Review: ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee

Today I wanted to write a review of ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee, as I really enjoyed this novel- my mum bought me a gorgeous copy of the book.

‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee follows the story of Jem and Scout, two children growing up in 1930s American South. The book is written from the point of view of Scout, and her account of their childhood in the South covers a time when their father is defending a black man accused of raping a white woman.

Throughout the book Scout looks at issues to do with race, and she questions her father’s actions- giving an insight into the racial hatred of the American South that only a child could.

As well as the backdrop of the court case and the racial tensions of the time, Jem and Scout also spend their time making up horror stories about the local ‘madman’ Boo Radley, who is rumoured to wander around at night. These two elements of the book come together in a way that creates a brilliant, heart-felt narrative- and this book is still incredibly popular today.

One of the reasons I loved this book was the narrator. The personality and voice of the narrator can make or break a book, and Scout’s narration is fantastic. She is a typical tomboy, brought up by her father and brother after the death of her mother. She is scorned by all the women of the small Southern village in which they live, told that she should wear dresses and ‘act like a lady’. This makes her a lovable character, and her narration is naive and offers a child’s perspective.

The fact that Scout cannot understand why a black man who has clearly not committed a crime but is still convicted really shows the innocence of a child, and the complexity and severity of the racial hatred of this period.

I also really liked the other characters in this book. The way that Jem is clearly growing up, changing from the young child that used to play games and invent stories with Scout, is also interesting to read about. Atticus, their father, is also an interesting character, especially when viewed from Scout’s position. He takes on Tom Robinson’s case because he sees it as the right thing to do, despite the hatred it incurs from some of the local people.

Calpurnia, the Finch’s black maid, is also an interesting character. Despite the fact that she works for the family, which represents the suppression of black people in the South, I liked the friendship between Scout and Calpurnia. Scout sees her as a kind of mother figure after the death of her own mother.

The friendship between Calpurnia and Atticus is also interesting to read, and it is clear that, like with other families across the country at this time, the family relies on their maid.

Overall I really enjoyed this book. I thought the messages were really profound, and the child humour really adds a light tone to this otherwise serious account of life in the deep South. As a history lover I loved the historical setting of the book, and the role of racism, hypocrisy and growing up is narrated beautifully by Scout.

I would definitely recommend this book, and it is both easy to read, and hard-hitting when you consider the injustice of the system at that time. The way the attitudes of the people relate to today’s society is also extremely worrying.

I’d really like to try ‘Go Set a Watchman’ now that I’ve finished this book, and I look forward to finding out more about Harper Lee’s fantastic characters. Find out more about the release of this book here.

Did you enjoy my review of ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee? Have you read this modern classic? Did you enjoy this book?

Let me know all your thoughts in the comments below 🙂

Happy reading x

Picture credits here