Scout's Honor

Harper Lee passed away on Friday at the age of 89. She won the Pulitzer Prize for her book To Kill a Mockingbird, now an American treasure. She continued to live in Alabama, and stayed true to her roots and valued her privacy. The book, her words, shall live on......

p. 9  Maycomb was an old town, but it was a tired old town when I first knew it. In rainy weather the streets turned to red slop: grass grew on the sidewalks, the courthouse sagged in the square. Somehow it was hotter then....
The story is told by Scout, a tomboy nine-year old girl now grown up -  looking back and reflecting....

Scout, her older brother Jem, friend Dill (based on boyhood friend, Truman Capote), and father Atticus Finch - the noble lawyer - these characters come alive on the page. It's a small town southern tale, and a powerful story covering racism. It's an American story. And there's the elusive neighbor Boo Radley.

It's a family story with a strong father
He turned out the light and went into Jem's room. He would be there all night, and he would be there when Jem waked up in the morning

If for some bizarre reason, you have never read To Kill a Mockingbird, stop reading this blog, go get the book, start reading, and don't stop. If you had to read it for school as a kid, now read it as an adult. Oh you'll appreciate it all the more.

and if you have never seen the movie version, well for goodness sake, Gregory Peck embodies Atticus Finch. It's a worthy version of the book.

R.I.P Harper Lee - American author

Book Review: The Mockingbird Next Door

Any fan of To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize winning novel, should read The Mockingbird Next Door - Life with  Harper Lee by Marja Mills.

The author, a Chicago journalist, by sheer luck/chance/a modest letter of introduction, began a long conversation and friendship in 2001 with Alice Lee (a lawyer) and her younger, more famous sister Nelle Harper Lee in Monroeville Alabama. Marja Mills traveled to the small town to do research for a Chicago Tribune article about Harper Lee. Chicago had a book initiative and To Kill a Mockingbird was its selection.

Something clicked and Mills spent time slowly learning about the Lee sisters, their lives, love of history and literature and the south, and about fame and elusiveness. She learned about the childhood time with Truman Capote, and then life in New York. She got better insight into why Ms. Lee never wrote another book, after such huge success in her 30s.  She appreciated the "great intelligence, sharp wit, and tremendous storytelling power of these two great women." (cover blurb)

From this rare opportunity and with Harper Lee's blessing, Marja Mills wrote this book and has allowed a glimpse into this celebrated author's life. Conversational in tone, it's thoughtful, well written, and feels like home.

 p. 273  All those years later Nelle's dark hair now white, her hands arthritic, her voice in To Kill a Mockingbird still could be heard on those Sunday drives, as she and Alice remembered a place that was.

Fifty More Years - A Classic Read

July is almost over and I haven't wished this timeless classic a Happy Birthday. Fifty years old this month and still a darn good read. Plus, I think it's okay to link the book to the movie version - Gregory Peck is Atticus Finch and he doesn't let us down.

I've read different columns this month (Time, WSJ, and EW) and they discuss whether To Kill a Mockingbird would have the same success today. There is debate on whether the story would be considered in the YA category (EW 7/2/10 p. 78), and consequently less likely to have been considered for a Pulitzer Prize.

In today's world, would Harper Lee have to prove she's working on another book, plus a blog, and has a "following"? It's easy to play the what if? game.

Let's just appreciate Ms.Lee's gift for words, characters (Scout, Jem, Boo, and Atticus), and her tale of a Southern town roiled by accusations. The book's quiet humor, compassion, and intensity stand the tests of time.

Happy Birthday To Kill a Mockingbird!