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Summary: The best literature forced to read in ENglish 9 honors...
Review: WHen I first heard we are going to read TKaM, my heart sank considerably. First, our teacher announced this is her favorite book of all times. Second, I absolutely detested theo ther books we had to read, Potok's The Chosen, for example. But when I first received the book and started reading, I was awed. The use of language and vocabulary weere stunning and remarkbale. THe book is brutally honest, using original profanities used at the time in 1935 Alabama, but that did not tarnish the brilliance of the book. The tension escalates during Atticus' defense, and resolves in a tragic yet credible ending. However, the book taught a lesson that we would never forget.
What made this book special to me is the moments between Atticus and his children. The dialogues are witty and at times funny that made me laugh out loud (the second book in my 15 years to do that). The plot is slow moving, yes, but that built the tension and kept you at your seat through the 200+ pages.
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Summary: Top of the all-time list
Review: I've probably read over 1,000 novels and though I love to read them, very few get my unqualified approval. When a novel breaks into my top ten, it's a big event. When a novel contends for my number one spot, it's an earth-shaking event in my world of books. Such was the case when I recently read "To Kill a Mockingbird" for the first time. The writing and the novelistic construction are near-perfect. But it was the emotional evocativeness that impressed me the most. The characters of Scout, Jem, Atticus, Calpurnia, and several others are flawless. This is a masterful work of art. So much has been said about this book in the many reviews here, I will add only this observation. I think readers are often too young when they read this book for the first time to fully appreciate all its merits. It's not a difficult read, and the moral lessons are so obvious and impressive that young readers do appreciate the book, and I feel it is good that they read it. But other features, such as the fine and subtle nuances of the relations among the children, and between the children and the adults, are not fully appreciated by the younger readers. Therefore this book should be read again (and again) at various points in one's life. It will reveal greater nuance and depth with more mature readings. This is a book for the ages. Thank you Harper Lee.
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Summary: To Kill A Mockingbird
Review: By now we all know the plot and characters of this wonderfully written novel. And as if that weren't enough, we have the movie, which is one of the best films ever made--very truthful and follows the book. But there's something about actually "reading" Mockingbird that transcends even the film. There's something about holding the words that Harper Lee has given us, in our hands. Perhaps it is Scout's on desire to learn to read, Atticus having taught her even before school. Perhaps its our own desire to "know" the world, just as Scout does. But for whatever reason, most people warm to this book. The ultimate "coming of age" novel, sweetly told with just the right amount of sentiment, history, color, and pacing, it's no wonder Mockingbird is still a bestseller. Also recommended: Lord of the Flies, Bark of the Dogwood, Of Mice and Men
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Summary: "Lawyers Were Children Once Too": To Kill a Mockingbird
Review: Oddly, I'd never read To Kill a Mockingbird as a high school student. Nor had I ever seen the famous film with Gregory Peck. Fortunately, I also avoided learning the entire plot through cultural osmosis. Sure, I knew who Boo Radley was-- didn't I? Atticus Finch... yeah, I know who that is... right? Boy, was I wrong. Last week I finally decided it'd been long enough, and I sank into Harper Lee's only novel with high expectations. And I was certainly not disappointed. With its slow, warm and evocative opening chapters, Mockingbird starts off like a sulty summer day in the South. Lee depicts a South of "whistling bob white," biscuits and warm milk, and ladies who on the hottest days bathe twice by noon and then douse themselves in lavender-smelling powder. Jean-Louise Finch, better known as Scout, narrates the story with the keen eye of an adult looking back on a childhood rich with incidents that shaped who she has become. Scout reminded me of some of Carson McCullers's heroines (Member of the Wedding, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter), but without the morbid loneliness and heartbreak. Scout might be described as a tomboy, but that would be doing her a disservice. Her adventures with her older brother Jem, and their dimunitive friend Dill (real name: Charles Baker Harris. "Your name's longer'n you are," Jem points out) evoke the timeless place of childhood. As for Atticus Finch, what can one say about a father who seems to embody the greatest of virtues? He is tolerant, patient, kind, and understanding. He does not meddle with his children's affairs, he speaks to them as fellow adults (he allows them to call him "Atticus"), and his skill as a lawyer is legendary. Lee presents Atticus in a tough and sensitive manner, so that his believability is paramount. The other characters in the book are also depicted with great skill: Aunt Alexandra, bane of Scout's existence; Miss Maudie, who gives as good as she gets when harassed by intolerant neighbors; Calpurnia, the ever-present black maid who has as much a hand in Jem and Scout's well-being as Atticus; and of course the Ewells, whose poverty and ignorance help set the plot in motion. Harper Lee has written a wonderful book that pulses with life, with compassion, and easy good humor. Watching Atticus face down an angry mob set on lynching a black man, or racing with Jem as he escapes gunshots from the Radley house, or sitting with Scout as she forced to join her aunt's church lady reception, or taking that long midnight walk with Jem and Scout, is pure joy; these are scenes that reverberate in the reader's mind and surely in the minds of several generations of readers. I'm glad I can now say I'm one of them.
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Summary: To Kill a Mockingbird
Review: This is one of my all time favorite book as well as my favorite movie. I think that those of us who have read the book love the fact that narrator as well as one of the main characters is a little girl named Scout. The story is seen through her eyes and this makes the book more enjoyable as well as easy to understand. Sometimes she's funny and witty, other times she's very intelligent and through out the story she's just trying to understand the world around her. Atticus Finch, Scouts father, is a wonderful character because he shows his love and respect for his children as well as for everyone else. He shows he has moral values rather than social ones when he defends a black man being accused of having raped a white women. This shows that no matter how bad or how wrong things are, there is always someone willing to stand up for what they believe, and that there are good people in the world. This took alot of courage on Atticus's part considering they lived in the South. And although he loves both his children dearly, he seems to have a special bond with Scout. He teaches her that a person doesn't really understand someone else until they've walked in their shoes. That is excellent advice no matter who you are or how old. What is also highly interesting, and very original to this story, is the mystery behind Boo Radley. He's one of the main characters in the story yet he never really appears in person. In the first half of the story the children talk so much about him that they make jokes and at some points make him sound like a monster, not knowing that in the end he's the one who saves the day. I believe that what I love the most of this story is that it isn't a love story or an action/adventure kind of story, but one that tells the experiences that all of us can learn from. They're experiences we see happen sometime in our lives. Justice and injustice, prejudice in the society we live in, and courage and respect for other human beings. Anyone and everyone can relate and learn from this story, this is why it's a wonderful story for anyone to enjoy.
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Summary: Will Always Be a Classic
Review: To Kill a Mockingbird is a brilliant novel, portraying the intricacies of Southern life during the early 1900s. The plotline, consisting of the experiences of a eight-year-old girl, Scout, and her family, seems so simple, yet Harper Lee creates a much deeper understanding of love and hate.
Describing the events from the viewpoint of a young girl made the story much more fascinating because adults and even teenagers forget how innocent and pure a child's mind is. Although fictional, this story was so realistic and honest in Southern ways, and I realized that that's how life really was back then: harsh and unforgiving. This book really made me laugh out loud, sense friendship and hatred, but most of all, stop and reflect. Because of this novel, I feel a great deal of appreciation for our world today.
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Summary: Now I know why it's a classic
Review: When my mother first recommended Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird to me, I was quite reluctant to read it. I had tried once before, but I was impatient with it, and the story seemed slow. All the plot consists of is a girl and her brother in a slow-moving southern town. Boring, I thought to myself.
Interestingly, now that I have actually focused on the book, it is one of the most thought-provoking books that I have read. It is not about incredible quest and danger, sorcery and knights, or massive wars. In fact, it is a story about young girl's small ventures, which in perspective are great adventures and challenges. Jean-Louise Finch, better known as Scout, narrates the story with interesting and colorful intricacy. she tells her many tales with a viewpoint that cannot be replicated by an adult. Attempting to catch a glimpse of the infamous maniac, Boo Radely, with her brother Jem and summertime cohort Dill becomes a great mission with twisted plans. Consulting her all-knowing father Atticus turns into conferring with a great wise man. All this woven into her attempts to understand the stubbornness and prejudice of the adult world makes for a wonderfully deep story.
All through the book, what at first seems like a slow plot evolves into a simple yet intriguing plot that will keep you reading. Though probably not a book for those who don't read a lot, specifically kids, it definitely will catch the eyes and trigger the mind of most avid readers. A great book, strongly recommended.
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Summary: UGH!
Review: I was assigned this book for a reading assignment and me and the guy who sat next to me seemed to be the only ones who hated the book out of the whole class and we sit right infront of the teachers desk so we gave her heck all day! lol anyway... I seriously dislike this book! It is very boring... you'll be reading a conversation and then all of a sudden Scout will jump in and ramble on for pages with stupid pointless information about something that doesn't even have to do with the story... usually about the very dull and boring city of maycomb. The book would only be about 150 pages without all that!! Some parts I seriously just wanted to scream it was so boring!!! There is SO MUCH random junk that when we got to our reviews and tests, I couldn't even remember half of the little things that happened in the book. To make a long story short, this book is no 'work of art' and I STRONGLY suggest picking something else!!
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Summary: A beautiful masterpiece!
Review: This book is SO AMAZING! It's a flawless piece of work. I wouldn't change a thing about it. Atticus is the model adult, lawyer, and father of every era, and the innocence of his young children is beautifully captured. So, if you like reading classic novels with beautiful symbolism, READ THIS BOOK!
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Summary: Classic covering morals of both young and old
Review: The story of the hero Atticus Finch who defends a black man charged with the rape of a white woman. Told by young Scout Fincg, Harper Lee tells the story of a young white girl's exposure to racism in the south. To Kill a Mockingbird is a true heroic story that forces the reader to think and reflect.
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