The library I work at was hosting the 'Big Read' and chose this book for '08. I had read it in high school but the hubby hadn't so we decided to read it aloud to each other. I understood so much more this time around (partly because I was a pretty naive teenager) and loved every minute of it.Scout's recollections are funny, smart, heartbreaking, and endearing as only as child's can be. It was amazing to step back in time to learn about small town Southern life in the midst of a crisis. The slow yet steady building of events sucks you in until you are so entrenched in Scout's persona that you feel the same emotions. This time I was much more taken with Jem's character -- I appreciated his quest to become every much the honest gentleman that Atticus is. A pure delight! ( )

I loved this book! I was fourteen when I read it. It's part mystery, part adventure. There are lots of lessons to be learned from it. ( )

In this book it tells about a young man accused of a crime just becuase of his race. With the help of two young children he may be able to prove the court wrong! This is an eye opening and heart warming story, i highly recamend it. ( )

Every time I pick this novel up, I am amazed at how well written and engaging it is. I can go years without reading it, and not pay any attention to it, and then pick it up and have dozens of truths about how the world works and thinks, and dozens of memories about my own childhood, about the first time I encountered this novel, and my own hopes and dreams that were created when reading about the trial that Atticus took on.

This is one of those novels that I encourage everyone to read. Even if reading isn't your thing, or if you prefer non-fiction or whatnot. Harper Lee created a moving and magnificent story that will get to the core of anyone that reads it. ( )

Set in the small Southern town of Maycomb, Alabama, during the Depression, To Kill a Mockingbird follows three years in the life of 8-year-old Scout Finch, her brother, Jem, and their father, Atticus--three years punctuated by the arrest and eventual trial of a young black man accused of raping a white woman. Though her story explores big themes, Harper Lee chooses to tell it through the eyes of a child. The result is a tough and tender novel of race, class, justice, and the pain of growing up.

To Kill a Mockingbird won the Pulitzer in 1961 and even earned Lee the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2007 (yes, she is still alive!). The novel takes place in the fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama, during the Great Depression (1935, or so). It's the kind of setting that defines the story and all of the people in it. The story is told from the perspective of 6-year-old Scout Finch as she lives and learns about life and reality for a couple of years. It's a coming-of-age story, just using a much younger age than usual. Scout and her brother Jem (four years her senior) are the two children of a widowed defense lawyer, Atticus. The story begins with the childhood innocence of a new summer as the Finch kids and their friend Dill try to coerce Boo Radley, the town recluse, out of his house. Over the next two years, however, Scout and Jem learn more about the real world than they expected as Atticus defends a black man against a rape charge in a racially charged Southern town.

I don't know if anyone else likes to do this but when I'm reading books like this one that have such renown, I like to Wikipedia- and SparkNotes-search them so I get the full picture—the history, the context, the little-known facts. This is one of those classics that has so much behind the story that it'd seem a shame to simply read the book without Google-searching it as well.

I love Scout. It is hard to fathom that what you're reading is supposed to be the voice of a six-year-old, but I don't think the language used requires a completely realistic interpretation. Lee uses a child's voice to get her point across which is this: children aren't naive just because they don't know the way of the world yet. They notice behaviors; they notice language; they notice injustice. The unique thing about Scout (and Jem) is that they each have a mind of their own. They notice things, but instead of just accepting actions and behaviors as the "way things are," they question what they see. They ask "why?" and they form their own sets of beliefs.

I read another reviewer state, "[Scout] wanted to be a person first and then a girl," which is a mentality I am sure stemmed from the kids' relationship with their father. Atticus is older than most other fathers, more serious, less gloat-worthy (the Finch kids have never been able to brag about his shot or athletic ability). In the two or so years spanned in this novel, Jem and Scout learn more about their father and his rules on life than they probably ever expected. Atticus teaches by example, not by words. He feels a moral obligation to defend Tom Robinson against an unjust charge, even though race relations determined his fate before the trial even began. He teaches Scout and Jem that some things are worth fighting for because they are right, even if they may be a lost cause. He treats his children with respect and earns theirs in return.

I know there are dozens of themes and motifs and symbols that one could analyze during and after reading this book, and that's part of the fun upon finishing it. If you finish the last page and put it back on the shelf, you're missing half of it. You wouldn't know how the story is partly autobiographical or that it was never expected to sell. But as you read the story, savor it, and save the analysis for the end. ( )

This is actually a good book. I would have enjoyed it much more if I hadn't first read it as a compulsory reading and had to tear it apart. I hate being pigeon holed into someone elses view points. People should be able to take from a book what they will. I would say this is definitely worth reading a second time on your own if you were forced to read it before as part of a curriculum. ( )

This is a great book about a lawyer defending a black man accussed of raping a white girl. It deals with issues of racism in the South during the Great Depression. The lawyer's children play roles in the book dealing with racism and unfair practices..

A wonderful look at life in the South and the lessons we should all learn as children. It's one of my favorites. ( )

This novel was absolutly amazing, its no wonder it got the Pulitzer AND best picture the following year. The characters, setting, plot, absolutly everyone was just incredible, cant say enough good things about this book, an absolute must read for anyone out there. It really gets into a lot of deep things to do with growing up, parenting, and just life in general. ( )

some books you are forced to read in school and that colours your opinion of them (although there were a few i absolutely loved.) Some of these books i read over again in later life and loved them. This one i didn't love and must not have made a huge impression because i don't remember it so well. Perhaps a second glance? ( )

some books you are forced to read in school and that colours your opinion of them (although there were a few i absolutely loved.) Some of these books i read over again in later life and loved them. This one i didn't love and must not have made a huge impression because i don't remember it so well. Perhaps a second glance? ( )

This is one of the few required reading books that I enjoyed when I was in grade school. I listened to an audio version recently and loved this book even more as an adult. I think I was able to understand and appreciate the book more now than I did when I was younger. I was reminded why this book is a classic and would recommend it to anybody, especially if you like historical or Southern fiction. ( )

Excellent book. I can't remember if I ever read this as part of required reading in high school, however I'm glad I took the time to re-read this book again. I really enjoyed reading this the second time around. ( )

This is a stellar book. It's received tons of attention and rightly so. I think the characters are human, heroic, and rich enough to draw our sympathy without being one-dimensional. I think this book is a real masterpiece. ( )

My wife recommended this book, and it was a great read. It's too bad Harper Lee didn't write more novels. ( )

We did this play in high school; I was called at the last minute to be an extra in the courtroom scene. I remember being struck by the quiet power of the dialogue. Now, over a decade later, I've finally read the novel on which it was based and rediscovered that feeling. I've found there are very few books that live up to so much hype - recently a group of librarians declared this to be the best book of the 20th century - but this is one of those rare exceptions. It's thought-provoking and complex while remaining very readable and entertaining. I definitely recommend this book. ( )

It's been years since I read this beautiful coming of age story and it was time to revisit it. Scout is one of my favorite characters of all time. I love how upset she gets when her teacher, horrified that Scout knows how to read at the beginning of first grade, tells her to stop reading with her father at home. And her relief when Atticus says they will continue to read together, but they won't tell the teacher...

Even though I have probably read this book about 20 times now, I discover new things to love about it with each reading. This time, I especially appreciated the beauty of Scout's relationship with her father. As my own father has recently resurfaced in my life (an unwelcome event, to say the least), I have been thinking a great deal just lately about the nature of fatherhood.

As Scout gets to know the local crazy man and watches her father defend a black man accused of raping a white woman, she learns about the nature of justice and the dangers of judging others only by what you think you know.

This is a classic for a reason (and the movie's pretty good, too). ( )

I LOVED this book. Enjoyable and engaging from the first page to the last. I would read it over and over. ( )

No review necessary, is it?

I've probably read this half a dozen times since the 70's. I find a little more to think about each time. Excellent read about kids growing up & facing prejudice, along with other trials of life, morals & death. While the movie with Gregory Peck was excellent, I still prefer the book. ( )

During the Great Depression, we meet our protagonist, Scout Finch. Her father, Atticus, is a lawyer, and it falls upon him to defend Tom Robinson, a black man who's been accused of raping a white woman.

Additionally, Scout, her brother Jem, and their newfound friend Dill, deal with the mystery of Boo Radley, the mysterious neighbor wrapped in mystery, rumor, and intrigue.

This is a prime example of good Southern Gothic fiction, and is highly recommended for anybody interested in a good read. ( )

I read this in1962, recommended it to everyone I knew and gave away multiple copies. It was just right for that time, but I have no plans to see how it reads today.

Harper Lee may have proven that everyone has a least one good book in them. ( )

Enjoyed this, a great read. ( )

This was the first book I had to read for HS English and I wanted to kiss the teacher for introducing us to such an amazing novel. To this day, Scout, her father and his client all still live in my heart ( )