REVIEW: To Kill a Mockingbird

To Kill a Mockingbird
Author: Harper Lee

The first time I read To Kill a Mockingbird was in high school in the 1980s. I was pleasantly surprised. Most of the literature we were required to read I never would have read on my own for enjoyment. The Great Gatsby. Moby Dick. The Old Man and the Sea. Red Badge of Courage. All great books...but I didn't identify with any of the characters. I read each one because I had to....not because I cared about the story in any way. To Kill a Mockingbird was different. I felt a connection with the characters and enjoyed the book so much I have re-read it many, many times since then.

Scout and Jem Finch live with their father, Atticus, in the south. Atticus is an attorney and state congressman. When Atticus defends a black man accused of raping a white woman, the court case causes division in the small town where they live. Scout, Jem and their friend Dill learn hard lessons about racism. There are also lighter coming-of-age moments -- like trying to make the recluse next door come out of his house. The kids are totally obsessed with Boo Radley.....a man who hasn't been seen outside his family's home in years and years.

I felt a connection with the kids in this story because I had many of the same questions that they express in the book. I never understood racism. I wasn't raised that way. My father would have worn me out with a paddle if I had ever used a racial slur or behaved less than kind to anyone for ignorant reasons like the color of their skin, religion, etc. And in the small midwest town where I grew up, racism was never out in the open, but an undercurrent that was hidden and not mentioned, but always there. Like the local men's civic club that didn't accept black members. Like the phone calls my father got when I went out in a group of friends that included black classmates. The teacher who handed a racist note to a white female student who was attending prom with a black classmate. I never understood all the hypocrisy. Especially when the racist nonsense was coming from people who were in church every Sunday. I didn't understand it then.....and I don't understand it now.  I think that's why I love this book. It all comes down to one thing....one important life lesson that Atticus Finch's children learn:  Do what is right.  In life, some things are beyond our control. Things will not always go the way they should. And people will not always behave as they should. In all things, the only thing we can do, is make sure that we do what is right. It might not change the outcome in every situation, but at least at the end of the day, we have the knowledge that we faced the situation and did what was right. A person deserving of respect is someone who goes into a situation knowing that they have already lost the fight, but they endeavor to do right anyway. Atticus Finch was that sort of person and he raised his children that way as well. It makes for a powerful coming-of-age story.

I listened to the audiobook version of this novel. Narrated by Sissy Spacek, the audio is just over 12 hours long. Spacek reads at a nice pace and is easily understandable. I have partial hearing loss, but was easily able to hear and understand this entire book. I enjoyed Spacek's performance. She did a great job with Scout's voice and the various other characters.

To Kill a Mockingbird is the first book I've read/re-read from the 100 books featured in The Great American Read. Check out the list here: http://www.pbs.org/the-great-american-read/books/#/