To Kill A Mockingbird
One of the greatest literary works to come out of the South turns 50 this year. After more than 30 million copies printed in 40 languages, To Kill a Mockingbird is being celebrated with a special anniversary hardcover edition. The great American novel, which was adapted into an Academy Award-winning film starring Gregory Peck, is a triumph for its moving exploration of racism, injustice and redemption set in small town Alabama during the Great Depression.
The classic Southern Gothic narrative unfolds through the eyes of a six-year-old girl watching as her father, a town lawyer, defends a black man falsely charged with raping a white woman. The innocent and youthful perspective highlights the absurdity and hypocrisy of a society’s prejudice.
Author Harper Lee was courageous for taking on such a subject, especially when you put the book in the context of the culture at the time. No other Southern author – or any author for that matter – took on the issue in the early 60s with such frankness and honesty. Interestingly, Lee, who won a Pulitzer Prize in 1961 for To Kill a Mockingbird, hasn’t published a book since.
The tome is one of those rare novels considered a must-read by critics and educators while equally loved by the common reader. There’s something that moves each of us in this story with its compelling look at the struggle for justice and common decency.
If you haven’t read To Kill A Mockingbird since it was a school requirement, mark the occasion by dusting off your old copy or check out this well-designed 50th anniversary edition.
