To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Book review

Hey, Book Worms! 📘🐛

· 4/5 🍿🍿🍿🍿

I did not have to read this book when I was in high school, and I really wish that it had been required reading where I went. It feels as though the topics in this book are ones that should be discussed, and it seems like it would be a good idea to give kids an exposure to the points made by Harper Lee while they are still young.

Feeling as though I was missing out, since I had not read it, I ended up reading this one a few years ago (for the first time), and I am glad that I did. It is not just getting an exposure to the ponts that were made, but also, I finally got a clearer understanding of what happened in the book; before reading it for the first time, I thought that the trial took up the majority of the plot. Turns out it was only one portion of the overall plot, and only one way that Lee was making her point.

The story is told from the POV of Scout, sharing her experiences of life (and how she is trying to figure things out) as an under ten year old.

It is not just the bigotry of the time and place that she lifes in that she is trying to navigate (against the black people of the area, but also against the poor and against women), she is also trying to figure out her place in the world (being AFAB, but not fitting the social norms for AFAB people).

The trial of a black man from the town (who her father represents at his trial) does play a big part in how she puzzles things out for herself. And it is this trial that helps her see that bigotry against people (whether it is because of their skin color or their social standing, or whatever else) is completely fucked and not something that she wants to be a part of her life.

The man who her father represents was charged with raping a poor, white woman, and despite the fact that the evidence seems pretty clear that there was no way that he could have done the thing that he was charged with, he is still convicted of the crime. And it only takes a day or two before he is killed by the guards as he is trying to escape from prison (being shot 17 times as he tried to climb the fence . . . which he never could have climed anyway, having only the use of one arm).

Being their father’s children, both Scout and her older brother (Jim) think that the conviction and death of Tom Robinson was complete bullshit. And as she tries to puzzle out her feelings about what happened, Scout comes to realize that the way that the people treat one of the young men that live on her street is just as much bullshit. He is also being treated with prejudice because people are making assumptions about him, without taking the time to get to know him (or the reasons why he does the things that he does).

As a result of her trying to come to terms with the hateful way that people treat those that they do not understand, she gains empathy for other people (especially those who are different than herself).

I cannot understand why this book was banned. Literally. I cannot. This book being banned is fucking idiotic. The whole point of this book is that we should empathize and care for our fellow humans, and that seems like it is something that should be fostered in the young, before they become too cynical to want to nurture it on their own.

If I had kids of my own, I think I would have them read this one, if it was something that was not required reading in school for them. But since I do not, I can only say what I might have done.

GoodReads: To Kill A Mockingbird