| Patricia E. Kefalas Dudek |
Advocate for Elders, People with Disabilities and Their Families |
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My
Favorite Books - The Classics |
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| Catcher
in the Rye
- J.D.
Salinger First published in the United States in 1951, the novel remains controversial to this day for its liberal use of profanity and portrayal of sexuality and teenage angst; it was the thirteenth most frequently challenged book of the 1990s according to the American Library Association. The wonderful book has become one of the most important novel literary works of the 20th century, and a common part of high school and college curricula worldwide. It has been translated into almost all of the world's major languages. Around 250,000 copies are sold each year, with total sales of more than 60 million. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee Published in 1960, and selling more than 10 million copies since then, To Kill a Mockingbird won the Pulitzer Prize in 1961. It is taught in approximately 74% of schools in the United States. A 1991 survey by the Book-of-the-Month Club and the Library of Congress' Center for the Book found that To Kill a Mockingbird came in second after the Bible in books "most often cited as making a difference." The novel is loosely based on the author's observations of her family and neighbors, as well as an event that occurred in her hometown when she was 10 years old. Lee has acknowledged that the character Jean Louise "Scout" Finch, who serves as the novel's narrator, is based on herself. To Kill a Mockingbird addresses themes such as courage, racial justice, the death of innocence, tragedy, and coming of age, set against a backdrop of life in the Deep South. One writer noted its impact in saying, "In the twentieth century, To Kill a Mockingbird is probably the most widely read book dealing with race in America, and its protagonist, Atticus Finch, the most enduring fictional image of racial heroism." It has proven to be not only an extraordinarily influential book to have it compared with the Bible, but controversial as well, being the target of various campaigns to have it removed from public classrooms. The book was successfully adapted for film by director Robert Mulligan with a screenplay by Horton Foote in 1962. To date, it is Lee's only published novel. Harper Lee, born in 1926, might be called a "one hit wonder." Even though it is one of the best selling novels of all time, and even after she received the Pulitzer Prize for it in 1961, she's never written another book. Reclusive and extremely protective of her privacy, she rarely grants interviews or makes public appearances. One of the exceptions is that she regularly attends the awards ceremony for an essay contest on the subject of her famous novel. The contest is sponsored by the Honors College at the University of Alabama. She says she enjoys how young people find new perspectives on the book. "They always see new things in it…and the way they relate it to their lives now is really quite incredible." They can still relate to racial tensions and southern stereotypes. One girl wrote an essay likening the trial of the book's Tom Robinson (a black man unjustly accused of raping a white girl) to the 1999 murder of a young man in Sylacauga killed because he was gay. Adults are similarly affected - mothers have named their children after the author or the characters. Her involvement with the contest began with her induction to the Alabama Academy of Honor, a society that pays homage to influential people born or living in the state. The main concern of the society was that the author would not accept the nomination due to her desire for privacy. But during her public appearances, she is quick-witted and gregarious, cheerfully signing autographs even though she laughs at all the fuss. Her friend, Horton Foote, wrote the screenplay for the film version starring Gregory Peck. She spent three weeks on the set, but took off when she saw everything was going fine without her input. She was pleased with the outcome, stating, "I think it is one of the best translations of a book to film every made." After the film "Capote" in which Ms. Lee is portrayed as the moral conscience of her childhood friend, Truman Capote, reporters again began clamoring for interviews. A friend suggested she come up with a form letter response to these requests. At that, Ms. Lee responded that what it would say is simply, "Hell, no." Like its author, To Kill a Mockingbird, is a rare commodity. Since its publication in 1960, it has never been out of print. When the 35th anniversary edition of the novel was being prepared, publishers asked her to write an introduction. She replied that as a reader she hates long introductions and suggested, "Mockingbird has never been out of print and I am still alive…it still says what it has to say; it has managed to survive the years without preamble." More articles and reviews: "What Would Atticus Finch Do?" (National Law Journal - 7/26/10) What
'To Kill a Mockingbird" Isn't" (Wall Street Journal
- 6/24/10) Where
Have You Gone, Atticus Finch? (Wall Street Journal - 2/11/11) Gone with the Wind - Margaret Mitchell One of the best books ever written... better than the film. If you get a chance, visit the Margaret Mitchell home to see where it was written and learn the really interesting story on how this book was written and almost never published. The Fountainhead - Ayn Rand Diann Anderson turned me on to Ayn Rand. Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand This is an amazing book. Everyone has to read this and the Fountainhead at least once. The Godfather - Mario Puzo Even better than the films! The Crucible - Arthur Miller LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT... Everyone should read it. The Scarlet Letter - Nathaniel Hawthorne I thought the ending was NOT A SHOCK! The Cider House Rules: A Novel - John Irving The Merchant of Venice - William Shakespeare King Lear - William Shakespeare A Midsummer Night's Dream - William Shakespeare Romeo and Juliet - William Shakespeare Hamlet - William Shakespeare Much Ado About Nothing - William Shakespeare The Tragedy of Macbeth - William Shakespeare Death of a Salesman - Arthur Miller Slaughterhouse-Five: A Novel - Kurt Vonnegut The Old Man and the Sea - Ernest Hemingway A Farewell to Arms - Ernest Hemingway A Tale of Two Cities - Charles Dickens The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck Catch-22 - Joseph Heller Lord of the Flies - William Golding Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte |
My
Favorites: Miscellaneous: |
