To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee (pub. 1960)
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Caution: Spoilers!

This book came out 15 years before I was born. Two years after its publication, it was adapted into a movie, which I haven't seen, but might like to, someday. I didn't get around to reading the book until 2015; I started it five days after the release of the not-really-a-sequel, "Go Set a Watchman." Though I was a bit surprised that that book hadn't come out sooner, since I'd certainly been aware of it for some time prior to its release. Anyway, apparently a lot of people are upset about the sequel, but I've avoided learning much of anything about that, not so much to avoid spoilers of "Watchman" (which I doubt I'll ever read), but to avoid potential spoilers of "Mockingbird." Anyway, this book is a modern classic, so I've been wanting to read it for quite a long time (it's a bit surprising I was never assigned the book in school), and it's nice to finally do so. And this seemed an apt time for it.

The story takes place in the fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama, over the course of a few years, beginning in 1933. It's told from the perspective of a young girl named Jean Louise Finch (more commonly known as "Scout"), who is six years old at the start of the novel. (Or near the start; Scout's narration is from sometime later, presumably as an adult recalling her childhood. The novel actually begins by referencing something that doesn't happen until the end of the novel, in 1935.) Scout has an older brother named Jeremy "Jem" Finch, who was ten when Scout was six. They live with their father, Atticus Finch; their mother died when Scout was two. Also they have a housekeeper named Calpurnia (or just "Cal"), who is in charge of the kids when they aren't in school, and Atticus is at work. He's a lawyer, and a very well-known and well-respected literary character, among readers of the book. I must have heard his name before I read the book, but I don't particularly recall it, and I certainly didn't know anything about the character. I really don't recall having ever heard of Scout or Jem before, though to me they seemed to be the most important characters. I can understand focusing on Atticus, though, because of course he was wiser than his children, and had a much fuller understanding of events than they did. Anyway, the one name I definitely remembered hearing long before I read the book was Boo Radley, though again, I didn't know anything at all about the character. (His real name, btw, is Arthur.) I find it a bit strange that his name was the best-known to me of any of them, because he plays probably the smallest part in the story. At least, he has the briefest actual appearance in the story, though his mere existence is of some importance... but I'm getting ahead of myself.

Scout tells the reader about lots of different residents of Maycomb, some who were nice, and some not nice at all, and others who fell somewhere in between. Some of the names became familiar to me as I read the book, but I didn't always remember with any certainty which was which. The story, for the most part, is just about what Scout and Jem did with their days, particularly in the summers. Sometimes that meant they interacted with various adults in various capacities, but mostly it seemed to me that they were left to their own devices. It's in the summer of 1933 that they meet a boy named Charles Baker Harris (commonly called "Dill"), who was almost seven years old, though Jem said he looked four-and-a-half. (I assume that was an exaggeration.) He was visiting his aunt Rachel Haverford (one of the Finches' neighbors) for the summer, and he became best friends with Jem and Scout. We learn some history about the Radleys, and why Boo never leaves his house (where he's cared for by his brother, Nathan). There's not much I can really say about any of that, because what Jem and Scout knew was basically just gossip, and I'm not sure how accurate any of it was. But suffice to say, Boo Radley is kind of seen as a local bogeyman by the people of Maycomb, whether the perception is justified or not. (Most likely not, since apparently no one except Nathan ever has any interaction with him.) Anyway, Dill thinks he and Scout and Jem should try to get Boo to come out of the house, though they are far from straightforward in their efforts. And those efforts represent just one facet of how the three of them spend the summer together. Or, actually... that's more of the summer of the following year; the book doesn't actually tell us very much about 1933.

After Dill goes home in September, Scout starts first grade and Jem starts fifth. Scout was really looking forward to it, but she ends up hating it. Her teacher has a very precise way of doing things, and the fact that Scout is much too advanced for those plans ends up making her miserable, because she's not allowed to do things she loves, like reading. Anyway, we learn a bit about what school is like for Scout, and a bit about a few other students, though mostly this just seems like a way to further our understanding of Maycomb society in general. Before long, the story jumps forward to summer 1934, when Dill returns and he and the Finch kids are free to spend their days however they like, for the most part. And... man, as I flip through the book to write this review, it seems like that summer flew by much faster than I remembered, too. Hmmm. Anyway, Dill goes home again, and Scout starts second grade. It's that fall that we learn that Atticus is defending a black man named Tom Robinson, who's been accused of rape. It'll be awhile yet before we learn any details, but Scout has a hard time at school, particularly with a boy named Cecil Jacobs, on account of her father defending a black man. That Christmas, Atticus and his kids go to visit his sister, their Aunt Alexandra. The main thing I can say about that is that Scout gets into a fight with her cousin, Francis, again because of Atticus's current case. Also, Jem and Scout both get air rifles for Christmas. Sometime later, there's a portion of the book where Jem and Scout get in trouble with a neighbor named Mrs. Dubose. I don't want to say anything specific about that, but it leads up to the end of Part One of the book.

In Part Two (in the summer of 1935), Aunt Alexandra comes to Maycomb and moves in with Atticus, Jem, and Scout. Alexandra doesn't always get along with her brother and his kids, largely because she's much more old-fashioned than they are. But sometimes she doe seem considerably more progressive than many of the other citizens of Maycomb. Meanwhile, Dill doesn't show up at the start of summer, but he does show up sometime later (having run away from home in order to make his annual visit). Once he does, the story continues to focus on the random activities of the three children, as Part One had done, though the case of Tom Robinson becomes increasingly a part of their consciousness. When the court date finally arrives, they sneak into the courthouse (against Atticus's wishes) to watch the hearing. Atticus does a good job of defending Robinson, who is clearly innocent, so Jem is happy- he's sure Atticus will win. Because there's simply no way a reasonable jury could convict. But of course, they do convict Tom, which leaves Jem devastated at the inexplicable unfairness and injustice of the world. (Or more particularly, the unfairness of the citizens of Maycomb, whom he mostly believes to be good people... which just goes to show how insidious racism can be.) In spite of the outcome of the case, Bob Ewell- whose daughter Mayella was Tom's supposed victim- was humiliated by Atticus, and swore revenge. But things begin to return to normal, for the Finches. (Even while things go very badly for Tom Robinson, worse than just going to prison for a crime he didn't commit.) Summer ends, Dill goes home again, Jem and Scout go back to school. The last few chapters are set on Halloween, which starts off much like any other episode of Scout's young life, over the past few years. It ends much more dramatically, though I don't want to spoil exactly how. And... well, I've left out a ton of characters and plot points from throughout the book, but I guess that's alright.

Well. About those air rifles the kids got. After returning home from their visit to Alexandra's place, Atticus told Jem, "I'd rather you shot at tin cans in the back yard, but I know you'll go after birds. Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." One of their neighbors, Maudie Atkinson, later explained to Scout what Atticus meant by that. "Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat up people's gardens, don't nest in corncribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." It's pretty clear to me that this is symbolic of the novel's larger issues, particularly racism. No doubt the book has any number of other symbolic elements, but I suck at discerning symbolism. I'm more of an enjoy-a-story-at-face-value kinda reader. And this book (like most books, I think) does a pretty good job of expressing its points on the surface, so you really don't need to analyze it very deeply. (But if that's your thing, great.) Even just reading it on a surface level, I think the book does a great job at demonstrating how terrible racism is. (Though from a modern perspective, there are definitely problematic aspects to the book. But I think it makes little sense to judge a book written in the late 50s and set in the 30s by modern standards. For its time, it was surely more progressive than one could realistically expect.) And... there are other themes, such as classism, and family, and gender roles, but those seemed secondary, to me. Or rather, maybe even tertiary; I kind of want to say that even the theme of racism is secondary to... just telling an entertaining story about a young girl (who happens to be a tomboy) in a small town, a particular time and place. Scout is a pretty great character, and I love the fact that the story was told through her eyes and in her voice. I think sometimes people may focus so much on the moral of a story that they miss out on the actual story, you know? The book has a lot of warmth and humor and fun and nostalgia and... all sorts of great elements that can be enjoyed for their own sake, as well as for the fact that the lightness of those elements throws the darkness of the book's more serious elements into even sharper relief. So, really, the book works very well on at least two levels. (Probably more, but as I said, I'm not big into symbolism.)