We do however recommend you head straight to the nearest bookstore and buy it or. if you're feeling particularly lazy, just buy it here at, (nudge, nudge) Rediff Books! :-)
But, for now, here's everything you need to know about To Kill A Mockingbird.
1. It was written by Harper Lee.
Yep! That's her in the picture here, many, many years ago!
That is also one of the very few photographs of the author because, not unlike the late American author J D Salinger, Harper Lee -- who is now 88 years old -- is a recluse.
Both knocked the ball out of the park with just one novel -- Salinger did it with Catcher In The Rye and Lee with To Kill A Mockingbird. (Salinger though, had published 13 short stories besides his novel.)
Salinger was and Lee is publicity shy.
Salinger stopped giving interviews in 1980, while Lee has consistently turned down interview requests since the mid-60s.
Of course, this wasn't always the case with Harper Lee.
Soon after the book's publication, she seemed to quite enjoy the popularity.
She was granting interviews, visiting schools and attending events in her honour.
When the book was in its 41st week on the bestseller list, Lee was informed that her debut novel had won the Pulitzer Prize, which left her stunned.
Slowly but surely, Harper Lee grew tired of the repetitive questions and felt her popularity bordered on the kind that celebrities sought.
And so, in 1964, she began turning down interviews and has remained a recluse ever since.
Photograph: Wikimedia Creative Commons
2. To Kill A Mockingbird is set from 1933 to 1935 in the fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama.
The protagonist of the story is the six-year-old Scout Finch who stays with her older brother, Jem, and their widowed father, Atticus, a middle-aged lawyer.
Scout and Jem are joined by Dill, a young fellow who joins his aunt every summer.
Their neighbour, the reclusive 'Boo' Radley, is a constant source of fascination and terror to the three children.
3. But wait! It isn't just about a bunch of kids playing around in Depression Era America.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, one of this generation's finest writers, describes the book as 'a very clear-eyed depiction of American tribalism in its three major manifestations: race, class and region.'
This is because To Kill A Mockingbird deals with some very serious issues -- rape and racial inequality.
Scout's father, Atticus Finch, is appointed to represent a black man accused of raping a white woman.
What's the big deal you ask?
Think of how we would treat a lawyer representing a man accused of mass murder today.
Get the picture?
Jem and Scout are taunted about their father being a 'nigger-lover' and the imprisoned black man, Tom, is almost lynched by a mob.
Even so, Atticus stands his ground and does the job assigned to him.
4. Atticus Finch, the complete man! :-)
Atticus Finch is one of the most admired and revered characters in world literature.
He has served as a moral hero to the readers of the book, not to mention lawyers around the world, and the man you aspire to be -- honest, forthright, intelligent and poised.
Should it be a surprise then than the novel was originally titled Atticus?
His most famous quote: 'You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view, until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.'
5. Gregory Peck played Atticus Finch
If anyone had any doubts about the popularity of Atticus's character, this is Gregory Peck speaking about the role he immortalised on the silver screen:
'I know that one thing I am going to be remembered for... and it is probably going to be the lead line of my obit: Oscar for To Kill A Mockingbird.
'More people remind me about that, talk to me and write to me than any other film.'
Incidentally, Peck wasn't the first choice for the role. Universal Studio, which produced the film, had planned to cast Rock Hudson, star of the 1961 romantic comedy, Come September.
Harper Lee, though, had a high opinion of Gregory Peck.
In an interview that is part of the movie's special edition DVD, Peck recollects the time Lee told him on the sets of the film that he reminded her of her father, especially 'with that little paunch'. :-)
Photograph: Still from the movie adaptation of To Kill A Mockingbird.
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