Tolog Review: To Kill a Mockingbird

To Kill a Mockingbird
by Harper Lee
reviewed by Mattison Interian

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is an amazing book filled with innocence, kindness, cruelty, love, and hatred. This best seller is a Pulitzer Prize award-winning book and has won over the heart of millions. Harper Lee won my heart over with Jem, Scout, Dill and Atticus by plunging me deep into who they were and the struggles they were experiencing in Maycomb. The book seemed to have almost two halves to it. One half of the book is consumed with Jem, Scout and Dill’s obsession with Boo Radley. The other half is mostly consumed with the trial of Tom Robinson. To Kill a Mockingbird addressed many controversial conflicts including that Scout was not treated well because of who she is, Tom was treated unfairly because of his skin color and Boo was judged because of his behavior.
Scout is a tomboy who refuses to act just like a proper woman after the Great Depression. She is constantly told that she needs to wear dresses and to stop going outside and playing with boys. Tom Robinson has the same issue; he was classified by his appearance and not by his personality. Tom Robinson was just being a good person and helping Mayella Ewell but when something goes wrong, the whole situation turns around and Tom could find himself locked up. Boo Radley never leaves his house, and in Maycomb, that causes rumors to start. Boo, whose real name is Arthur, has a few mental problems but he is still a nice person. He is viewed to be a monster who has become more of a myth than a person. They are all wrongly labeled and this creates many problems for them throughout the book.
Towards the middle of the book, everything takes a turn for the worst. Atticus is defending Tom in court and everyone is being mean to him and his family for defending an African American. Scout gets bullied even more for who she is and for what Atticus is doing for Tom. Can Scout stay strong and persevere through the tough times that she is going through or will she break down and believe the bullies? This book deals with being yourself and not caring about what others think of you.

    

Banned Books Week Video courtesy of the FSHA Film Club

Banned Books Week

If you watched the morning announcements today, you heard my super-nervous plug for our Banned Books Week project.  (I really don't understand why that camera makes me so crazy since I address large groups of students ALL THE TIME. Whatever.)

Next week is the American Library Association's Banned Books Week.  Why is this important?  Because we are lucky.  We live in a country where we can read what we want, where that right is protected, where librarians and all kinds of people fight for that right, where we know that literature is a safe and profound exploration of the human condition and that it is art.  And we love art.

The American Library Association is the national organization of ninja-librarians who are constantly trying to make sure that literary art is available for free to anyone who wants to read it.  They have written a powerful statement about their commitment to the Freedom to Read, which you should ALL read.

Please come take a look at the books on display in the Library that have been banned or challenged in different communities in the US.  You won't believe what some people don't want you to read!

This Friday from 1-2pm, and again on Monday during lunch, the Film Club will shoot footage of students and faculty reading short passages from banned books.  We celebrate our freedom to read by reading banned books!  Please join us by selecting a passage that you'd like to read to exert your right to read what you choose.

More information on banned or challenged books can be found:
Yearly lists of banned or challenged books
Freedom to Read Foundation