To Kill A Mockingbird Book Review- Spoiler Warning

Hi guys, It's Emma. Finally, it feels like it's been forever since I posted here! You see I've only been reading books for school, and other books that I didn't think you all would enjoy reviews of. I finished HP and The Prisoner of Azkaban but I assumed that most of you must've already read it or seen the movie. I also read City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare, but Filippa had already posted a review of that so... Here I am again at least!

The book I'm going to review this time is "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee. You might have heard of it, it's an American classic. Students read it in School, but I thought I'd give it a try. My grandmother actually gave it to me as a birthday gift. Should I film a haul of all the books I got? Haha I'll probably do it anyways, but it would be nice to know what y'all think.
Anyway, here we go. To Kill A Mockingbird was published 1960, and takes place in Southern Alabama, in a little town called Maycomb during the 1930's. The main character is a girl called Jean Louise "Scout" Finch, and in the beginning she is only six years old. Her life revolves around her brother and father, Jeremy "Jem" Finch and Atticus Finch.
If I should use modern language I would say that Scout is a tomboy, who hates the idea of being a little girl. Personally I think that's because she has grown up with only males, except their cook who's a woman. In the beginning of the book, Jem always tells Scout that she should stop being a "little girl" when she's scared. Because of this it's not surprising that she's a tomboy.

The book starts with the summer when Scout and Jem meet Dill. He's a boy from Mississippi who happens to stumble upon them one day. They start playing together as children do, and become great friends. Dill is particularly interested in one thing; The Radleys. The Radleys are Jem and Scout's neighbors, but they are an odd family. The only family member who is ever sighted is Mr. Nathan Radley, who passes by their house every day when he goes to work. The funny thing about the Radleys is their son. Arthur "Boo" Radley. It's rumored that Boo is crazy, and that he once stabbed his mother in the leg with a pair of scissors. His father refused to put him in an asylum, and so he keeps him locked up in the house. At least that's what people think. Nevertheless, no one has ever seen him in many years, except for Miss Stephanie Crawford. But she is the town gossip and will make up anything to get attention, according to Scout.

Dill, Jem and Scout make it their lives' purpose to get a look at Boo Radley, but it takes years before they're even close to that. 

After about half of the book, the storyline changes. Atticus is the most popular lawyer in town, and he gets quite a peculiar case one day. 

Before I start explaining this, there's one thing I should explain. Since this book takes place in the southern US during the 1930's, there's a lot of racism in this book. The servants and cooks are all black, and people look down on them. I just had to explain this so that you don't think I'm a racist. 

So, this case is about a black man who has been accused of raping a white woman. Mayella Ewell, the victim, is the daughter of the not-so-popular Bob Ewell. So Atticus has to defend the black man, Tom Robinson, and becomes exposed to the anger of the citizens of Maycomb. This also puts his children in danger of the people who think that defending a black man is a sin. 

This book was very different from the books I usually read. It wasn't sci-fi or dystopian, nor was it a romance novel. However, I actually really liked it. I love the main character, Scout, because she stands for who she is and doesn't let anyone mock her ever. She is only six, yet she seems so much older. 

The book had a very interesting storyline, but I must admit that it was difficult to get into in the beginning. However, it got way better towards one quarter of the book.

Over all, I really liked the book. It have me quite a large view of what the 1930's in the US looked like, and the characters were very developed. I still probably wouldn't have picked it up myself if it hadn't been a gift, but I'm happily surprised.
I would recommend this to older readers, since it takes a lot of reading in between the lines to really understand the book. Harper Lee doesn't always describe what people are thinking, sometimes you have to figure that out yourself. Also, there were some difficult words that I had to look up. Otherwise I think it's a book that could suit many people. I mean, there's a reason it's an award-winning book ;)
~ Emma ~