Reading the Classics: “To Kill a Mockingbird”

Book: To Kill a Mockingbird

Author: Harper Lee

Pages: 367

Rating: 8/10

Who should read this book: anyone that likes classics or historical fiction

Happy Saturday bookworms!

So after a little scolding from my sister, I have decided there are a lot of wonderful classic books that I should definitely have read by now. I’ve read some classics but I’ve never made the effort to really dig into that genre.  So my sister gave me a copy and I started with To Kill a Mocking bird.

Set in the 1930’s, the story follows the childhood of Scout and Jem Finch and their widowed father Atticus Finch. He’s a lawyer that is defending an African American client much to the dislike of everyone in town.

Scout is the narrator of the story and she is very young, starting out the story just entering elementary school and finishing at age 8. She’s a cute kid with a lot of gumption.  The story starts out following the lives of Scout and her older brother Jem and their friend Dill. They get into childish trouble around town, being particularly interested in their recluse neighbours the Radley’s. What’s funny, I have heard of Boo Radley before in pop culture but I didn’t know who he was or what it referenced!

There is a subplot with Atticus Finch defending Tom Robinson, a local African American that is being accused of a crime. I was much more interested in this storyline and I was frustrated with the lack of information I was getting from Scout as the unreliable narrator.

So the first half of the book I felt almost disinterested, but I persevered and the trial became the forefront of the story and I got all the info I was looking for. From the halfway point the book was much better. A beautiful story of childhood innocence and a difficult criminal trial in a small depression era town where every action was on display.

If you didn’t read it in high school, which for some reason I was never required to do, you should read it. My Rating was 8/10.

Enjoy your books!

Angie