their erswhile masters who were White, good men did their best.
As regards this book, the last phrase is a lie.
Atticus, a lawyer and good and caring father, a moral man, represented a Black man accused of raping a White woman. He lost, but he'd done his best.
That last paragraph is a lie.
Atticus belonged to the KKK, thought that Blacks were a distinctly lower form of human life and that separate development (ie. apartheid) was the best way to go for these childlike people who didn't have the reasoning power to rule, he said in Go Set a Watchman.
That last paragraph is mostly a lie.
Atticus did belong to the KKK but he did not really think Blacks were a lower form of human life at all. That was just what he said for the benefit of others. He really thought their intellectual power and ability to organise was greatly to be feared. He was frightened that Whites would have to give up having a life of ease and wealth structured around the cheap labour Black people had no alternative but to provide. He didn't even want to have to consider them at all.
Atticus represented the accused Black rapist only because if a White lawyer didn't then he was sure the NAACP would send in a very clever Black lawyer and not only that but insist, since these times were officially 'free', that Black people sit on the jury. Then he would not be sure of a conviction. The Blacks then feeling their oats would move in to the town and start demanding rights and power much to the detriment of the extremely exploitative and racist Whites.
When Harper Lee wrote all this, in Go Set a Watchman her publishers were apparently horrified and got her to rewrite the book from the point of view of a decent man who felt racism was a great evil, we were all equal. Is this why Harper Lee never wrote another book? Did she feel that her views were unacceptable and she wasn't going to kow-tow to some liberal publishers up North who didn't understand the ways of the South? Is that why she didn't give interviews too? She'd followed the advice of her publishers, been lauded and rewarded but humiliated as an artist.
Schools still teaching this book as a moral lesson should incorporate their understanding of the first draft, Go Set a Watchman. Otherwise they are doing the children a disservice in their moral education and furthering the ideas of paternalism is better than self-determination, racism had its softer side and that ignoring the truth (Watchman) to tell a good story is a perfectly fine concept for educationalists to embrace. It's not.
Five stars because it is a very well-written and enjoyable book and hangs together with Go Set a Watchman perfectly.
Read years ago, probably about 1 Jan 2000 ...more
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Apr 18, 2012 Eddy Allen rated it did not like it
While the plot was very gripping and well-written, the book didn't actually instruct me on how to kill a mockingbird. I bought this book intending to do away with this obnoxious bird that's always sitting in my backyard and making distracting noises. I had hoped this book would shed some light on how to humanely dispose of the bird, but unfortunately it was this story about a lawyer and a falsely-accused criminal. As I said, the plot is great but nowhere in the book does it say exactly how to ki While the plot was very gripping and well-written, the book didn't actually instruct me on how to kill a mockingbird. I bought this book intending to do away with this obnoxious bird that's always sitting in my backyard and making distracting noises. I had hoped this book would shed some light on how to humanely dispose of the bird, but unfortunately it was this story about a lawyer and a falsely-accused criminal. As I said, the plot is great but nowhere in the book does it say exactly how to kill a mockingbird. ...more
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Nov 13, 2007 Houston rated it it was amazing
“Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing.”(p. 20)
I love this book and this idea of reading being like breathing. As Scout did, I read early too, and often. Every night before bed I would read and still do. I saw a Twilight Zone Episode once where the main character loved to read and only wanted to be left alone to do so. After falling asleep in the vault of the bank where he worked, he awoke to a post-disaster world where only he was left. He busily gat “Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing.”(p. 20)
I love this book and this idea of reading being like breathing. As Scout did, I read early too, and often. Every night before bed I would read and still do. I saw a Twilight Zone Episode once where the main character loved to read and only wanted to be left alone to do so. After falling asleep in the vault of the bank where he worked, he awoke to a post-disaster world where only he was left. He busily gathered together all the books he wanted to read, all organized and stacked up. Just as he chose one to start with, his glasses fell and he stepped on them trying to find them. It was terrible and I remember feeling horrified that this man would never get to read again! Such a thought had never occurred to me. This semester I had to get glasses myself after suffering migraines from reading. I was so nervous at the eye doctor because the thought of not being able to read was too much for me. Of course, I only needed readers, but when I ran across this quote, I thought about how much like breathing reading is for me.
“Simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win.” (p. 87)
Never say die! Fight the good fight no matter what! I love the anti-defeatist message in this quote. Even though Atticus knows the deck is stacked against him, he tries anyway. He understands that sometimes you have to fight the un-winnable fight just for the chance that you might win. It makes me think that what he’s trying to teach his children is never to give up just because things look dim.
“...before I can live with other folks I've got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience.” (p. 120)
As Shakespeare said, “To thine own self be true.” That’s really all that matters. At the end of the day, when you lay down, you have to know that you did the right things, acted the right way and stayed true to yourself. Again, Atticus understands that the town is talking; he has to explain to his kids why he continues against the tide of popular thought. He sums it up so well here.
“We never put back into the tree what we took out of it: we had given him nothing, and it made me sad.”(p. 320)
I love the sad way this quote sounds. It is clearly the thoughts of a child, for hadn’t Scout just given Boo his dignity as they were walking home? Hadn’t she and Jem given him children to care for and watch over? But she knows too, even from her child’s perspective, that they could never give him anything close to what he had given them—their lives. It just sounds so beautifully sad.
Works Cited
Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. New York: HarperCollins, 2002. Print.
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Apr 27, 2018 Petrik rated it really liked it · review of another edition
A short, important, and powerful classic that deserved all its fame.
This will be a short review, there’s nothing else I can talk about here that hasn’t been discussed for the past 50 years and more.
Racism, prejudice, rape, false accusation of rape, all of these are abhorrent and really should have never existed in the first place within our world and society. However, it does. I find it insanely sad that even though this book was published more than 50 years ago, has also been used as an educati A short, important, and powerful classic that deserved all its fame.
This will be a short review, there’s nothing else I can talk about here that hasn’t been discussed for the past 50 years and more.
Racism, prejudice, rape, false accusation of rape, all of these are abhorrent and really should have never existed in the first place within our world and society. However, it does. I find it insanely sad that even though this book was published more than 50 years ago, has also been used as an educational book for countless young students and even with countless histories to learn from, it seems that some human will never ever learn from hem and the main problems depicted in this book is still very evident in our time.

> “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.”

I’ll be honest, I didn’t understand how important the message this book tried to give when I was a kid; it bored the crap out of me and I didn’t make it to the exceptional court scene. Maybe same as the main character in this book, I didn’t truly understand the gravity of the situation yet when I was young. Now though? Let’s just say I realized why this book became one of the most highly famous and well-received classics.
One last thing, Atticus Finch is truly a role model to aspire to, as a father, a lawyer, and most of all, a human being; truly a well-written protagonist.

> “They're certainly entitled to think that, and they're entitled to full respect for their opinions... but before I can live with other folks I've got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience.”

If it wasn’t for some part in the first half that bored me, this would’ve received a 5 stars. But if we’re speaking about the message to be taken from this book? this was without a doubt an important and wonderful short read.

> “Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing.”

Amazing job on writing this book, Harper Lee. May you rest in peace.
You can find the rest of my Adult Epic/High Fantasy & Sci-Fi reviews at BookNest ...more
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Dec 17, 2019 Reading_ Tamishly rated it it was amazing
First of all, let's forget it's a 'classic' that we all 'must' read for the sake of reading a classic.
Second of all, let's have no inhuman high expectations from this book.
Third of all, it's enough to know that this has been written from the perspective of a six year old girl.
And that's how we should pick up this one and go for it like we are picking up a newly released book and seriously that's the way it should be for everyone I would like to say...like again!
I won't go into details regarding First of all, let's forget it's a 'classic' that we all 'must' read for the sake of reading a classic.
Second of all, let's have no inhuman high expectations from this book.
Third of all, it's enough to know that this has been written from the perspective of a six year old girl.
And that's how we should pick up this one and go for it like we are picking up a newly released book and seriously that's the way it should be for everyone I would like to say...like again!
I won't go into details regarding what the book is about.
*Why the 5 🌟 though:
The language is pretty simple and will stick with all kinds of reader till the end.
The flow is neat, clear and fast paced as a few characters are pretty mysterious and then there's some mystery element to the plot.
The characters are amazingly well-developed. Each and every character introduced has a clear role and has been given importance.
Subtle hints and sudden plot twists keep the pace rolling!
The character dynamics are the main highlights of this book.
Themes tackled are hugely impactful. It talks about race discrimination, child upbringing, justice, family and in general how one human should see another human as.
I cannot point out all the things I loved about this book at the moment but yes, this book is much, much more than the things I have mentioned above.
The warmth in the story narration is something I did not expect at all. I am genuinely surprised still.
Atticus will remain as one of my most loved, unforgettable characters. His character is so wholesome and someone to look up to.
The different emotions in between the lines are deep and I just couldn't ignore them. The humour is just incomparable. And yes, I gasped a lot in between regarding the unexpected turns in the story sequence.
The bond between the siblings, the kids and their father, the friendship and the neighborhood, kinship relationship have been so well depicted. And yes, the court room scenes are just dealt with amazingly. I would say almost perfectly but yes, even though the lines have been perfect and great, I somehow felt that a real courtroom would never have perfect dialogues like that. And not everyone would just nod their heads even though everything spoken was right.
Some scenes broke my heart. Some scenes made me really helpless. Some scenes made me want to save some of the characters so bad that I had to hold the book for minutes before continuing on.
The ending was perfect. There's closure. There's victory.
My reader soul has found another of its missing pieces! ...more
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Jun 18, 2014 Sean Barrs rated it it was amazing
Recommends it for: humanity
Shelves: postcolonial
I’m not going to do my usual thing where I’d try to explain what I liked about this book. Normally, I would try to convince you why you should read it. I would speak about how important this book is and what message it could impart to its readers around the world. I would even say how it affected me personally. Today I’m not going to do that.
Instead, I will simply say that I loved this book. I loved its characters. I loved its plot. And I loved the eloquent way in which Harper Lee wrote it. It I’m not going to do my usual thing where I’d try to explain what I liked about this book. Normally, I would try to convince you why you should read it. I would speak about how important this book is and what message it could impart to its readers around the world. I would even say how it affected me personally. Today I’m not going to do that.
Instead, I will simply say that I loved this book. I loved its characters. I loved its plot. And I loved the eloquent way in which Harper Lee wrote it. It made me laugh and it made me cry. Her words are real and her story is truth.
This book is one of the wisest, most finely crafted, pieces of prose fiction I have ever read.
I didn’t want it to ever end. ...more
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Jul 09, 2019 Dr. Appu Sasidharan rated it it was amazing
Shelves: favorites
This is one of the most widely read books in the twentieth century. As most of us might have read this novel in high school, many emotions, including nostalgia, will come to our mind when we hear about the story of Maycomb and its denizens. This novel, set during the Great Depression, discusses a lot of vital topics like racism and sexual assault.
Atticus Finch is not just a hero for Scout, Jem, and the lawyers, but he is considered the hero of a whole generation. If you are someone who
This is one of the most widely read books in the twentieth century. As most of us might have read this novel in high school, many emotions, including nostalgia, will come to our mind when we hear about the story of Maycomb and its denizens. This novel, set during the Great Depression, discusses a lot of vital topics like racism and sexual assault.
Atticus Finch is not just a hero for Scout, Jem, and the lawyers, but he is considered the hero of a whole generation. If you are someone who loves books, you might have already read this book. If you belong to the minority who haven't read it yet, I request you to try to include it in your reading list. This is one of the very few books about which I can confidently say that everyone should read.

> "The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience."

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Oct 26, 2011 Henry Avila rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Alabama in U.S.A., 1935 during the crippling bleak, Great Depression, Atticus Finch a widower, struggling lawyer and ultimate believer in justice for everybody, (a gentleman, if ever there was one) is raising two small children Scout, (Jean Louise) and Jem, (Jeremy) a typical American boy, he likes to have fun in the fictitious mostly quiet , small southern town of Maycomb. The siblings are unusually close, the father is absent often being a politician in the legislature, in Montgomery, the stat Alabama in U.S.A., 1935 during the crippling bleak, Great Depression, Atticus Finch a widower, struggling lawyer and ultimate believer in justice for everybody, (a gentleman, if ever there was one) is raising two small children Scout, (Jean Louise) and Jem, (Jeremy) a typical American boy, he likes to have fun in the fictitious mostly quiet , small southern town of Maycomb. The siblings are unusually close, the father is absent often being a politician in the legislature, in Montgomery, the state capital. Calpurina their black servant, takes good care of them and they all love, is the real parent of the kids, and of course, considered a member of the family. Mr. Finch is a rather remote uncomfortable father, the children call him by his first name of Atticus. Scout age eight, a tomboy, Jem who's four years older than his precocious sister and friend Dill, (Charles Baker Harris) a year older than Scout but not as big, and is frequently bullied, are always together. Dill from Meridian, Mississippi, spends the warm summers at his Aunt Rachel's house in town and is gratefully left alone. Next door to the Finch's live the Radley family, a strange people that keep to themselves, particularly Boo, (Arthur) a legendary creepy, mysterious man , who is never seen, weird stories abound about him by the curious, neighborhood kids, they test their bravery, by how close they can come to Boo's house. The gentle, Mr.Finch shocks Scout and Jem when he shoots a mad dog at the sheriff's request, Mr. Tate, knows Atticus's skill, but curiously he doesn't even have a gun at home, never seen with one either. This sleepy town awakens when Bob Ewell a lazy, notorious drunk, accuses a black man Tom Robinson of raping his flirtatious daughter, Mayella. The honorable Judge Taylor appoints Atticus, as Robinson's lawyer, an impossible task in that era. The trial brings people from all over Maycomb County , to the courthouse , Atticus Finch shines, but can he free an innocent man ? This story implies every human, should be treated with dignity, no matter what the color of their skin, and after so many years have gone by , is still the best novel in urging equality for all, what a concept... ...more
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Aug 05, 2007 Rishi rated it did not like it
Recommends it for: no one
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. A friend of mine once commented that To Kill a Mockingbird was the most racist book he'd ever read.
I agree with him. Now, I know this book is drawn from the author's true experiences, but she choose to write a novel and thus I will judge it as a novel. With it's irrevocable integration into the American (and Canadian) public school curricula, I think this novel has probably done more to perpetuate racial stereotypes than any other single force.
If I had to sum up To Kill a Mockingbird in one sen A friend of mine once commented that To Kill a Mockingbird was the most racist book he'd ever read.
I agree with him. Now, I know this book is drawn from the author's true experiences, but she choose to write a novel and thus I will judge it as a novel. With it's irrevocable integration into the American (and Canadian) public school curricula, I think this novel has probably done more to perpetuate racial stereotypes than any other single force.
If I had to sum up To Kill a Mockingbird in one sentence, this would be it: the poor helpless black man is lost until a saintly white man comes to his side to crusade for his cause. Unfortunately, the damn darkie is so stupid that he goes and gets himself killed just when the white man figured he had another shot at clearing him. Oh well, the white man tried his best, and for a negro too! What a hero.
What the hell is that? ...more
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Mar 08, 2016 Luca Ambrosino rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
English (To Kill a Mockingbird) / Italiano

> «When he was nearly thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow»

Alabama. Early 1930s. The Great Depression. Maycomb, an imaginary town. Tom Robinson (black), falsely accused rapist. Atticus (white), lawyer instructed to represent him. Scout and Jem (white), sons of Atticus. Dill (white), friend of Jem and Scout. Calpurnia (black), maid from Atticus house. Arthur "Boo" Radley (white), mysterious neighbour. Mayella Ewell (white), victim

English (To Kill a Mockingbird) / Italiano

> «When he was nearly thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow»

Alabama. Early 1930s. The Great Depression. Maycomb, an imaginary town. Tom Robinson (black), falsely accused rapist. Atticus (white), lawyer instructed to represent him. Scout and Jem (white), sons of Atticus. Dill (white), friend of Jem and Scout. Calpurnia (black), maid from Atticus house. Arthur "Boo" Radley (white), mysterious neighbour. Mayella Ewell (white), victim of a sexual assault. Bob Ewell (white), father of Mayella. Take all the elements listed above, add racism, ignorance, humanity, mix them up and you get the masterpiece of Harper Lee.

Sponsored even by the former president of USA Barack Obama, the message of the novel gets loud and clear: do the right thing, bravely, at all costs.

Vote: 9

> «Jem, mio fratello, aveva quasi tredici anni all’epoca in cui si ruppe malamente il gomito sinistro»

Alabama. Inizio anni 30. Grande depressione. Maycomb, cittadina immaginaria. Tom Robinson, nero, accusato ingiustamente di stupro. Atticus, bianco, avvocato incaricato di difenderlo. Scout e Jem, bianchi, figli di Atticus. Dill, bianco, amico di Jem e Scout. Calpurnia, nera, domestica al servizio di Atticus. Arthur "Boo" Radley, misterioso vicino di casa. Mayella Ewell, bianca, vittima di stupro. Bob Ewell, bianco, padre di Mayella. Prendete tutti gli elementi elencati, aggiungete il razzismo di alcuni, l'ignoranza di altri, l'umanità di altri ancora, mescolate tutto ed otterrete il capolavoro di Harper Lee.

Sponsorizzato finanche dall' ex-presidente degli USA Barack Obama, il messaggio del romanzo arriva forte e chiaro: fai la cosa giusta, a qualunque costo, con coraggio.

Voto: 9

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Dec 05, 2007 Denise rated it it was amazing
Recommends it for: Everyone
Recommended to Denise by: Bookgroup
Shelves: books-i-love-so-much-i-bought, made-into-movie, bookgroup, classics
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I looked up Harper Lee online this is her only published book. However, she did write a few articles that one can find and read online:
Love in other Words - Vogue
Christmas to me - McCalls
When Children Discover America
Romance and High Adventure
Her full name is Nellie Harper Lee - I bet she dropped the Nellie part so publishers would mistakenly think she was a man and read her material. She is also still alive and living in Monroeville, Alabama. And once you read about her and her family, you will I looked up Harper Lee online this is her only published book. However, she did write a few articles that one can find and read online:
Love in other Words - Vogue
Christmas to me - McCalls
When Children Discover America
Romance and High Adventure
Her full name is Nellie Harper Lee - I bet she dropped the Nellie part so publishers would mistakenly think she was a man and read her material. She is also still alive and living in Monroeville, Alabama. And once you read about her and her family, you will know that she is not the only amazing person in that family (guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree).
I was able to tell in the beginning that the book started in the 30's once Dill mentioned that he saw Dracula in the theaters. Dracula was in theaters in 1931-32 (don't ask how I know that), and they mentioned that they were in the Depression which started in 1929 (1927-28 for the farmers) and went on through out the 30's. Since they were openly drinking, Prohibition must have ended (1933). And, towards the end of the book, they were mentioning Hitler and what he was doing in Germany which took place in the late 30's. My history teachers would be so impressed that I retained all of that information. Too bad my head is so full of that information, I have to look up my own phone number.
I loved Scout. In fact, I get dibs on that name for a little girl- or did Bruce Willis and Demi Moore beat me to it? I loved that she wanted to be a person first and then a girl. And she supports the fact that little kids know the meaning of life and forget it as they get older. She had a great relationship with her brother and father and they encouraged her to be true to herself and not follow the stereotypes of ladies of that time. I loved her way of thinking especially how she drew the conclusion that if she starting swearing her dad would assume she picked up the bad habits from school and pull her out. And when she wanted to write a letter to Dill in invisible ink just to drive him crazy, I almost ruined the book because I was drinking a Diet Pepsi at the time.
I have a feeling that Harper Lee was just like Scout and have you noticed that all early 1900 female authors are tomboys? Louisa Mae Alcott was Jo in Little Women, Laura Wilder wrote about herself. It just goes to show you that the truly creative women were those that went against the stereotypes of the time.
I'm not sure I like the fact that Atticus allowed them to call him by his first name and not Dad, but aside from that he was the perfect role model. He talked to them, not at them, and he always listened. He firmly believed that it was important for his children to respect him and by NOT following the creed "Do as I say, not as I do", Scout and Jem would be able to look up to him. He wanted his children to look beyond the color of one's skin, therefore he did. He treated everyone as equal despite their race, family background, age or education and if more people did that, there wouldn't be as many problems today. His teaching methods worked. You can tell how much the children loved and looked up to him. Nothing hurt them more then having their father be ashamed of them. They didn't keep things from him because they thought he wouldn't understand. They kept things from him because they didn't want him to get hurt. And they always listened, because to disobey would hurt Atticus.
Atticus's brother was another one of my favorite characters even though he wasn't mentioned a lot. When he realized his error after punishing Scout for beating up her cousin and tried to make it right, it showed that he also strived to earn their respect just like Atticus. Nothing irates me more then when someone tells me I have to respect them because they are older than me. Whatever. Does that mean I have to respect Bob Ewall because he is older?
It's easy to see with all of the problems in the world why Boo Radley feels safer hiding from away from it. It takes a special person to admit defeat to the cliché "if you can't beat them join them" and turn his back on things he doesn't understand. I think everyone has a little bit of Boo in us, when we shut out the problems of the outside. Of course, we all have a little of Scout in us to especially when I come out fighting if anyone tries to hurt my family.
The court case. Wow, the sad thing is, is I can see that happening even today (i.e. the Rodney King trial). When I moved here the first time, just before the LA riots, there was a huge ordeal about a Korean, store-owner who shot and killed a 17-19 black, teenager girl, she claimed was stealing and attacking her. The security camera shows the tiff and it shows the teen putting down the item and walking towards the exit. The store owner shot her in the back and was found not-guilty, by reason of self-defense. When the book was published in 1960, discrimination was still a big problem. I did like how Harper Lee brought up Hitler's actions against the Jews. It was obvious that what was going on in America with African Americans was no different in her eyes than what Hitler was doing. I agree, we were just more discreet about it. Perhaps because deep inside, Americans knew it was wrong to treat African Americans as third class citizens so we tried to hide it more. Hitler was right out in the open with his actions.
I listed a few links that I discovered about To Kill A Mocking Bird:
http://www.lausd.k12.ca.us/Belmont_HS... The Student Survivor Guide. - This is amazing it has definitions of the harder words and references to the "Allusions and Idioms" that are used.
http://mockingbird.chebucto.org/ - This talks more about the author and her family. ...more
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Mar 08, 2013 Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽ rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: coming-of-age, made-me-think, i-own, favorites, classics, historical-fiction, literary-stuff, bingo-2016
What begins as, apparently, just an affectionate and humorous episodic tale of life in an Alabama town in the 1930s, and the personalities and quirks of the people who live there, gradually evolves into an amazing and powerful read, as a young girl called Scout becomes aware of her lawyer father's representation of Tom Robinson, a black man accused of raping a white woman, and the town's general attitude about that, which spills over into their treatment of Scout and her brother.
From an attorne
What begins as, apparently, just an affectionate and humorous episodic tale of life in an Alabama town in the 1930s, and the personalities and quirks of the people who live there, gradually evolves into an amazing and powerful read, as a young girl called Scout becomes aware of her lawyer father's representation of Tom Robinson, a black man accused of raping a white woman, and the town's general attitude about that, which spills over into their treatment of Scout and her brother.
From an attorney's point of view, the trial of Tom was fascinating: the differences in how courts handled trials in a small town 80 years ago, the speed and informality of the trial, the African American people relegated to the balconies. I have no idea how accurate Harper Lee's description of the trial actually was to real life, but it seems extremely plausible to me. Mayella Ewell and her father were so appallingly real to me. I loved old Judge Taylor, and Atticus is a hero. Boo Radley flits like a ghost throughout the book, a vivid symbol of vulnerable innocence that's echoed in Tom's trial.
I've read a lot of reviews of Go Set a Watchman, discussing the differences in Atticus' views on race and his personal prejudices between that book and this one, so I was keeping a particular eye out for anything in Mockingbird that would indicate he's prejudiced but nevertheless committed to doing his job. It's just not there, and frankly I'm glad about that. There's enough prejudice in that town that I didn't feel like I needed to see need Atticus struggling with that issue on a personal level.
Harper Lee explores our values and prejudices that we sometimes don't examine closely enough in ourselves, and the vital importance of courage and integrity. This book is a truly timeless classic. It made me smile but broke my heart a little bit at the same time - like many of the best books do.
Bonus material: In the comments thread below we got into a discussion about Harper Lee using the real-life Scottsboro Boys trial(s) in the early 1930's as inspiration for Tom Robinson's trial. It's a somewhat loose connection; there are some substantial differences between the facts of the cases, but some definite similarities as well. In both trials, innocent black men were accused of rape based solely on the unsubstantiated word of a white woman. In the Scottsboro trials, there were nine African-American men accused of rape while riding the rails in the company of two white woman, apparently in the prostitution business, who were trying to avoid prosecution themselves. The evidence did not support the women's claims, but juries convicted the defendants anyway. A Judge Horton tried to enforce a fair trial, but was replaced on retrial. One of the inmates later tried to escape prison and was shot by a guard, though he was not killed. All in all, the Scottboro events are vivid, awful proof that Tom Robinson's trial was realistic.
See http://www.enotes.com/homework-help/w... and http://civilrightstokillamockingbird.... ...more
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Jul 09, 2012 Maureen rated it it was amazing
Rereading this book as an adult made me realize how truly beautiful and wonderful it is. It will forever be one of my favorites.
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Mar 03, 2019 Annemarie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: read-in-english, all-time-favs
Gosh, this is one of my new all time favorite books! It's just a shame that I will never be able to fully express how and why it affected me as much as it did. But I can try my best to at least write a few words to let you know what things I enjoyed (spoiler: I enjoyed every single word).
This story deals with the very important and sensitive topic of racism and is told from the point of five of a little girl. I had my doubts if this combination would work out. But somehow, Harper Lee was able to Gosh, this is one of my new all time favorite books! It's just a shame that I will never be able to fully express how and why it affected me as much as it did. But I can try my best to at least write a few words to let you know what things I enjoyed (spoiler: I enjoyed every single word).
This story deals with the very important and sensitive topic of racism and is told from the point of five of a little girl. I had my doubts if this combination would work out. But somehow, Harper Lee was able to create an incredibly compelling character, who understands and misunderstands just the right amounts to be realistic, and to get all the major points the novel is trying to make across. It would have been easy to write from the perspective of Atticus, the 'hero' of the story. But I think this wouldn't have been the right thing to do; it would have seemed far too self-indulgent and conceited.
The characters themselves are all incredibly lovely. They just warmed up my heart. I'd love to give those three little kids, Scout and Jem and Dill, a giant hug. I'd like to shake the hand of Atticus and pay him my respects. I would go to Church with Calpurnia and find out more about her life. I would smile at Boo, to let him know that I accept him just the way he is, and while a simple smile might seem like a typical interaction to others, I'm sure it would mean a lot to Boo.
So yeah, all of those characters have found a place in my heart, and I know that they will definitely stay in my mind for a long time to come as well.
It surprised me how easy to read I found the writing style. It's hard to believe this was written in the 60's! I think the fact the topic is (unfortunately) a timeless one plays a part in that.
I'm currently still in a bit of a reading slump, but this book grabbed my attention from the first page and kept me smiling and laughing and crying. No wonder it's such a well-loved classic! I definitely agree that it's one of those books everyone should read at least once. Personally, I already know that I will read it many more times in the future. ...more
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May 10, 2015 Paromjit rated it it was amazing
Shelves: netgalley, literary-fiction
I can't quite remember how many times I have read this Pulitzer prize winning, coming of age, Southern American classic novel, I first read this most loved of books at school and I think this is the fifth of my readings in these most anxious of times. The novel spawned the unforgettable award winning film starring Gregory Peck playing the unforgettable role of the most iconic lawyer of all time, the compassionate Atticus Finch. I think there cannot be many who are unaware of this timeless, emoti I can't quite remember how many times I have read this Pulitzer prize winning, coming of age, Southern American classic novel, I first read this most loved of books at school and I think this is the fifth of my readings in these most anxious of times. The novel spawned the unforgettable award winning film starring Gregory Peck playing the unforgettable role of the most iconic lawyer of all time, the compassionate Atticus Finch. I think there cannot be many who are unaware of this timeless, emotionally compelling story and its characters, it is embedded so deeply in our cultural history, life and memories. Set amidst the harsh realities of 1930s Alabama in the small town of Maycomb, it touches on the most universal of themes of race, class, gender, inequality, injustice, hypocrisy, cruelty, hate, courage, the power of kindness, family and innocence, seen through the eyes of the young Scout (Jean Louise) and her brother, Jem, the children of Atticus.
This novel still inspires wonder, with its message of it being a sin to kill a mockingbird, it was a joy to re-encounter Boo Radley, Calpurnia and Tom Robinson et al, my love for it remains strong and undiminished, it is still one of my all time favourites, and I can see future generations loving it as much as me. Many thanks to Random House Cornerstone who are publishing a special edition. ...more
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Jul 10, 2015 Angela M rated it it was amazing
Shelves: reread
The first time I read this I was much , much younger and I remember loving it then . Over forty five years later, it still held so much for me - wonderful language and characters that I never forgot about and relevancy even so many years later .
I'm not sure I have an original thought or feeling that someone else hasn't already articulated. So I will only say that for me the beauty of this book lies in how Lee has so perfectly captured the time in the 1930's and the place Maycomb and the life in The first time I read this I was much , much younger and I remember loving it then . Over forty five years later, it still held so much for me - wonderful language and characters that I never forgot about and relevancy even so many years later .
I'm not sure I have an original thought or feeling that someone else hasn't already articulated. So I will only say that for me the beauty of this book lies in how Lee has so perfectly captured the time in the 1930's and the place Maycomb and the life in this small town and what it meant to be black then and there and how a young girl tries to make sense of what is happening around her . It's a portrait of a place that comes alive because of the richness of the characters . Yes, it's about racism in the south in the 1930's , and about family and how life in a small town can shape people or not if you are Atticus Finch but my heart belongs to Scout .
I decided to reread it in preparation for reading Go Set a Watchman because my first reading had been so long ago . I wish I had done what my GR friends Diane S. and Diane B. did in not rereading TKAM but choosing to read Go Set a Watchman and judging it on its own for what it is . I was more than halfway through TKAM when I saw their perspective on this and it was just too late - I was just too hooked on the book again. I remembered some but it felt as if I was reading it for the first time , being introduced to this time and place and this story and to beloved Scout , Jem, Atticus and Calpurnia , Miss Maudie and Boo once again.
There will just not be anything like this book and now I'm looking forward to reading Go Set a Watchman and approaching it for what it is - not a sequel but the seed of the iconic book . I think I'm going to wait a bit to read it . I want to savor what I've just read . ...more
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Aug 02, 2011 Lyn rated it it was amazing
This is on a short list with Moby-Dick; or, The Whale and The Old Man and the Sea for the great American novel.
And this one stands apart as a novel that is also a celebration of courage, integrity, and dignity.
If ever there is a lawyer who, at least once, didn’t admire and want to be like Atticus, then there’s something deeply wrong with that lawyer.
The scene where the courtroom is empty and Atticus is gathering his notes and files and the black folks in the upper room are waiting and then as This is on a short list with Moby-Dick; or, The Whale and The Old Man and the Sea for the great American novel.
And this one stands apart as a novel that is also a celebration of courage, integrity, and dignity.
If ever there is a lawyer who, at least once, didn’t admire and want to be like Atticus, then there’s something deeply wrong with that lawyer.
The scene where the courtroom is empty and Atticus is gathering his notes and files and the black folks in the upper room are waiting and then as he begins to depart, they all stand, and Scout asks why, and the man says, "Because your father is passing," gives me chills to this day, gave me chills typing that.
Beautifully written, a true classic.
** 2019 addendum - it is a testament to great literature that a reader recalls the work years later and this is a book about which I frequently think.
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May 23, 2018 Luffy rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: 5-star
Giving one of the most acclaimed books of all time a 5 makes me feel all lovey-dovey. There was a time when I didn't agree with most of the established literature. But now that I've read TKaM, that issue has partially been addressed.
I approached reading this book with wariness and some pessimism, and also with low expectations. The year it got its Pulitzer was a decade or two since the War. The likes of Herman Wouk (one of my favorite authors) were no longer on the scene.
This was a sensitive top Giving one of the most acclaimed books of all time a 5 makes me feel all lovey-dovey. There was a time when I didn't agree with most of the established literature. But now that I've read TKaM, that issue has partially been addressed.
I approached reading this book with wariness and some pessimism, and also with low expectations. The year it got its Pulitzer was a decade or two since the War. The likes of Herman Wouk (one of my favorite authors) were no longer on the scene.
This was a sensitive topic. In real life the Civil Rights movement was ongoing. So much was at stake. Harper Lee was a child of the times. But she could see far into the future. Her book was prophetic.
Each of the words of this book seems to have been cleverly crafted. How many pages of it were rewritten? This book is the work of a genius. It's high literature in the garb of normal words.
I loved this book so much. It's very modern sounding. I watched the movie first. But the book is better, as it usually is with these two mediums. I'll never read Go Set A Watchman, but the author has earned my undying respect. To Kill a Mockingbird. What a title, what a book. ...more
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Jan 31, 2021 Luís rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: g-young-adult, g-sociology, female-writers, e-5-favourites, united-states, g-historical-fiction
Alabama year 30, in total depression, Atticus Finch, a lawyer in the small town of Maycomb, raises his two children with Calpurnia, the cook.
At the story's beginning, Jem, the eldest at 13 years old, reveres his father; he is protective and curious.
In short, an easy-going child, Scout, the youngest aged 9, failed, sort of Tom Sawyer with his tongue hanging out to the dismay of his aunt Alexandra.
In the company of Dill the Scout lover, that's the holidays they go hunting for ghosts and legends, t Alabama year 30, in total depression, Atticus Finch, a lawyer in the small town of Maycomb, raises his two children with Calpurnia, the cook.
At the story's beginning, Jem, the eldest at 13 years old, reveres his father; he is protective and curious.
In short, an easy-going child, Scout, the youngest aged 9, failed, sort of Tom Sawyer with his tongue hanging out to the dismay of his aunt Alexandra.
In the company of Dill the Scout lover, that's the holidays they go hunting for ghosts and legends, the kind of games we all play as children.
Alas, the time of innocence will have an end, especially for Jem. Then, the children confront the adult world and the reality of the segregationist South.
He will accuse of rape on a white woman, Tom Robinson, defended by Atticus, a court-appointed lawyer.
In this novel, published in 1961, civil rights are still in their infancy despite the black community's 1955 boycott of buses in Alabama.
That's the 14th amendment being voted in 1868 and prohibiting any segregation.
This courageous novel is about when the Ku Klux Klan dictated its law.
The white balaclavas and flaming crosses remind blacks who want a dignified life not to cross the yellow line.
In this story, where the freshness and innocence of Scout and Jem almost make us forget the initial message, i.e. respect for the person and human rights. , "do not shoot the mockingbird" still falls short of the novel "the colour of feelings".
I have always liked these novels where children have the leading role, these initiatory novels, in Treasure Island or Oliver Twist's lineage.
These said "do not shoot the mocking bird" remains a literary monument to be put in all hands. ...more
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May 09, 2010 Lou rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: january-list-next
A wonderful piece of literature, great characters, plot and prose. There is sadness and happiness, racism and equality, immaturity and maturity, injustice and redemption.
Atticus is a man we could all love and look up to a grounded just and fair man he sees beyond race and finds the goodness in people. His cook Calpurnia Is honest good black lady who you just gotta love in this story, she works for a nice family who are about to go through some obstacles and testing times.
A lot of the story is t
A wonderful piece of literature, great characters, plot and prose. There is sadness and happiness, racism and equality, immaturity and maturity, injustice and redemption.
Atticus is a man we could all love and look up to a grounded just and fair man he sees beyond race and finds the goodness in people. His cook Calpurnia Is honest good black lady who you just gotta love in this story, she works for a nice family who are about to go through some obstacles and testing times.
A lot of the story is told through a young girl and is enjoyable to see things from a young perspective for example this excerpt...
"There was a man Dill had heard of who had a boat that he rowed across to a foggy island where all these babies were; you could order one— “That’s a lie. Aunty said God drops ‘em down the chimney. At least that’s what I think she said.” For once, Aunty’s diction had not been too clear.

> "You know the truth, and the truth is this: some Negroes lie, some Negroes are immoral, some Negro men are not to be trusted around women—black or white. But this is a truth that applies to the human race and to no particular race of men."
> “Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don’t eat up people’s gardens, don’t nest in corncribs, they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.”

Some trivia about the book and movie...
Finch was writer Harper Lee's mother's maiden name.
Despite the novel winning the Pulitzer Prize, the studios were not interested in buying up the film rights as they deemed it lacking in action, there was no love story and the villain doesn't get a big comeuppance. Producer Alan J. Pakula disagreed however and persuaded director Robert Mulligan that it would make a good film. Together they were able to convince Gregory Peck who readily agreed.
Truman Capote, who grew up with Harper Lee, also knew the inspiration for "Boo" Radley, and had planned to base a character on him in one of his short stories. After seeing how well the character was realized in Lee's novel, however, he decided against it.
Some images..
Harper Lee on the right.
http://more2read.com/?review=to-kill-a-mockingbird-by-harper-lee ...more
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Dec 16, 2013 Fabian rated it really liked it
Thus it becomes crystal clear why this classic is a must for kids. Surely it stands on an even shelf with the Harry Potter series (take in mind: its a Millennial writing this review); it's ripe with conventions that can be cracked open in the classroom, where the love for literature begins for most American children. The emblematic character of Atticus Finch is a great figure--mysterious, righteous, progressive...completely just and good. Intelligent. As is Scout, the precocious girl who filters Thus it becomes crystal clear why this classic is a must for kids. Surely it stands on an even shelf with the Harry Potter series (take in mind: its a Millennial writing this review); it's ripe with conventions that can be cracked open in the classroom, where the love for literature begins for most American children. The emblematic character of Atticus Finch is a great figure--mysterious, righteous, progressive...completely just and good. Intelligent. As is Scout, the precocious girl who filters all the goings on in her sleepy Alabama town.
It is a pity I did not read this in middle school, when foundations are forged with human values and the artistic possibilities of storytelling. That being said, I cannot but smile at finally, at 28, having plowed through this-- a complicated and personal classic. It depicts a gone-with-the-wind America, it has a strong point-of-view, which is restricted and accurate (the character is alive & becomes an avatar of the impressed young reader him/herself), it is a history lesson, a lesson in civics and law, a segue toward laws and government, and, most importantly, it includes a lovable naivete which borders on the poetic; the coming-of-age strangeness, including body changes and adolescent yearnings, all of these are staples of THE YA novel. Because it includes pretty much each and every one, it is THE QUINTESSENTIAL YA book. It has aged, however, & it is easy to see where the conventions are deposited as if "To Kill..." were a rough patchwork quilt of American Literature musts. ...more
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Oct 23, 2014 Melissa ♥ Dog/Wolf Lover ♥ Martin rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: paperback-own, own
I loved the movie and of course the book as well. My favorite is Scout, she is just one cool little kid. Scout and Jem's friend Dill is a hoot!
I really hated what happened to Tom in this book, but that is the way of nasty men and people in this world. I'm glad Mr. Ewell got what was coming to him.
I love Calpurnia and all of the ladies on the street. The stories of the kids and Boo Radley was great, but I liked in the movie better when they finally got to meet him. It seems like there was more
I loved the movie and of course the book as well. My favorite is Scout, she is just one cool little kid. Scout and Jem's friend Dill is a hoot!
I really hated what happened to Tom in this book, but that is the way of nasty men and people in this world. I'm glad Mr. Ewell got what was coming to him.
I love Calpurnia and all of the ladies on the street. The stories of the kids and Boo Radley was great, but I liked in the movie better when they finally got to meet him. It seems like there was more to it in the movie, but maybe that is just me. I do wish they would have maybe did a short chapter on how they became friends and visited with one another after the night in the woods. I also wish Scout could have visited Calpurnia's home.
But overall I liked it a lot!
Happy Reading!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾 ...more
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Mar 24, 2017 Paul O’Neill rated it it was amazing
What can I say about this amazing book that hasn’t already been said? I think The Guardian said it best– 'To Kill a Mockingbird will never stop being a good book, and it will never stop inspiring good people'
The story is told from the point of view of Scout (Jean-Louise Finch), a six year old girl, through various events that happen in the town of Maycomb and in particular, the court case of Tom Robinson as her father Atticus Finch acts as Tom’s defence lawyer. Tom, a black man who has been accu What can I say about this amazing book that hasn’t already been said? I think The Guardian said it best– 'To Kill a Mockingbird will never stop being a good book, and it will never stop inspiring good people'
The story is told from the point of view of Scout (Jean-Louise Finch), a six year old girl, through various events that happen in the town of Maycomb and in particular, the court case of Tom Robinson as her father Atticus Finch acts as Tom’s defence lawyer. Tom, a black man who has been accused of raping a young white woman, has to endure multiple racial attacks. Atticus, widely described as the “most enduring fictional image of racial heroism”, describes the events to Scout so that she sees that all people should be treated equally.
Themes
The book mainly deals with the themes of racial equality and rape but there are themes of morality, class and gender also. To Kill a Mockingbird had been deemed so important that in 2006, British librarians ranked the book ahead of the Bible as one "every adult should read before they die".
Above pointing the finger at racial and class issues, it’s a gripping story with great characters. What impacted me most when reading this was just how applicable all of the issues still are today, even though the book was published 57 years ago. We have indeed made good progress, but we still have a long way to go in my view.
Characters
Scout is such an awesome character, probably one of my favourites. Having the story told through Scout’s innocent point of view was a perfect choice, it creates a very unique atmosphere.
Atticus is nothing short of a hero. Not in today’s comic book / action-hero standard, but as a moral pillar of the family who is setting a great example for his family to follow. He sticks up for what he believes in. This probably sums him up perfectly - "It was times like these when I thought my father, who hated guns and had never been to any wars, was the bravest man who ever lived."
Writing
The writing was a joy to read. You really get to know and care for the characters. This story is really subtle in places and it’s not a fast-paced thrill ride. Had Lee’s writing been sub-par it could have become boring very quickly. Instead, Lee draws you in through her fantastic writing, which is both charming and astonishing in places.
"They're certainly entitled to think that, and they're entitled to full respect for their opinions... but before I can live with other folks I've got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience."
"I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do."
"So it took an eight-year-old child to bring 'em to their senses.... That proves something - that a gang of wild animals can be stopped, simply because they're still human. Hmp, maybe we need a police force of children."
"I think there's just one kind of folks. Folks."
“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view … until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”
”Shoot all the blue jays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird."
If we followed our feelings all the time, we’d be like cats chasing their tails.
Final thought
I wholeheartedly agree that this is one of the most important books ever written, beautifully created. Don’t be put off by all the themes and the millions of critical, in-depth analysis’s. Underneath all of that, it’s simply a great read. Highly recommended, and the audiobook version with Sissy Spacek is wonderful.
I’ll leave you with yet another quote from The Guardian “Let it not be forgotten that a true piece of literature, like To Kill a Mockingbird, is meaningful in every period and that today, Atticus Finch's message should be heard in the midst of all the global conflicts that we hear of on the news every night.”
Check out all my book blogs at http://constantreaderpauloneill.blogspot.co.uk/ ...more
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## About Harper Lee

Harper Lee
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Harper Lee, known as Nelle, was born in the Alabama town of Monroeville, the youngest of four children of Amasa Coleman Lee and Frances Cunningham Finch Lee. Her father, a former newspaper editor and proprietor, was a lawyer who served on the state legislature from 1926 to 1938. As a child, Lee was a tomboy and a precocious reader, and enjoyed the friendship of her schoolmate and neighbor, the you Harper Lee, known as Nelle, was born in the Alabama town of Monroeville, the youngest of four children of Amasa Coleman Lee and Frances Cunningham Finch Lee. Her father, a former newspaper editor and proprietor, was a lawyer who served on the state legislature from 1926 to 1938. As a child, Lee was a tomboy and a precocious reader, and enjoyed the friendship of her schoolmate and neighbor, the young Truman Capote.
After graduating from high school in Monroeville, Lee enrolled at the all-female Huntingdon College in Montgomery (1944-45), and then pursued a law degree at the University of Alabama (1945-50), pledging the Chi Omega sorority. While there, she wrote for several student publications and spent a year as editor of the campus humor magazine, "Ramma-Jamma". Though she did not complete the law degree, she studied for a summer in Oxford, England, before moving to New York in 1950, where she worked as a reservation clerk with Eastern Air Lines and BOAC.
Lee continued as a reservation clerk until the late 50s, when she devoted herself to writing. She lived a frugal life, traveling between her cold-water-only apartment in New York to her family home in Alabama to care for her father.
Having written several long stories, Harper Lee located an agent in November 1956. The following month at the East 50th townhouse of her friends Michael Brown and Joy Williams Brown, she received a gift of a year's wages with a note: "You have one year off from your job to write whatever you please. Merry Christmas."
Within a year, she had a first draft. Working with J. B. Lippincott & Co. editor Tay Hohoff, she completed To Kill a Mockingbird in the summer of 1959. Published July 11, 1960, the novel was an immediate bestseller and won great critical acclaim, including the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1961. It remains a bestseller with more than 30 million copies in print. In 1999, it was voted "Best Novel of the Century" in a poll by the Library Journal. ...more

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## Trivia About To Kill a Mocking...

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## Quotes from To Kill a Mocking...

“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.” — 17980 likes
“Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing.” — 13345 likes
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