There are some books that, once having been written, are impossible for their authors to repeat. Such was the case with To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. Nearly sixty years after having written this classic, Ms. Lee is still living, but hasn't published a blessed thing since. The reason: such a work would be impossible to duplicate and all subsequent writing would pale by comparison. So she just stopped trying.
To Kill a Mockingbird is still assigned in classrooms across America, and few who have read it have come away from the work unaffected or impacted by its varied explorations of family, race, class, love, and justice. To top things off, the work also features moving courtroom drama, unforgettable dialogue, and insights that border on the Biblical.
Ms. Lee gave us a great offering. And the movie version of the work is arguably every bit as good as the book, and there are few movies based on classics that fit that category. Best to read To Kill a Mockingbird when we are young, and then to repeat same along the dusty avenues and alleys of life. There's that much depth to the book, and new insights are forthcoming at every juncture along the way.
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