Book Review - To Kill A Mockingbird

This year one of my goals is to read the Pulitzer Prize winners in fiction and review them here on my blog.

   

To Kill a Mockingbird, the 1961 winner, is a classic that I've read and enjoyed before. I've also seen the movie and a couple of theatre productions over the last several years, however I had forgotten that there's a scrapbook mentioned in the book. Do you remember reading about it? It's just mentioned as part of a larger story, but it somehow jumped out at me as I was reading this fascinating book again last month.

This story is set in Alabama in the 1930s and is told from the perspective of Scout as she looks back on several years of her childhood. It's a story of prejudice and love and integrity and hatred and poverty and kindness and innocence and growing up. It's been several years since I've read the book, so I had forgotten that the book starts with some of the Finch family history and a fantastic description of Maycomb. There were other details that are not included in the movie and theatrical versions that I had forgotten about, too - like Scout's aversion to school and how she was reprimanded for already knowing how to read when she entered first grade and how their aunt comes to live with them. If you've never read this classic, I highly recommend it!

Have you read this prize winning book? Did you remember the scene with the scrapbook?

Here it is: According to Miss Stephanie, Boo was siting in the livingroom cutting some items from The Maycomb Tribune to paste in his scrapbook. His father entered the room. As Mr. Radley passed by, Boo drove the scissors into his parent's leg, pulled them out, wiped them on his pants, and resumed his activities.