Book Review Club: The Mockingbird Next Door

To Kill A Mockingbird has been a staple of high school curricula for many years and with good reason; it tops my own list of favorite books and one that I looked forward to sharing with my students every school year.  Published in 1960, the novel received a Pulitzer Prize in 1961, and a year later was made into the classic movie starring Gregory Peck, receiving three Oscars.  Since that time it has been translated into more than 40 languages and has sold over 30 million copies.  In surveys asking what one book "every civilized person should read," Mockingbird ranks second only to the Bible.

It's no wonder that such acclaim brought instant fame for its author Harper Lee.  While she granted the many requests for interviews at first, appeared at book signings, and played an active role in the production of the movie, the limelight soon grew too much for her, and she retreated to the privacy of her home.  For the past fifty years, little has been written about Lee that hasn't been told before. When asked for an interview, she usually replied with not just a simple no, but a "Hell, no."

Despite Lee's reputation as a recluse, in 2001 Chicago Tribune reporter Marja Mills set out for Monroeville, Alabama, hoping for an interview with some of its residents, if not Lee herself.  To her surprise, not only did she get an interview, but she soon struck up a friendship with Lee and her sister Alice and began to think about writing not just an article, but a book. After her newspaper article was published, Mills went back to Alabama, renting a house next door to the sisters for the next year and a half.

The result of Mills' surprising friendship with Alice and Nelle Harper Lee is The Mockingbird Next Door: Life With Harper Lee.  The book gives the reader a peek into the Lee home--filled with stacks and stacks of books, as the sisters are avid readers--and a detailed description of their everyday life.  Contrary to her image as a recluse, Nelle (as she is called by her friends) leads an active social life.  She introduces Mills to their friends, and the two go for coffee at McDonald's, feed the ducks, and go fishing at the Lees' favorite fishing hole (location never revealed).  They visit the courthouse made famous by the book and now a museum and popular tourist attraction.
Mills interviews friends who provide insight into the characters and lives of the Lee sisters, and spends many hours recording interviews with Alice Lee, who in her 90's was still practicing law in her father's old law office.

The Mockingbird Next Door, however, is a memoir, and anyone expecting new revelations about Lee's inspiration for her novel or her reasons for dropping out of the limelight will be sorely disappointed.  Friends of the Lees share anecdotes but are very protective of the sisters' privacy.  In the many hours she spent interviewing Nelle Lee, Mills always asked for permission first to record their interviews and if she might include certain comments in her book, usually getting a negative reply.  About the only "juicy" revelation that Mills includes in the book is Nelle's recounting of her strained relationship with Truman Capote, the inspiration for the character Dill in To Kill A Mockingbird, and with whom she collaborated on In Cold Blood, Capote's most famous work.

No mockingbirds here, but the red-bellied woodpecker has returned for the winter.

Why did Harper Lee drop out of public view?  Why did she never write another novel?  These two questions that every fan of Mockingbird has always wanted to know are never really answered in Mills' book, at least not with any new revelation.  Nelle and Alice both confirm that she was overwhelmed by the publicity surrounding the book and then the movie and by the push to write another novel.  As Mills describes the town of Monroeville today with its tourist attractions capitalizing on Mockingbird's fame, including a diner named after Boo Radley, it is easier to understand why Harper Lee withdrew from the limelight.

As for why Lee never wrote another novel, we are only given her sister Alice's explanation: "When you have hit the pinnacle, how would you feel about writing more?  Would you feel like you're competing with yourself?"

Mills' story did not end with the publication of The Mockingbird Next Door.  After the book came out, Harper Lee denounced it, saying, "any book purporting to be with my cooperation is a falsehood." However, her sister Alice defended the book, saying her sister had recently suffered a stroke and likely didn't remember giving Mills permission.  Much has been written about the authenticity of the book, but I tend to believe Alice's statement and that Harper Lee originally did give approval of the book.  Further support is the lack of anything too revealing in the book as well as Mills' apparent respect for the Lees' privacy.

Frank's favorite perch for winter bird-watching

I have to admit I was rather disappointed at first with The Mockingbird Next Door, probably because my expectations were too high.  The book tends to ramble somewhat and is occasionally repetitive, and "the stories that need to be told," according to the sisters, never quite materialize.  Still, once I settled in and realized that there weren't going to be any sensational revelations, I enjoyed the book and spent a leisurely time getting to know Harper Lee and her wit and intelligence in a more informal way. I would recommend this book for anyone who has been as moved by To Kill A Mockingbird as I have. Harper Lee may have written only one novel, but what a novel it was! She will always be an icon to me.

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@Barrie Summy

Disclaimer:  I received no compensation of any kind for this review, and as always, I review only books I like.  I purchased my own copy of The Mockingbird Next Door: Life With Harper Lee to read for my book club, and I want to thank my friend for recommending it.

GBBD: Counting Birds, Not Blooms

Today is Garden Bloggers Bloom Day, the day each month when gardeners from all over share whatever blooms they have, whether outdoors or indoors.  I had hoped after my paltry offering last month that I would finally have something to share today, but the anticipation I've felt the last couple of weeks has turned into disappointment.  Let's take a look, shall we?

From Jan. 21 to Feb. 4 to Feb. 14

It took awhile for my amaryllis bulb to show any signs of growth, but once it did, it quickly took off. But as you can see, the leaves are tall and glossy, but absolutely no sign of a flower stalk!  This isn't the first time this has happened to me; I wouldn't have been surprised if my older bulbs had done this because they've been pretty neglected, but this was a new bulb purchased this winter.  Looks like I need to go back to my local amaryllis expert to see what I did wrong this time.

My Kalanchoe has a few tiny blooms, and my Christmas cactus is budding up again.  But what I'm really interested in this week is not indoors, but outside:

This weekend is the Great Backyard Bird Count, a project sponsored each February by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society to collect data on wild birds across the world. With the snow cover we've had this winter, there has been no shortage of birds to count in my yard.

You don't have to be a birding expert to participate: the website has links to sites for bird i.d. help, including the one at Cornell, which is excellent.  I certainly don't know much about birds, but I have no trouble recognizing our state bird and my personal favorite, the cardinal, who has been a frequent visitor at the feeders.

Nor do I have any trouble recognizing the less flamboyant, but just as lovely, female cardinal. But what is that little bird to her left?   When I'm not sure, I turn to my well-worn copy of  Birds of Illinois Field Guide by Stan Tekiela.  Flipping through the pages, I'm pretty sure this is a goldfinch.  Not long ago, I discovered that the goldfinch, so easy to spot by its bright yellow body in the summer, turns to a dull brown in the winter.

A frequent visitor here every winter is the Downy Woodpecker, who particularly enjoys the suet feeders.  I've learned that little red spot on his head means he's a male, which means I have at least a pair here, because I've also seen one without the red spot, a female. The most common bird I've seen is the dark-eyed Junco, including the one perched atop the feeder here.There are so many of them, usually foraging on the ground, that I'm not sure--did I count that one already??

A less common sight is the Red-bellied Woodpecker.  I took this photo a week ago, so unless I see him again this weekend, unfortunately, he won't make the count.

You don't even have to step outside to participate in the GBBC, if you don't want to.  All the photos here were taken through my large living room window (badly in need of cleaning, I might add).  To make viewing from indoors even easier, I added a new feeder this year that attaches to the window with suction cups to replace an old one that broke.  The only problem I've found with this feeder is that  it doesn't have much of a perch, so the larger birds have trouble using it.  But maybe that's a good thing--it's been popular with the small birds, like this Tufted Titmouse.  Look at those little feet!

The small birds like the Titmouse and the Chickadees aren't the only ones who appreciate this feeder. Toby and the rest of the furry inhabitants of our household have been enjoying the close-up version of bird television, too.

Watching the birds at the feeders makes counting easier, but I also survey the trees for any others too shy to come closer.  Oops, I don't think this guy is going to make the count:)

Refilling the bird feeders has become a daily routine this winter--lots of hungry birds in this cold!  The Bluejays may have a reputation of being bullies, but I think they're beautiful, and I'll keep putting out more food to keep them and everyone else accomodated.

The Great Backyard Bird Count runs through this Monday, February 17, so you still have time to participate, if you wish.  You can spend as much time as you want counting birds over the weekend or as little as 15 minutes.  All the information collected will help scientists determine what is happening with bird populations.  It's a great activity to share with kids, too, as I've done in the past with my grandkids.  And in case any of you think I have digressed from the original topic here, I leave you with this image of a White-breasted Nuthatch--a photo of a bird and some blooms.

To see more of what's in bloom around the world, visit our hostess Carol at May Dreams Gardens, who always has something to share even if her garden is also covered in snow.