Hello
everyone!
Welcome to
Read me like one of your French books! I’m AnGee and I’m thrilled (and a bit
nervous too) to present you my first review! I’ve been working for several
years now on a blog dedicated to literature, but it is the first time that I
write a review in English, so I hope you’ll enjoy it!
Today I
want to talk about a very popular book, a book that you probably already know a
bit or that you’ve probably already read: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.
I first
heard of this book when I started studying English: the teachers in my American
literature classes often referred to it, but I never had the opportunity to
study it. Then, several people recommended this novel to me, and each time I
read a review about it, it was always highly praised. But despite all these
praises and recommendations, this book remained for a long time in the category
of “books I really want to read one day because everybody tells me it’s
amazing”. Finally, a few weeks ago, my mom bought the book for herself, read it
and deeply loved it. She gave it to me, and that’s how I met your mother
I discovered the amazing world of Harper Lee.
To Kill a
Mockingbird is an incredible novel. So incredible that I want to find a way to
time travel in order to find my 18-years-old self and slap her in the face for
not buying this book.
The novel
takes place in a small place in Alabama, during the Great Depression. The story
is told by Scout, a boyish little girl who lives with her older brother Jem and
her father Atticus. It evolves around several elements: the mystery of the
Radley family, their neighbours; what it’s like to live in a small city in
Alabama… But the main plot is the following: Atticus is a lawyer whose client
is a Black man who is accused of beating and raping a White woman.
Reading To
Kill a Mockingbird was like taking a hot bath. At first, I dipped my toes, got
burnt, and hesitated a bit. But then, I got deeper and deeper into the water,
until I could no longer get out. I found the beginning of the novel a bit long,
and I did not get where Harper Lee wanted to go. And then, I reached the point
where it was difficult for me to put the book down and do something else.
The story
is captivating and fascinating, from the beginning to the end. A lot of things
happen, enabling the writer to depict the lifestyle of her characters. It is
also very well-written: the book is extremely enjoyable, it’s easy to read and
rich at the same time, and I really liked Scout as a narrator. She’s very clever
and her point of view gives a unique touch to the story.
Through the
book, Harper Lee pinpoints several social problems that are extremely
interesting: one of them is how poverty is handled by people and especially by
children. Womanhood is also tackled through the character of Scout, how does
not like and does not want to behave like a “proper” woman. But the most
important theme is without a doubt the relationship between the Black and White
communities. The novel shows that the Civil War has not solved the problems of
racism and that the traces left by slavery and slave trade are still very vivid
in the South.
To Kill a
Mockingbird is undeniably a book that I will remember for a long time. I really
enjoyed reading it and I strongly recommend it. I know that Harper Lee – who
died a few weeks ago – recently published another novel, Go set a Watchman.
Maybe I’ll give it a try too!
That’s it
for today. Whether you’ve read the book or not, don’t hesitate to leave me your
comments down below. Don’t forget to read a lot and take care :)
AnGee.
