To Kill a Mockingbird

It was times like these when I thought my father, who hated guns and had never been to any wars, was the bravest man who ever lived.

I've had this book in my shelf for the longest time and never got around to reading it. I'm so glad i finally did. The first half of the book was pretty slow and took me a while to read, but the brilliant prose makes up for the pace. Looking at the world through six year old Scout's eyes was an absolute delight. As a child, Scout doesn't understand the full implication of the things happening around her, making her an objective observer and a reporter in the truest sense. We see things exactly the way they happen which makes it so different from the usual adult pov. However, it's important to understand that the narrator is two Scouts: the little girl experiencing the story and the adult Jean Louise who tells the story. The adult Jean Louise can better understand the impact of various events while Scout as a child was simply living through them.

My favourite part about this book is how unflinchingly honest it is. Scout isn't afraid to ask questions. She looks up to her father (Atticus) and views him as a voice of reason and somebody who would answer her questions truthfully. Her relationship with Atticus stands out throughout the book.

SY75

“They're certainly entitled to think that, and they're entitled to full respect for their opinions... but before I can live with other folks I've got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience.”

Final Thoughts

SY75

“Lawyers, I suppose, were children once.”