This year marks the 50th Anniversary of Harper Lee’s classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird. First published in 1960, the book went on to win the Pulitzer prize in 1961 and became an Oscar-winning film in 1962. With more than 10,000,000 copies sold since its first publication, To Kill a Mockingbird remains one of the best-selling novels of all time. To date, Mockingbird is Lee’s only published novel and she has remained fiercely private with the press and media, politely refusing to make public appearances or to speak about the novel. In 1962, the novel was adapted into film, with the Academy Award-winning screenplay written by Lee’s friend Horton Foote and produced by Alan Jay Pakula. The film, starring Gregory Peck, won 2 other Oscars for Best Actor (Peck) and Best Art Direct-Set Direction, Black-and-White. Harper Lee was pleased with the movie and was quoted saying, “That film was a work of art.” If you haven’t yet read this classic Southern novel - a novel loaded with warmth and humor, memorable characters (Atticus Finch, Scout, Boo Radley) and serious issues of rape, racial inequality, class, courage and compassion - this is a great year to do so! We have copies of the book and the movie, but read the book first!
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Great post! Thanks!
The book and the movie are both absolutely wonderful, which almost never happens. Did you know that the American Film Institute voted Atticus Finch the #1 movie hero of the past 100 years (see http://tinyurl.com/ca7ka4)? I could not agree more.