55 years ago, Harper Lee captured the hearts of many with the characters of Scout, Calpurnia, Atticus Finch and the mysterious Boo Radley.To Kill a Mockingbird, which has sold over 40 million copies to date, explores the themes of race, social injustice, love and morality.
The classic modern American novel is still taught in schools worldwide.Now, at the age of 88, Lee announced in January that she will be releasing a second novel titled Go Set a Watchman in July. Many fans of To Kill a Mockingbird responded by expressing their excitement on Twitter and Facebook.
In an interview with the New York Times, Lee said she initially wrote the book before To Kill a Mockingbird, but her editor insisted she instead create a new novel that focused on Scout’s childhood—and it worked. Go Set a Watchman is set in the same fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama, 50 years after To Kill a Mockingbird ends. The book will continue to explore the racial tensions in the South during the 1950s as well as the father and daughter relationship between Atticus and Scout.
However, not everyone seems to be sharing the same joy about the author’s recent announcement.
Residents in Lee’s hometown of Monroeville, Alabama are skeptical about Lee’s decision to publish again decades after the release of her debut novel. They believe she was manipulated by her lawyer, Tonja Carter, after Carter discovered the manuscript in her client’s home.
According to an article with AL.com, Janet Sawyer, owner of a local café in Monroeville, Lee isn’t mentally stable.
“She had a stroke several years ago and her mind is not in a condition to make these decisions, I don’t think, personally…I don’t think she agreed to do it. I think it’s her attorney being greedy, because Ms. Lee was a very private person who didn’t like a lot of publicity,” she said.But Carter insists that’s not the case. She set the record straight in a statement. Lee is “extremely hurt and humiliated” by the suggestion that she has been schemed. “She is a very strong, independent and wise woman who should be enjoying the discovery of her long lost novel,” Carter said. “Instead, she is having to defend her own credibility and decision making.”
Where’s Atticus Finch when you need him?
Feature Photo via EW