Apparently, I’m reading all books called Mockingbird this month.
There was that delightful book that Mary Polly brought home called Mockingbird.
Then my friend, Donna, gave me Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee.
Are there anymore? Because they seem to be a safe bet for a good read.
To Kill a Mockingbird is definitely next. I can’t wait to reread this classic, maybe even out loud to the kids after reading the story behind the story.
Harper Lee’s life totally captivated me. Her small town Southern life that became the foundation for her novel is brought to light in this unauthorized biography.
When I was reading the parts about the fanfare that the novel received, I found myself wondering,
Was the success of it just a fluke? Was she just in the right place at the right time? Was it really that great?
Over the fall break, we watched the movie of To Kill A Mockingbird and I was completely caught afresh by how brilliant the story truly is.
Even though it moves relatively slowly and is in black and white, the movie took all of us in, even the kids. I kept thinking I was going to have to stop the movie and explain some things, but since the whole story is unfolding from the perspective of the children, they were able to follow every detail.
I would love to meet Harper Lee one day, and I am so curious still about why she never wrote another book. Part of me wonders if one day we will discover that she did, in fact, write more books. She just hasn’t let them fly yet.
Maybe she just can’t bear to allow her quiet life to be interrupted by the stir that another book would cause.
Maybe she is rejecting the fame that seemed to cause the downfall of her dearest childhood friend, Truman Capote.
Who knows?
But I’m definitely holding out hope for another story from the author who brought the world Jem, Scout and Atticus.
