There was this book that came out in 1960. It made a bit of a splash.  It was awarded a Pulitzer Prize in 1961. The author only wrote one book but she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1970.   

The story takes place in a small town in Alabama during the great depression.  There are two plot lines that run through the story. The children in the story are fascinated by a neighbor who does not come out of his house although they find small gifts in a tree when they go over and look at the house. The other main plot line is about their father defending a black man on charges of raping a white woman. There are many in the town feel that the father should not defend a black man and he is called names by some of the townsfolk.  The plot lines converge at the conclusion of the book. 

The book was made into a movie in 1962. It was a box office hit and won Oscars for Best Actor, Best Art Direction –Set Decoration, Black, and White, and Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium. (The author became such close friends with the actor who portrayed the father that the actor’s grandson was named after her.)

In 1997, The Alabama State Bar erected a monument to the father in the book marking his existence as the “first commemorative milestone in the state’s judicial history”. The Alabama State Bar also gave the author an honorary membership because her character “has become the personification of the exemplary lawyer in serving the legal needs of the poor”.

This book is currently ranked #34 on the list of Top 100 Books on Amazon – 53 years after it was originally published!

This book has consistently made the list of banned/challenged books.  As recently as 2009, it was removed from classrooms in Brampton, Ontario Canada.  (ALA.org) Parents object to the racially charged name that Atticus Finch (the lawyer/father) is called in the book.  

Yes, the classic, To Kill a Mockingbird is on the list of Banned Books. 

“There’s a lot of ugly things in this world, son. I wish I could keep ’em all away from you. That’s never possible.”                                                       – spoken by Atticus Finch, by Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird

“Best way to clear the air is to have it all out in the open.” 

– spoken by Atticus Finch, by Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird

Thanks for reading!