#8 To Kill A Mockingbird

Many people will look at this title and shudder with the memory of GCSE English and the many hours spent writing character and theme essays etc etc... However, I studied 'Of Mice of Men' so this book was completely knew to me. The book has sat on my shelf for many years, I'm not even sure where it came from. But considering it is studied in schools worldwide and this is a 50th anniversary edition, it has got to be worth my time.

For those (few) who don't know the story of this Harper Lee novel, its set in the early 30s Alabama. Jem and Scout Finch are two mischievous children who love to play outside and immerse themselves into the town's ways. With their mother no longer around, it is up to their father, Atticus (a lawyer), to make a gentleman out of Jem and a respectable lady of Scout.

But in the mean time, they have their summer holidays with Dill to keep their youth in tact. They fix on the mysterious next door neighbours' house, belonging to Mr Radley. Rumour has it, his son Arthur "Boo" remains inside and never comes out. So they spend the summer months devising plans to get Boo to come outside. Told through the view of Scout, we see her and Jem come face to face with the realities of race and class in the Deep South. Particularly as their father has been asked to represent a black man accused of raping a white girl.

For me, Scout is such a loveable nine-year-old girl who is smart, boisterous, polite and eager to learn more about everything. I adore her and the relationship the two have with their father is admirable. Although at times there is a coolness in his manner, Atticus deeply loves his children and raises them right.

Parts of this book had me chuckling to myself, causing other passengers on the train to stare at me, yet others struck an emotional chord when some intense scenes unravelled. I don't want to get too analytical and send heads into a spin but I appreciated Lee's display of a traditional small town community with its stereotypical roles. There's the gossiper, the grumpy old lady and the local doctor who treats everyone. The storyline itself is so simple but it keeps the pages turning.

I enjoyed reading this book as a free gappy rather than in the confines of the classroom.

I feel as though this book is a rite of passage, something that everyone should read at least once in their lifetime.

H x