Reviews

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

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nikread84's review against another edition

4.0

This is a great book overall, and likely deserving of all the accolades.
I rented the audiobook from the library 4 times before I finally finished it. The first half of the book was long, and I had trouble engaging with the characters. I know it’s historical, but I had trouble with some of the overarchIng themes before they were more fully clarified later on. Once I got to the meat of the story with Tom Robinson, I flew through the book. The second half was fantastic! I will probably watch the movie someday, but have no interest in reading it again.

arytaco's review against another edition

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3.0

Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird chronicles the daily lives of two children, brother and sister Jem and Scout Finch, in a coming of age tale set amidst the Great Depression and the Jim Crow laws. The two children experience the growing pains of financial limitations, but Lee’s novel also displays the importance of proper parental guidance and the power of courage and compassion. The novel is thorough in its exploration of humanity, class and racial injustice, while still leaving enough room to challenge readers to this day, while also allowing them to add their own ideas to Lee’s text. The loss of innocence for both Jem and Scout is shown through the eyes of the latter, so the reader can easily recognize the mental changes of the protagonists. At the beginning of the book, the children tease and play games that carelessly demonize sheltered neighbor Boo Radley; but, by the end, they come to recognize Boo as a mockingbird, while owning up to their previous mishaps. By the end, the novel has given its readers a nuanced glimpse into the lives of its characters, personified by caring subtext and poignant ideas. To Kill a Mockingbird’s reputation has been blemished in recent years, but its impact has never diminished.

mrbrownsays's review against another edition

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5.0

I have read this 3/4 times, absolutely amazing. It must be a good read if you can study something for GCSE and not end up hating it.

nuners88's review against another edition

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5.0

Great book for everyone to read, at least once!

offworldcolony's review against another edition

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5.0

Probably perfect. I read this for school and was typically ambivalent, but during a tough time in my life, I had that niggling feeling that I should revisit it and i was right. What a beautiful book.