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Post by Deleted on Jul 16, 2015 2:47:13 GMT
No, I know I read it in school bit it's not one that stuck out in my mind. Always wondered what the fuss is about .
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Post by chlerbie on Jul 16, 2015 2:48:08 GMT
It's absolutely my favorite and I love it for many reasons. I read it first in high school and then again as an adult and got something different from if both times. I've read it 3-4 times. I'm not sure if I'm going to read Watchman or not.
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gottapeanow
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Post by gottapeanow on Jul 16, 2015 3:12:25 GMT
I read TKAM for the first time ever last year. It was on my to-read list, but the push over the edge was the fact that oldest ds was reading it in hs. I had to join in the fun. It was in my top 10 last year, definitely. I totally loved it. Lisa
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katybee
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Jun 25, 2014 23:25:39 GMT
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Post by katybee on Jul 16, 2015 3:15:40 GMT
I love it. LOVE it. But I saw the movie first, as a child. So as I read the book, I was picturing Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch, and I loved him even as a child. So I suspect that my love of the movie somewhat influenced my love of the book…
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Post by maryland on Jul 16, 2015 3:18:46 GMT
It's good, but not one of my favorites. I enjoyed it in high school and I enjoyed re-reading it when my son was assigned it a few years ago. I just finished Go Set a Watchman and was not scarred by it like so many seem to fear. I only read part of To Kill a Mockingbird a couple years ago when my daughter had to read it for summer reading for 8th grade. She hates to read, so I figured I would read it to get her more into it (Advanced English Summer assignment - yes, even a girl who hates to read can be in advanced English). I thought it was good, but I never finished it.
Why would people be scarred? I haven't heard much about the new book. Just curious!
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Post by bc2ca on Jul 16, 2015 3:19:50 GMT
I am an avid reader and read TKAM in school many years ago and then twice in the last few years when each of my kids was assigned in it in class. I love the story, especially being told from the innocent perspective of a child. I loved the discussions this book triggered with my kids. TKAM is also one of the few stories that I love the movie version as much as the book. It definitely goes on my favorites list, but other books have had a bigger impact on me. The Outsiders, Island of the Blue Dolphins and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn are all on that list along with everything by Jane Austen.
I will read GSAW and almost picked it up at Costco today but already have it on hold at the library so will wait.
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Post by tinydogmafia on Jul 16, 2015 3:28:27 GMT
I am an avid reader but It is not a favorite of mine in any way.
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MsKnit
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Post by MsKnit on Jul 16, 2015 3:38:55 GMT
TKAM is my favorite book of all time.
We bought my husband's aunt and uncle's house. She left a lot of stuff in the house. Never buy a house from a relative. Anyone, one of the things she left behind was a copy of TKAM. Being an avid reader, of course I read it and fell in love. Atticus' wisdom and mild manner, the kind of father he was, being strong enough to stand for right in the face of great opposition, all coupled with the innocence of the children and their mischief is wonderful. The story told from Scout's eyes and how she saw her father, that she felt safe with him, knew she was loved...I would have given anything to have that kind of father. Life wasn't perfect. The characters were flawed.
I've read it so many times. Usually once a year and I never get tired of it. But, I do think it has so much to do with discovering the book in my mid-20s. I wouldn't have appreciated it in high school.
Last night, I started reading Watchman. The only negative I've read regarding the book was a spoiler in a thread here.
I don't expect Watchman to be TKAM. I'm allowing it to stand on it's own. So far, it has simply been an update to the character's lives. I was shocked to discover the death of a character and want to know what happened.
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paget
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Post by paget on Jul 16, 2015 3:40:37 GMT
:::whispers::: I've never even read it.
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georgiapea
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Post by georgiapea on Jul 16, 2015 3:43:44 GMT
I think it might become one of my favorites. I'm halfway through the trial, never having read it before although I knew about it when it first came out in the 60's. I also have Watchman.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 16, 2015 3:51:36 GMT
I can't pick a favorite book, but I do love To Kill a Mockingbird. There are many reasons. It was one of the first books where I read about the South and fell in love with Harper Lee's beautiful writing describing the setting. I loved sassy Scout and her protective and annoyed brother. I admired Atticus Finch. A man who was expected to not care about defending a black man for rape. He knew Tom Robinson could not physically have raped a white woman. He chose to do the job that was appointed to him. I never saw him as a champion for desegregation; someone ahead of his time. I saw him as a man who probably put aside some of his prejudices because he knew an innocent man should not go to prison. I have started to read Go Set a Watchman. I'm not too far in, but I am enjoying it so far. I don't expect it to be TKAM. What are your theories about people who feel so fervently about the subject? What's your all time favorite book and why? MsKnitI haven't got far into GSAW, but I suspect Jem had heart issues. In TKAM, Atticus's wife dies of a heart attack when Scout is two.
I don't know if the reason is ever stated in the book.
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Dani-Mani
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Post by Dani-Mani on Jul 16, 2015 4:00:42 GMT
I remember a pea who had children named Atticus and Scout.
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GiantsFan
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Post by GiantsFan on Jul 16, 2015 4:01:58 GMT
I'm a reader and it's near the top of my favorites list. The first time I read it was after watching the movie (which I liked). My Mom went and dug out her copy of the book and gave it to me to read because the movie was "missing parts". I was hooked. I loved the writing, and the small town life. I was around 10 or 11. I didn't understand the race tension, but loved the book anyway. I'm disappointed that it wasn't required reading in high school for me.
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Post by ptamom on Jul 16, 2015 4:14:29 GMT
:whispers: I've never read it. I went to high school in the loosely-goosey late 70's early 80's when California wasn't making kids read the classics. We just had to read a number of pages of something. I read a lot of Stephen King books in high school.
I haven't seen the TKAM movie, either.
:hangs head in shame:
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SabrinaP
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Post by SabrinaP on Jul 16, 2015 4:17:31 GMT
It's one of my favorites. I read on my own in college because my DH, then boyfriend, the English major could not believe I didn't have to read it in high school. I did love it when I read it. I read over 100 books a year, but it remains one of my favorites.
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MaryMary
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Post by MaryMary on Jul 16, 2015 4:56:30 GMT
I really do love it. I love Scout's voice and the writing, the imagery... I love Atticus. I love the message that you do what is right even when it isn't easy. I just love that book.
I do not plan to read GSAW. I don't want the characters to be changed in my mind, and I don't believe Harper Lee was really behind the publication.
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The Great Carpezio
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Post by The Great Carpezio on Jul 16, 2015 5:05:27 GMT
I read it for the first time as an adult when I had to teach it for the first time. It was never assigned in high school, and somehow I made it all with a college as an English major and an American studies minor never reading the book.
I love it. I liked it the first time I read it, but after teaching it s couple of times, I fell in love. It is my favorite from the "Classic" canon.
I'm an avid reader.
There is no book taught that is universally loved. The vast majority love Of Mice and Men, but I've had students hate it with a fiery passion. Some love The Crucible, Huck Finn, Shakespeare, Night, etc... Others despise.
I've found that when I have a student who HATES a novel I teach, they haven't read much, or any, of the novel. Now, not "get it" or not love it? Sure. Hate it? I'd put money on "didn't bother to read" any day of the week and blaming the book/teacher as an excuse. (Some kids also don't have the ability to read independently a novel like TKAMB, but we talk a lot and I offer support when needed)
Once in awhile, I have kids who don't understand that being disturbed by something is ok. They think if something is uncomfortable it's bad or they "hate" it. I try to talk them through the cognitive dissonance.
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Post by crimsoncat05 on Jul 16, 2015 5:42:40 GMT
nope, not even close. I read it in high school and have no desire to read it ever again, or see the movie. I also don't quite understand the fervent love for it that other people seem to have.
eta: thanks, @coilstrand, and a couple other posters, for explaining WHY you love it so much. There are alot of other books I've read that I do feel that strongly about; most of the 'expected classics' aren't anywhere on that list, though.
I would have to say that my favorite author is Louisa May Alcott; I can read and re-read any of her novels over and over again and never get tired of them. I know that from today's standards the writing is very different and the stories are a bit moralistic and simple, but I think that's what draws me to them. I like the descriptions of life in the late 1800s, and reading about the place of women in society and how it was changing in the author's mind.
I have a couple other favorite authors for different reasons: Gene Stratton Porter wrote in the early 20th century; her most famous books are Freckles and A Girl of the Limberlost, both of them about life in the northern Indiana Limberlost swamp / forest area. Her writing style is so lyrical and descriptive of the scenery, it makes my heart full just to read them. I feel the same way about some of Willa Cather's descriptive passages in O, Pioneers! and My Antonia, although I don't like her stories nearly as much.
As far as contemporary fiction, my favorite series ever is the Mitford novels by Jan Karon, about the life of a small-town Episcopalian priest in North Carolina, the quirky goings-on, and his finding love in his 60s. I have never cried before when a book character died, but I did when I read that series. She does such a good job of describing small-town life where people genuinely care about each other and their town, whenever I read them I just wish Mitford was a real place I could visit, and it immerses me completely in that place / time.
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anniebygaslight
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Post by anniebygaslight on Jul 16, 2015 5:47:26 GMT
I have read it about half a dozen times. I love it. It captures a time and a place that is very different to the UK experience and teaches us a lot about US history and the attitudes of the day.
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Post by DinCA on Jul 16, 2015 6:47:00 GMT
Yes, it's definitely a favorite. It was not required reading when i was in high school and I did not read it until I was an adult.
I was sure I would read "To Set a Watchman," but I have changed my mind.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 16, 2015 7:42:08 GMT
No, I've tried to read it a few times now but I can't get in to it. I don't find the writing beautiful or even enough to hold my interest.
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DEX
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Post by DEX on Jul 16, 2015 9:38:44 GMT
I read it for the first time several years ago. I compare it to Stephen King's, The Green Mile. I loved them both. Very thought provoking.
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Post by originalvanillabean on Jul 16, 2015 13:00:48 GMT
Yes, it absolutely is my favorite book of all time. Why? I think it is well written and the character development is perfect. We know enough about them to understand the story but not a lot of empty, insignificant details. HL is an eloquent writer and I enjoy her style.
I read it as a student, in high school and again last month, in book club. I loved it just as much as an adult as a teenager. Yes, I would say that I am an avid reader.
Yes, I am half way done with TSAW and so far I like it just as much, but I think the last chapter I read is the beginning of the change. We'll see how it ends so, until I'm finished am reserving any judgments.
I'm interested in your theories so I look forward to coming back to the thread for that. (haven't read any responses yet).
Re: the movie. I don't like to see movies of books that I really enjoy. Inevitability, something that I found significant or just really liked about it gets cut from the movie and I feel like the movie isn't good because it is missing a piece. I'm not a movie person at all though, so it's really not that big if a deal if I don't see it.
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twinsmomfla99
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Jun 26, 2014 13:42:47 GMT
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Post by twinsmomfla99 on Jul 16, 2015 13:24:53 GMT
I read it for the first time in 7th grade and fell in love with it.
It always seemed to be on the optional reading list for book reports, and I am pretty sure I read it every year from 7th grade on for that purpose. I loved the characters and thought the story was compelling. Of course, that was 35 years ago, and I've only read it once since then. My law school ethics professor assigned it as required reading, and we had an exam question based on the story.
I will probably read Go Set a Watchman eventually, but I have a very big stack of unread books in my bedroom, and I'm not sure when I will get to those, so I'm not adding anything else for now.
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Post by anxiousmom on Jul 16, 2015 13:32:41 GMT
:whispers: I've never read it. I went to high school in the loosely-goosey late 70's early 80's when California wasn't making kids read the classics. We just had to read a number of pages of something. I read a lot of Stephen King books in high school. I haven't seen the TKAM movie, either. :hangs head in shame: I remember in school never having to read a single book that would be considered a classic-everything we read was contemporary literature ( Go Ask Alice and the like.) I learned as an adult that this bothered my mother so much that she (unknown to me) complained to the school. I started a list of 'all the books I should have read in school but didn't' and TKAM was on the list. When my exhusband started law school, this book was assigned to be read before the first semester and I read it when he did. I enjoyed it, it felt familiar to me in a lot of ways. I also read it a couple of years ago when one of the kids had to read it for school. As an adult reading it, and as an adult who is familiar with the history of the south, I think I had a different perspective on it than I would have had as a teen. As the book was written through the eyes of a child, the oblique references were so much more powerful in their simplicity. I am a voracious reader and I wouldn't say it is my favorite book ever. But I resist ever picking a favorite book, that is like asking which one of my children is my favorite...
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eastcoastpea
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Post by eastcoastpea on Jul 16, 2015 13:35:09 GMT
Avid reader here. Not a favorite for me.
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Post by Kelpea on Jul 16, 2015 13:35:37 GMT
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Post by mom2ja2 on Jul 16, 2015 14:32:17 GMT
It's my favorite book of all time, hands down.
I'm an avid reader, and always have been. I always had my nose in a book as a kid, which is how I found To Kill A Mockingbird.
When I was probably 11, I was at my grandmothers, and she was having an afternoon party where I was introduced and then shoved into a backroom to stay out of the way for the next few hours. I was bored stiff and began going through her book shelf. I found To Kill A Mockingbird & thought it was a cool title, and after reading the first page realized this was about kids, so how bad could it be? I read for the next couple of hours & when the party was over begged to take the book home.
It's the first book I have a memory of "not being able to put down."
It's the first book that I grabbed a flashlight & read under my sheets after lights out.
It's one of the only books I've ever read where I didn't see it coming. Don't get me wrong, I've read books as an adult and not quite gotten what's going to happen, but with foreshadowing you know something is going on, and you're immediately trying to figure out what. At that young age I hadn't read a book like that, so I missed the clues. I didn't realize that despite the fact that Tom *couldn't* be guilty that he would be found guilty, and that floored me.
And I literally dropped the book, mouth wide open, when Scout said "Hey, Boo" and I realized their rescuer was Boo Radley and not Atticus.
I loved the characters, but mainly Atticus. I didn't know anyone like that: someone who didn't demand payment from people whom he knew didn't have it, but took whatever trade the person could offer. Someone who didn't brag on past achievements "Best shot in Maycomb Co" and his kids had no idea. I loved that he put himself in danger to not only defend Tom Robinson, but to stand outside his jail cell & make sure he was okay. A parent who made sure their kids understood that it was not acceptable to judge a book by it's cover.
I love the whole courtroom section - especially, despite the outcome of the trial, when Scout is told "Jean Louise, stand up, your father's passing". I couldn't imagine being a hero in the eyes of so many people, despite actually failing, simply because you had the courage to do the right thing.
I adore Heck Tate's speech at the end, when it dawns on him that Atticus believes that Jem killed Bob Ewell, and he says "I may not be much, but I am still sheriff of Maycomb Co, and Bob Ewell fell on his knife."
I've often wondered if I would love the book as much if I would have read it as an adult for the first time, or even in high school, instead of the young age I did read it. I'm sure I would have figured out it was Boo rescuing Scout & Jem. And that Tom could not be saved.
I will say it's the only book I've ever re-read.
And I really can't think of a book that comes close to it. I've been thoroughly entertained by some books, and I've cried while reading others. But I've never had a book effect me as much as TKAM.
I just don't know if I'll ever read GSAW. It's impossible for me to imagine my literaly hero as a racist. The character who said "As you grow older, you'll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and don't you forget it—whenever a white man does that to a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is, or how fine a family he comes from, that white man is trash."
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~Susan~
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Post by ~Susan~ on Jul 16, 2015 14:39:58 GMT
I love to read and I read TKAM in my early 20's and fell in love. I love southern literature, especially when an author captures the feel of the south with words. Harper Lee totally did IMHO.
It is one of my all time favorites and I have it in hard copy. I don't keep many books any more so that is saying something.
I am planning on reading GSAW, but will try it keep it separate from Lee's first book.
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Post by STBC on Jul 16, 2015 14:50:47 GMT
I never had to read it in HS. Just started reading it for the first time the other day.
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