Catch Up

I've been meaning to post my previously reviewed Pulitzer books for quite some time.

It took me so long to pull together the few posts that made up The Magnificent Ambersons below, that I've decided to just put up the links for my other two books so I can get on with reading more!

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder

Happy Reading

Hobby Buku's Progress [ Just In a Year Reading ]

Hi everyone, thanks for invite me in this Reading Challenge. 

My name Maria from Indonesia, and last year I just start on this project : Reading on Award Winner Books and continuing in this year, hopefully will added several progress on my reading list (^_^)

I love books on many genre, but mostly I'm enjoying classics, historical fiction, mystery, thriller, children's literature and fantasy too (as long it's not paranormal romance)

Meanwhile, here is some of books I'm finished reading and reviewing [ my opinion goes to the link on my blog post ]

• 1932 The Good Earth - Pearl S. Buck
• 1937 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell 
• 1961 To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee
• 2006 March - Geraldine Brooks

Well, not much but not so bad either for a year reading too ... let's see how far my achievement this year.

 

Best Regards,

Maria

Review: To Kill a Mocking Bird

Title: To Kill A Mockingbird

Author: Harper Lee

Published: 1960, J.B. Lippincott Company

Genre: Modern Classic, Literary Fiction

Accolades: 1961 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, Radcliff Publishing Course: 100 Best Novels of the Century, National Endowment for the Arts - The Big Read List and on and on and on...

Most of us have either read the book, seen the movie, or at least heard of this 1960 modern classic. I remember watching the movie years ago with my mom and listening to her tell me that I just had to read the book - "it's one of the best books out there, Jayme." Well mom, it only took 35 years, but I did finally read it and once again you were right.

The story about how one man stood up against the convictions of a small southern town in the 1930s to do what was right is insight fully told through the eyes of his daughter. Her voice is fresh and distinct and pulls you in from the first sentence. But it's the little nuggets of wisdom through out the book that holds you-

"but before I can live with other folks I've got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience." (page 120, To Kill A Mockingbird

The writing is clever and the topic captures a time in America's history that as painful as it is the story needs to be told. This book is literary art.

My Rating: 5 out of 5
Note: I read the 2010 50th Anniversary edition from Harper Perennial Modern Classics

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee (1961) - Review by Monique

There probably are very few Americans that have not a least heard about Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird". I don't recall when I first heard about this book but I remember hearing about it some point in my life. It wasn't required reading for me in high school and since I was not one to voluntarily read classics in high school this book got overlooked.

I feel robbed. My high school English teachers felt that it was more important to assign such boring books as "Ethan Frome" but left "To Kill A Mockingbird" out, shame on them. I am not going to classify this book as a page turner, but it was almost there. The last 100 or so pages I couldn't stop reading.

The story is told in first person and the narrator is a young child by the name of Scout. Now, there are so many directions that Lee could have taken with her creation of Scout. But she decided that she would be highly advanced for a child (in the book she is between the ages of 6 and 8), and this is good. Because the reader get not only to see how Scout develops but also gets a look into her thought process and how she tackles some of the complicated adult issues she has to face. Sometimes I forgot that this story was being told through the eyes of a child.

The language in the story was both simple and complex. Every now and than Lee would through in a SAT word (at least that was what I called them in high school) but they were perfectly in context with the story and did not distract from the flow. In fact they helped illustrated and remind the reader that Scout is a child.

Now to the storyline. Even though this book was published in the 1960's and takes place in the 1930's the subject matter is still relevant to today. The struggle for equality in legal system, prejudice, and class. All these issues come up in the book and Lee handles them well, maybe because she does it from the unbias eyes of a child.

This book as been criticized for the use of the "N" word but I think that it is appropriate because first it is a historical fiction novel and second that was reality back in the time frame of the story. The only time that my eyebrow raised was when I reached the following passage on page 118:

"The warm bittersweet smell of clean Negro welcomed us as we entered the churchyard..."

I have no idea what that means. Bittersweet smell and clean.... I am lost. But otherwise a solid well written book.

Pros: Characters, Subject Matter, Language
Cons: Language.

Overall Recommendation: You haven't read it, yet? What's taking you so long? Check it out at the library or buy it.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee 1961

Harper Lee wrote one novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, and it won the Pulitzer prize in 1961. Its themes still resonate with readers and her novel has become a part of our culture. That, I believe, is success.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee almost perfectly captures the main challenge of growing up: realizing human nature, both good and bad.

(I say "almost" perfect because I am sure there are faults in the novel, but I love this novel so much that I don't want to search for them.)

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee 1961

Winner of the 1961 Pulitzer Prize for Literature, Fiction, 336 pages

Initially, I was introduced to Harper Lee’s novel through the 1962 movie starring Gregory Peck. However, I had never read the book. As I wanted this reading to be as fresh as possible, I made it a point not to read anything about the book: reviews, criticisms – nothing. I wanted any impressions made, to be my own.

For me, the reason this book is deserving of the honor of a Pulitzer Prize, is the fact that Miss Lee has created a story which not only projects a strong theme of ethics and morals, but also contains subtle undercurrents of courage, loss of innocence, and prejudice (of class as well as race), which she has woven brilliantly throughout the narrative.

To Kill A Mockingbird is separated into two parts, yet they work together to illustrate the consequences of ignorance and prejudice, as well as the power of dignity and courage.

Sometimes the right choice is the hardest, and does not always lead to victory. Courage is being able to face the inevitable, even if you know from the beginning, it is a losing one. Here is where Miss Lee’s brilliance shines. It is not enough to have a parent as a role model; she has each child learn this harsh truth through personal experiences. In one of the more poignant passages in the book, Atticus explains to Jem what real courage is, “I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what.” (121)

One thing that surprised me the most about this book was the amount of controversy surrounding it, even to this day. But the reader must remember that within the setting and tone of the novel, it is appropriate – and I would say absolutely necessary. How can one truly understand 1935 Alabama unless one gets into the mindset of its people and the harshness of its environment?

It was not a politically correct period in American History; therefore politically correct sensibilities must be set aside when reading this book. In this novel, as in life, the goodness of men is always tempered with its opposite. The simple fact is that human nature is made up of the capacity to be ultimately kind or horrifyingly evil. But when the evil in us is faced with dignity, grace, and courage, it can be overcome.

I give this book 5 stars with the simple advisement that one take into consideration the language and subject matter and rise above it, for its message is much more important than the words used to convey it.

My full review can be found here.

To Kill a Mockingbird - Laura's Review

To Kill a Mockingbird
Harper Lee
323 pages

First sentence: When he was thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm broken badly at the elbow.

Reflections: Harper Lee's Pulitzer prizewinner is such a classic; the plot is well-known and there's probably not a person who will read this review that hasn't already read this book. I read it as a teenager, but I did so on my own and didn't have the benefit of group discussion to enhance my understanding of the themes and issues explored in this work. Dana over at So many books, so little time re-reads TKAM every year and that got me thinking. Along comes Maggie Reads' Southern Reading Challenge, and I had an excuse to bring this one out from the dusty shelves.

Je ne regrette rien. What a powerful book. I immediately became absorbed in the main characters -- Jem, Scout, Atticus, and Calpurnia -- as well as some of the townspeople and neighbors. I fell easily into the tales of carefree childhood summers, pretend play, and "spooky" reclusive neighbors. I could feel the warm summer evenings and the year-round temperate Alabama climate. But then, wham!, I was hit with the small-mindedness, hatred, and racism:
"Cry about the simple hell people give other people--without even thinking. Cry about the hell white people give colored folks, without even stopping to think that they're people, too." (p. 229)

Through brilliant prose, Harper Lee vividly tells the story of a black man on trial for raping a white woman, Atticus' inner strength and determination, the injustice done to the defendant, the varying reactions of the townspeople, and the subsequent events in which justice is finally served. I'd forgotten how the book got its title, and when I read this part of the book, I found it so apt:
"Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy ... they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." (p. 103)

If you haven't read this book, you should. And if you have, you should re-read it -- you'll learn something new every time.

Original review can be found here.

To Kill A Mockingbird - Wendy's Review

"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." - From To Kill A Mockingbird, page 103 -

What can I say about To Kill A Mockingbird that hasn't already been said a million times? Harper Lee's beautiful novel set in the sleepy county of Macomb, Alabama in the 1930s defines the adage 'still waters run deep.' Scout Finch, a vibrant, curious tomboy narrates the story which spans a period of nearly three years beginning when she is six years old. The cast of characters is vast and enjoyable. From Atticus Finch (Scout's father who is a man of decency and honesty), to Jem Fitch (Scout's brother, striving to follow his father's example), to Dill (Jem and Scout's summertime companion who embodies a sense of adventure and mischief), to Tom Robinson (the black man falsely accused of rape), to Miss Maudie (Scout's next door neighbor with a heart of gold and the best cake in the country), and finally to Boo Radley (the mysterious next door neighbor who hasn't been seen in twenty-five years), Lee weaves a tale that latches onto the reader and never lets go.

Lee doesn't restrict herself to merely telling a story. She includes astounding insight into the roots of racism and the idea that one man's courage to stand up against inequality may be all that's needed to begin to shatter the beliefs that sustain hatred.

Perhaps what is so inviting about this novel is that its narrator is only a child. Scout Finch brings to the book an innocence and perception which only children share. Her reflections, void of the internal restraints that inhibit adults, bring a truthfulness to the novel that resonates with the reader.

This is a book I will read again…and again. It is a timeless classic, beautifully written and one I highly recommend. Rated 5/5. To read my original review, go here.

Favorite Passages

About Courage: I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do. - From To Kill A Mockingbird, page 128 -

About The Love of Reading: Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing. -From To Kill A Mockingbird, page 20-

About Racism: If there's just one kind of folks, why can't they get along with each other? If they're all alike, why do they go out of their way to despise each other? -From To Kill A Mockingbird, page 259-

1961 To Kill a Mockingbird - 3M's Review

Wow! What a fantastic book. I don't know why I've never read this before. I really thought I already knew what it was about--a girl's father defending a black man for r*ping a white woman. It is about so much more than that, although of course that plays an important part.

Scout and her family live in Maycomb, Alabama. In the beginning of the book, Scout is going into the 1st grade and her brother Jem is going into 5th. Her father is an attorney, her mother died when she was 2, and her caregiver is a sweet, smart black woman named Calpurnia. The family relationship among all members is strong--very strong. Scout and Jem play together at home (but not in school--Jem insists). Scout and her father always read together in the evenings. This is a point of contention with Scout's teacher Miss Caroline. Some of my favorite passages come from this section and they are hilarious to me as a former teacher who now homeschools.

The teacher asks if anyone knows what the alphabet is, and then. . .

...as I read the alphabet a faint line appeared between her eyebrows, and after making me read most of My First Reader and the stock-market quotations from the Mobile Register aloud, she discovered that I was literate and looked at me with more than faint distaste. Miss Caroline told me to tell my father not to teach me any more, it would interfere with my reading. [...] "Now you tell your father not to teach you any more. It's best to begin reading with a fresh mind. You tell him I'll take over from here and try to undo the damage--"

The Dewey Decimal System consisted, in part, of Miss Caroline waving cards at us on which were printed "the," "cat," "rat," "man," and "you." No comment seemed to be expected of us, and the class received these impressionistic revelations in silence. I was bored, so I began a letter to Dill. Miss Caroline caught me writing and told me to tell my father to stop teaching me. "Besides, she said. "We don't write in the first grade, we print. You won't learn to write until you're in the third grade."

...as I inched sluggishly along the treadmill of the Maycomb County school system, I could not help receiving the impression that I was being cheated out of something. Out of what I knew not, yet I did not believe that twelve years of unrelieved boredom was exactly what the state had in mind for me.

I don't want to give away too much of the story, so from here I'll be brief. Scout, Jem, and their friend Dill (said to have been inspired by Lee's childhood friend Truman Capote) spend a lot of time together in the summer trying to see Boo Radley, a neighbor who is a recluse. In fact, they are obsessed with this endeavor. Atticus Finch, Scout's father, takes on the r*pe case. The fallout from the case is felt by the Finches from the community as well as from their extended family. The book ends well, though, with a very satisfying conclusion.

To Kill a Mockingbird won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1961 and was made into an Academy Award winning film starring Gregory Peck. It is the only novel Harper Lee ever published.

I listened to parts of this book on Audio CD read by Sissy Spacek. Highly recommended.

Caution: There are a few curse words and adult themes in the book. I would recommend this book for high school level and up.

1960, 281 pp.
Pulitzer Prize 1961

Rating: 5