Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #62846 in Books
• Published on: 1982-01-01
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 281 pages

Customer Reviews

Brilliant for its Extended Metaphot- The Mockingbird
One of the best books centered on issues of racism and segregation.
To Kill a Mockingbird represents the major theme of coexistence of good and evil but does so by enhancing the plot with gothic elements and underlying events that build tension and suspense. For example, the fire that destroys Miss Maudie's house, the children's superstitions about Boo Radley, and the menacing night of the Halloween party seem to be out of place in the normally quiet, predictable Maycomb. These elements create tension in the novel and serve to foreshadow the troublesome events of the major conflict- the trial of Tom Robinson and its aftermath.
The title of the book itself has very little literal connection to the plot, but it carries a symbolic meaning in the book. In this story, innocence, or "the mockingbird" is destroyed by evil. Thus, to kill a mockingbird is to destroy innocence. Throughout the book, a number of characters: Jem, Tom Robinson, Dill, Boo Radley, can be identified as mockingbirds.
In saving Jem and Scout from Bob Ewell, Boo proves the ultimate symbol of good.
At the beginning of the book, Boo is merely a source of childhood superstition. As he leaves Jem and Scout presents and repairs Jem's pants, he becomes gradually real to them. At the end of the novel, he becomes fully human to Scout upon saving her, illustrating that she has developed into a sympathetic and more mature individual. Even though she lost her innocence, she is now more understanding of her father's moral law that made him stand firm to his beliefs in the midst of raging storms of criticism from society for taking the case of Tom Robinson- a Black man falsely accused of raping a white girl.
With the main conflict of Robinson's trial foiled by the mysterious story of Boo Radely, the reader can't help but to sympathize with the characters and feel a sense of familiarity with the town of Maycomb.

It's A Sin to Not Read This Book
Due to a class project in literacy workshop, we had to read the book To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. At first, I thought that it was going to be a dull, annoying book. But, after reading the first chapter, this book taught me a lot about racism. It taught me how harsh it was back then, and how it affected many lives. Harper Lee did an excellent job showing how racism had an affect on every character's life. Also, instead of showing us only the main character's point of view on topics, it showed me every character's point of view, which helped me understand the plot. I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone because it teaches a valuable lesson on friendship, racism, and trust.

I never would have read it if it wasn't for my 9th grade English class
Who is Boo Radley? Why is Atticus defending a black man knowing that it is affecting his kids Jem and Scout? What does the title and cover have to do with the book? Who killed Bob Ewell?

Some of the main characters include Jem, Scout, Atticus, Calpurnia, Aunt Alexandra and Tom Robinson. The story starts out with Jem(10) and his sister Scout at the age of 6. The kids live with their father Atticus in Maycomb county located in Southern Alabama. Charters 1-12 cover the last couple years of their childhood before they start getting treated like young adults. In the beginning chapters Jem and Scout spend most of their summers with a boy named Dill who is a great friend of theirs. One of their favorite things to do was to try to get a neighbor of theirs named Boo Radley to come out of his house. Later on when fire struck Miss Maudies house Boo Radley would sneak out with a blanket to put on Scout and Jem as they watch a friendly neighbors house go up in flames on a cold winter night. In the middle of the book Jem and Scout's father Atticus, who is a lawyer, goes to court to defend Tom Robinson who was black and was accused of rape.

I think people should read this book because it is filled with myseries and always makes you think "is it a coincidence or did the Author mean it to be that way". One example of that in the book is the fact that Jem Scout and Atticus's last name is Finch. A finch is a small peaceful bird and the Finch's in the book are nice caring people. It also shows you exactly how poorly blacks were treated making it a good lesson on racism. The only reason why I would not reccomend this book is because it starts out slow and takes a while to read because of how small the print is.

Overall, this book is filled with hidden mysteries that take the best of readers to catch on to. I also shows what it was like back then with racism and the way blacks were treated.