Take a photo of a barcode or cover
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This is another reread for me and it is still as good and adorable and powerful as I remember. The themes still hold up to this day and Scout Finch is an iconic female character.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Religious bigotry
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Misogyny, Rape
Minor: Incest
emotional
reflective
tense
Wow. I really dropped the ball not reading this one until now. I'm sure it's much more impactful as a parent, though. Gripping, emotional ride from start to finish. Such perfect detail I had to keep reminding myself that it's a work of fiction.
Favorite fictional father so far! Just wow. And the slow unfolding of events as understood by a child overhearing things and not fully grasping the implications of situations is just perfection.
Favorite fictional father so far! Just wow. And the slow unfolding of events as understood by a child overhearing things and not fully grasping the implications of situations is just perfection.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Violence, Police brutality, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Confinement, Drug use, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Terminal illness, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Death of parent
Minor: Bullying, Infidelity, Suicide, War
This book is for adults. It centers around a rape trial in which a black man is (falsely) accused of assaulting a white woman in a heavily segregated Alabama town.
It's deeply immersive, in a culture where racism is woven into the culture and impossible to avoid. The KKK and the "War Between the States" are part of recent cultural memory. Black defendants are always convicted no matter what. Lynching and mob violence are a very near threat.
Expectedly, the n-word abounds, among other racial slurs. Other language is not infrequent, including he**, g-d-, b****, wh*re, d**n, sl*t, etc. Lord's name in vain quite a few times.
Lots of death--not gory, but as close as it gets without actually witnessing it. Old age, and talk of the body being carried out of the home. Death penalty discussed often. A man dies:the defendant, by 18ish bullet wounds, while trying to escape a prison camp. Another man is killed while trying to murder children, via stabbing by an unexpected rescuer. One child receives a horribly broken arm and is knocked out. A rabid dog is shot.
Domestic violence:the accusing white woman was actually beaten heavily by her father when he discovered she was making advances on the black man.
Morphine addiction is discussed and withdrawals are shown.
Both respectable and "unrespectable" poverty are shown.
Schoolyard bullying and fights, neighborhood verbal abuse and gossip about many culturally relevant "deficiencies" like unladylikeness, mental illness, intellectual disability, not being sufficiently racist, etc.
Lots of portrayals of Christianity. Some are good, including the nearest relationships to the MC, but many are not. A neighbor reports that a different sort of baptist told her she was going to hell, MC loses "confidence in pulpit gospel" when thinking on what a good person the neighbor is. "Foot-washers think women are a sin by definition. They take the Bible literally, you know." The ladies' missionary society talks about global cultures with pity and exaggeration, often conflating spiritual issues with cultural differences. A white employer tells her black housekeeper she's not being a good Christian when she is visibly affected by a serious injustice in the local community and nearly fired her for it. Etc, many more.
Other spiritual content: Kids spook each other with talk of spirits on dirt roads. "Dill was a villain's villain: he could get into any character part assigned him, and appear tall if height was part of the devilry required. "
Besides the rape trial and moderately explicit testimony, which includes brief mention of domestic SA, there's other, more minor sexual content. Incest in local families is mentioned very specifically a few times. There's a quick joke about infidelity. Kids lie and say they were playing strip poker, which gets them into trouble (less because they played with matches instead of cards). There's a "swift" kid kiss, and a boy climbs into bed with a girl he keeps promising to marry some day, but it's platonic.
"I'll tan you" and many other such comments, severe corporal punishment for children being an expected part of the culture. Kids laugh when the teacher gives "quick little pats" on the hand when they realize it was meant to be a "whipping".
It's deeply immersive, in a culture where racism is woven into the culture and impossible to avoid. The KKK and the "War Between the States" are part of recent cultural memory. Black defendants are always convicted no matter what. Lynching and mob violence are a very near threat.
Expectedly, the n-word abounds, among other racial slurs. Other language is not infrequent, including he**, g-d-, b****, wh*re, d**n, sl*t, etc. Lord's name in vain quite a few times.
Lots of death--not gory, but as close as it gets without actually witnessing it. Old age, and talk of the body being carried out of the home. Death penalty discussed often. A man dies:
Domestic violence:
Morphine addiction is discussed and withdrawals are shown.
Both respectable and "unrespectable" poverty are shown.
Schoolyard bullying and fights, neighborhood verbal abuse and gossip about many culturally relevant "deficiencies" like unladylikeness, mental illness, intellectual disability, not being sufficiently racist, etc.
Lots of portrayals of Christianity. Some are good, including the nearest relationships to the MC, but many are not. A neighbor reports that a different sort of baptist told her she was going to hell, MC loses "confidence in pulpit gospel" when thinking on what a good person the neighbor is. "Foot-washers think women are a sin by definition. They take the Bible literally, you know." The ladies' missionary society talks about global cultures with pity and exaggeration, often conflating spiritual issues with cultural differences. A white employer tells her black housekeeper she's not being a good Christian when she is visibly affected by a serious injustice in the local community and nearly fired her for it. Etc, many more.
Other spiritual content: Kids spook each other with talk of spirits on dirt roads. "Dill was a villain's villain: he could get into any character part assigned him, and appear tall if height was part of the devilry required. "
Besides the rape trial and moderately explicit testimony, which includes brief mention of domestic SA, there's other, more minor sexual content. Incest in local families is mentioned very specifically a few times. There's a quick joke about infidelity. Kids lie and say they were playing strip poker, which gets them into trouble (less because they played with matches instead of cards). There's a "swift" kid kiss, and a boy climbs into bed with a girl he keeps promising to marry some day, but it's platonic.
"I'll tan you" and many other such comments, severe corporal punishment for children being an expected part of the culture. Kids laugh when the teacher gives "quick little pats" on the hand when they realize it was meant to be a "whipping".
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Read for school, now one of my favorite books
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Sexual violence
Minor: Animal death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Classism
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Police brutality, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, Sexual harassment
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Incest, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Violence, Grief, Death of parent
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Terminal illness, Violence, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I enjoyed this book, though the beginning was a bit slow. I already knew the ending of the court case considering that we'd watched (part of) the movie in an English class when I was younger, but it was still an intriguing aspect of the book.
While, of course, we all wanted the court case to go the other way, I think the doomed from the start case where they couldn't overcome it in the end aspect was very good. It speaks to Atticus Finch's character that he did his best despite the odds. It also illustrated the social issues at the time very well.
I also liked the ending with Boo (Arthur) Radley quite a bit. I think it really spoke to Scout's new perspective about how to think about and treat people developed in the book.
While, of course, we all wanted the court case to go the other way, I think the doomed from the start case where they couldn't overcome it in the end aspect was very good. It speaks to Atticus Finch's character that he did his best despite the odds. It also illustrated the social issues at the time very well.
I also liked the ending with Boo (Arthur) Radley quite a bit. I think it really spoke to Scout's new perspective about how to think about and treat people developed in the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racial slurs, Racism
Moderate: Animal death
Minor: Misogyny, Rape
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I fully understand why this book is considered to be so important. It’s incredible, with a lot of meaning and heart in every word. Some parts move so quickly that you can’t put it down, and some go slowly not because they’re boring but because it’s the kind of story you want to savor. I cannot recommend it enough.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Rape
Moderate: Animal death, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
The novel has a fairly heavy premise: a black man on trial for the rape of a white woman in Alabama during the Jim Crow era. All trigger warnings that can think of are present, but I think that for the most part Harper Lee handles them very well.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism
Moderate: Animal death, Death, Rape, Fire/Fire injury