To Kill a Mockingbird

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Summary: As Sweet As A Mockingbird Sings!
Review: Here is a perfect example of a coming-of-age tale that refuses to be either melodramatic, mushy, or even boring! A story that should be read again and again. TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD is the classic novel written in 1960 by Harper Lee to great critical acclaim, received the Pulitzer in 1961 and became a classic film in 1962 starring Gregory Peck as the hero Atticus Finch.

We are in the life and times of 1930s Alabama, the town of Maycomb County, as seen through the eyes of a young tomboyish girl named Jean Louise Finch, or "Scout" as she is called by her widowed lawyer father Atticus and her older brother Jeremy "Jem" Finch.

The span of the story takes place within three years of their lives. From their summer get-togethers with their young friend Dill from Meridian, Mississippi; to their adventures in trying to make their mysterious neighbor Arthur "Boo" Radley come outside; to the courtroom drama of black man Tom Robinson accused of raping a white woman by the name of Mayella Ewell.

All characters are positively wonderful! There's the Finchs' black maid, Calpurnia, who acts like the children's mother and guardian; their colorful neighbors: Miss Maudie Atkinson, Miss Stephanie Crawford, and Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose; the town's sheriff Mr. Heck Tate, and the Ewells. All involved help move along the story with both poignancy and humor. The ending of the book, where Scout and Jem are saved by Boo Radley, is perhaps the sweetest moment in any book. The connection between the little girl and the mysterious man is heartbreaking!

Harper Lee created a kind of hero to us in creating Atticus Finch, the strong, stalwart man who never hit his children, much less yell at them. Even when Jem and Scout would get into trouble, he would always be there with his broad shoulders and comforting arms. Gregory Peck, in the film, was the ideal choice for Atticus Finch, and won the Best Actor Oscar for it as well.

My only complaint, and this is usually with all books and novels, is too much detail to the surroundings of the characters. There are moments when Miss Lee tends to fill about five pages with description of Alabama during the Great Depression. That, to me, tends to slow the story down. Even THE GODFATHER had that same problem, even though it too is a great book.

All in all, TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD lives up to its reputation as a very important and classic novel.

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Summary: Powerful Writing with Powerful Messages
Review: When I read "To Kill a Mockingbird" as required reading in school, I knew that I was being introduced to the idea that literature could be used to communicate important social ideas. It is beautifully written and extremely memorable. I have re-read it since then, and found it to be just as powerful for an adult. This novel takes big social issues and makes them extremely real and personal. Honesty, prejudice, tolerance, bigotry, racism, hatred, and mob violence all get examined under strong floodlights and through the eyes of a stubbornly and bravely moral lawyer and especially through the eyes of his two children, Jem and Scout. Read this one along with, or at the same time as, your kids, and leave time for a nice, long talk afterward.

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Summary: To kill a mockingbird report
Review: to kill a mockingbird is a very good book. although it is long it is way worth reading.hope you enjoy the book as much as i did

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Summary: the book i didn't mind reading for english class
Review: I just finished reading To Kill A Mockingbird for my english class and I loved it. Most books I've read for classes have been so incredibly boring... don't get me wrong, I love to read, I just hate assigned reading. I had of course heard of To Kill A Mockingbird and all I knew about it was that it is a classic. I avoided it for that reasons, classics bore me. I wasn't too enthusiastic to start, but once I did I was so deeply involved in it I could't put it down, and finished it days before I was assigned to.

To Kill A Mockingbird is a story of learning expiriances and ethics. It's all from the point of view of a nine year old girl, Scout, in a small Alabama town. She has a brother who's a few years older than her, and her father, Atticus Finch, who is a lawyer. Her mother died when Scout was two, and as a result Scout became quite a tomboy, much to the dislike of her Aunt Alexandra. The first part of the story is Scout's childhood. She is nieve and innocent, and since the book is from her point of view she expresses the way she sees things in a cute and often funny way. When she's talking to a boy's father she says: "I know Walter. He's a real nice boy. I beat him up one time but he was real nice about it."

A major part of Scout's childhood is Aurthur ("Boo") Radley. Boo is secluded from the world. As a child he stabbed his father with siccors and was almost sent to an insane assilum. He wasn't, but never talked to anyone again, never coming out doors. He was always a sick man, and rumors and horror stories were always told by children about him. But this shy and hidden man was not the monster kids thought of him. He was really a kind and caring man, almost a mother figure to Jem and Scout, without them knowing it. Jem, Scout, and their friend Dill often fantisize what it would be like to meet Boo.

As the book progresses Atticus Finch, Scout's father, takes a case for a black man, Tom Robinson, falsely accused of rapeing a white woman. Because of the prejudice and racism of the small southern town, Judge Taylor asks Atticus to take the case because he knows that Atticus is the only one who will really try. Atticus has ethics and morales that no one else has, and knows that Tom will be accused simply because of his race. When Scout asks why he takes the case he explains to her that if he didn't he wouldn't be able to ask her and Jem to do things, and he wouldn't be able to hold his head up in the town. Atticus stands by his belifes, but in the end, because of the racism of the town, Tom is called guilty.

Scout learns right from wrong, and learns how things work. To Kill A Mockingbird, (partially based on Harper Lee's childhood, minus the case of Tom Robinson), is a learning expiriance for Scout. Each chapter she learns something knew, from the power of hate and racism and wrongness in the world, to standing up for what's right. She is much more mature by the end of the book, and understands that some things just won't change, but they should be stood up for.

To Kill A Mockingbird was an amazing story. I loved the book completley. I would recomend it to anyone. Five stars.

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Summary: This book was great!
Review: I loved this touching story, as told by 8-year old Scout Finch, about growing up in the small town of Maycomb, Alabama amidst racial turmoil and the depression. It was just a great story.

Now that I am finished with the book I already miss Scout, Jem, Dill, Atticus, and of course Boo.

If you are looking for a book with a great story written by an author who knows how to write and use the english language, above the Grisham level, then this is a book for you.

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Summary: "Shoot all the blue-jays you want, if you can hit'em...
Review: But remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird. I'm a 13-year-old from Reykjavik, Iceland, and my American mother told me to read this old book she had on her shelf. She pulled down an old thing with an orange sketch of a bird on the front of it, and I thought: What in the sam hill does she want me to read now? It wasn't until later that I found out where mom had picked that familiar phrase up, just like it wasn't until later that I realised how wrong I had been.

This novel is about kids, and how their peaceful little town was transformed into a place of racism and hate by one lie told by a white farmer.

Jeremy Atticus (Jem) and Jean Louise Finch (Scout), the children of a lawyer in the town of Maycomb, spend their time just like any ordinary kids. That is, until they meet Charles Baker Harris, better known as Dill, and the three of them start plotting how to get their mysterious neighbor Arthur (Boo) Radley to come out. They are blissfully unaware of it when a negro man, Tom Robinson, is accused of the rape of the daughter of a drunkard farmer, Robert E. Lee Ewell (Bob). But when spring comes and their father is appointed to defend young Tom, the children, along with the whole of Maycomb, are drawn into the swirl of strong feelings, racism, lies and hate that is building up aroundthe case. One of the best scenes of the book is the trial of Tom Robinson.

I'm not going to tell you any more about it, but I'lll let you in on one secret. The two storylines: That of the children and Boo Radley, and that of Atticus Finch and the "rape" of Mayella Ewell, will be tied together into a perfect bow.

If you aren't interested in the book after reading a few of the reviews on this site, I'm very surprised. This book is meant for people of all ages, not just adults. I'd even read it to my 7 and 9-year old siblings.

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Summary: From a soon-to-be teacher...
Review: I rate this book a 5-star-plus! I read it for the first time in the 9th grade and have read it two more times since then. When I read it about 6 months ago at the age of 22, I couldn't believe how exciting it was, even though I already knew what was going to happen. I think this is a classic and a must read for older students and adults. Even though it happened in another time and place (for me), it is easy to relate to and offers many life lessons.

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Summary: the best book i've ever read
Review: To Kill A Mocking Bird is by far the best book I've ever read. The innocence of the nararation and depth of the plot made for a real page turner. When you finish this book you'll wish it never ended. I would definately reread it.

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Summary: One of the best books I've ever read!!
Review: As many other high school students, I had to read ' To Kill a Mockingbird', by Harper Lee in my English class. I did not want to read this book one bit. It looked like the most boring book in the world, but as many people say 'you can't judge a book by its cover'. This book turned out to be one of my most favorite books ever. If anyone has read it, they know what I'm talking about.
The book tells a story in the eyes of a child named Scout. She is brought up in the small community of Maycomb. She has many adventures with her brother, Jem. They, like all other children have a wide imagination. They let their minds wonder with their neighbors. They believe things about their neighbors that aren't really true. One major issue brought up is Boo Radley. He is presented as a shy, unsociable individual who never comes out of his house, except for at night. Everyone finds him to be scary, even though they don't really know him. Throughout the storyline, they find out who the real Boo Radley is. He turns out to be one of Scout's best friends.
Scout thinks her father, Atticus, is not exciting and just a regular guy. She changes her mind when he shoots the county's mad dog with one shot. He becomes a hero, and later Scout learns that his nickname had always been 'single shot'. She finally looks up to her father and respects who he is.
Scout learns many lessons throughout the book. The main idea is that she shouldn't kill a mockingbird ever. Her father, Atticus, told her it's the worst sin anyone could commit. Mockingbirds are innocent creatures that only play beautiful music. She realizes what her father was talking about when an African-American man is sent to trial for a crime he didn't commit. He was accused of raping an American girl, and Atticus is chosen to defend him. He does everything he can to prove the innocence of this man, but no one will agree with him. The innocence of a man is taken and he is sentenced to death. He represents the mockingbird that was killed. The county had committed the worst sin ever.
I would recommend this book to anyone. It has a great moral and I learned a lot from it.

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Summary: So Sad!
Review: This book is simple, yet complex. It is one of the best books I have ever read. You need to read this book, whether you are young or old. It is a very important book to read. Also see the movie with Gregory Peck, possibly the best book-to-movie adaptioon ever done.