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A review by jwells
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
emotional
reflective
Wonderfully vivid depiction of a small Southern town, and of its inhabitants. I adore Scout's voice, and the way she is occasionally too young to understand the events she is narrating. Lee handles that so skillfully.
It's funny that this book has the reputation of being about race. Summaries tend to center on the trial. It's certainly dramatic and memorable, but it doesn't come along until about halfway through the book.
Other reviews here criticize the book for not doing a good job as a book about race: there aren't black POV characters, and the entire first half feels irrelevant, since it's just about a little white girl and her brother.
I think maybe these are signs that Harper Lee didn't set out to write a book about race. For better or worse, it's a coming of age story about a little white Southern girl. The trial is just one of the learning experiences that she and her brother and their friend go through, as they gradually grow up and lose their innocence. Not to take anything away from the book; on the contrary, it's better and more coherent if you think about it this way. My two cents.
It's funny that this book has the reputation of being about race. Summaries tend to center on the trial. It's certainly dramatic and memorable, but it doesn't come along until about halfway through the book.
Other reviews here criticize the book for not doing a good job as a book about race: there aren't black POV characters, and the entire first half feels irrelevant, since it's just about a little white girl and her brother.
I think maybe these are signs that Harper Lee didn't set out to write a book about race. For better or worse, it's a coming of age story about a little white Southern girl. The trial is just one of the learning experiences that she and her brother and their friend go through, as they gradually grow up and lose their innocence. Not to take anything away from the book; on the contrary, it's better and more coherent if you think about it this way. My two cents.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Classism
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Incest