To Kill a Mockingbird

This month everyone brought some treats in as a potluck while we discussed our book.

Considering the classic nature of this months book it was a surprise to find that not many people had read it previously. Also, not many people had seen the film, some people said they wanted to finish the book before they watched the film. Not everyone managed to finish the book this month, this was probably because of the time of year and we only had a short period since the last meeting.

First we discussed our general feelings for the book. Many people didn't understand why it was a classic as it didn't grab you as an interesting read. We thought maybe the reason was that is was such an unusual book for the time in which it was written. We can't see how amazing it was because we're looking at it with 21st century eyes.

We also discussed the issue or racism both in the time of the book and today. We feel that racism is still around today as is shown almost everyday in the papers. There are certain terms used in the book to discribe black people that we felt were shocking for our time but were used in context for the time the book was set. The central theme of the court case was felt to be a turning point for the people of the town, and especially for Jem who we thought might possibly have gone on to fight for racial equality.

The justice system was another point for discussion, we felt very unhappy with the complete lack of justice for Tom. We were also unsure about how he died, was he murdered because he had become a bit of a celebrity? Or had he really tried to escape? Maybe it was because the town felt guilty they had put him in prison for something they knew he hadn't done. This case made a little diffence to the attitudes held within the town that would eventually lead the way for racial equality.

Family seemed to be a big theme in this book with the differences between Scouts family, the Ewells and the Radleys showing how people can be brought up in very different ways. Atticus took a very unusual step by keeping his children with him when his wife died and he treated his children very differently be allowing them to be little adults. He made sure they took on responsibility very young, in contrast to Boo Radleys father who took away his responsibility by locking him away. The Ewells seemed to be the family no-one wanted to be attached to, which is not surprising from the undercurrent of information of familial beatings we get during the trial.

We seemed to have a split between people who liked Atticus and people who disliked him. Some people felt he was out of his time, a little too forward thinking for those around him to feel comfortable around. Others felt that he gave himself godlike characteristics, thinking himself better than those around him. Maybe the godlike attributes came from the fact that the novel was written from Scouts viewpoint and she, like many young children, thought of her father as the most amazing man alive.

We all found it interesting that people in the book often changed the way they behaved in order to fit in and to make people more comfortable. They changed the way they spoke, didn't admit to being able to read, or pretended to be drunk in order for others to accept them.

Despite all the strong themes there are also some humorous moments involving Scout, and also the moment in the church when they are all trapped unless the right amount of collection has been donated.

The character of the aunt we found to add an extra dimension to Atticus' family life. She seemed to be able to develop Scout into a well rounded young lady without her much noticing. While at the same time loving Scouts oddness.

Overall we gave this book 7.5 out of 10.