To Kill a Mockingbird

"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee is known as a highly acclaimed classic of literature and a must read by anyone. Even though in the beginning of any book the conflict is never introduced, in this prize winning novel interest is built up since the very first page.

It all begins in Maycomb, a Southern American country, with two siblings, Jem Finch and Jean Louise Finch  AKA: Scout Finch and their father Atticus Finch. Atticus is a lawyer, a very respected one there in Maycomb. Through the first pages of the book we get to know Dill, a boy who became as close to them as family. He visited Maycomb every summer as soon as class ended, which marked the start of countless adventures and fun. The lives of Jem, Scout, Dill and Atticus are not yet to be considered extraordinary or rare, they are rather seen as normal. Nevertheless, this perception sets aside one small detail: the Radley Place and Boo Radley. This place is terrifying and its inhabitants are just as equal. Boo Radley is a human being who is said to never leave his house and who is known for eating cats.
    After school ends and Dill arrives, Jem, Scout and Dill prove each other's bravery by making challenges on things regarding the Radley Place. The dares begin with complete simplicity; making Jem touch the front door of the place and start getting more and more threatening as summer time passes by; acting as Radley members, sending letters to Boo Radley and more. Atticus, as any father, was in complete disagreement with this sort of "games" the children were playing and unsuccessfully attempted to stop them. On the other hand, the kids got more excited each time the challenges were closer to the Radley Place and death, with the exception of Scout. She was afraid and at times eager to stop what they were doing, for which she got excluded from the group and was forced to be with either Calpurnia their made or their neighbor.
     The last game exposed in the pages I read was to take a look at Boo Radley. Scout was admitted in this plan with the condition of keeping quiet about what was going to happen. Everything was going as planned for Jem, Scout and Dill until a shadow approached them and a gunshot was heard. In the middle of the commotion they ran away as fast as they could and in the process Jem lost his pants, which led to him inventing an excuse to tell Atticus who had perfectly heard the shot. Jem, Scout and Dill got away with it, however, all of them, especially Jem, got threats of death by Boo Radley.
     

Here are Scout, Dill and Jem

   Just flipping the first pages of this novel I encountered an appealing and very real quote that stated the following:

   "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... until you climb into his skin and walk around it." (39) 

     This phrase is in my opinion an enormous life lesson we all learn at some point in our lives. Yes it’s easy to judge another person's thoughts, actions and behaviors, but no, it is not logical to do so without first knowing why they do, think or act the way they do. I am in complete agreement with this quote, for it takes us to a much more global thinking of life and humans. People tend to critique others based on their principles; however, every single human being has its reality and its morals. This quote also made me question: If we are who we are and others are who they are, then why do people keep insisting to deny setting for a moment in the authenticity of others, in order to then draw conclusions on them instead of judging others from one's reality? 

Another quote I found very interesting in terms of description was the following:

"The nightcrawlers had retired, but ripe chinaberries drummed on the roof where the wind stirred, and the darkness was desolate with the barking of distant dogs." (76) 

In this small sentence of the book, the author manages to instantly transform letters into an image in the reader's mind. You can sense the intensity of the night ahead of Scout and you can even feel a little fear and loneliness coming out of it. The barking of the dogs, the wind, and the desolate darkness allow you to position yourself in the middle of the scene occurring in this particular moment. Harper Lee, with something as simple as a sentence, created a magnificent way to add a connection and to add deepness to the story, which I find to be impressive.

"To Kill a Mockingbird" is on the top charts of reading books and even if it hasn't fully expressed its magnificence through letters to me yet, I am sure it will in a very short while. In this few introductory pages suspense, intrigue and excitement has been already shown. With adventures and dangers, family and friends, the story begins developing right in front of me. I am eager to find out more about all characters of this novel and their lives and conflicts. There is only one way of doing so: flipping each page with more and more enthusiasm and eagerness to never seize my interest thanks to the book's suspense.