As the novel opens, she is returning to Maycomb from her home in New York for an annual visit with her father, Atticus, now 72 years old. Getty ImagesJean Louise has an ambivalent relationship with her hometown and the people who live in it.

She still dresses in gender-neutral attire, and she remains somewhat incorrigible, fiercely independent and sharply critical. The first chapter, released Friday, shows us that the adult Jean Louise Finch, aka Scout, has refined the characteristics we associate with her as a girl. The title comes from the Book of Isaiah: “For thus hath the Lord said unto me / Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth.”Įvery man’s watchman, a character says in the book, is his own conscience. But we also see that presuming we can empathize with people whose histories and life experiences are completely different from our own can be a potentially dangerous enterprise, one leading not only to misunderstanding, but also, possibly, to death.Įven the work’s principle metaphor - that of the mockingbird, which imitates the songs of other birds - reminds us that there are some among us whose voices are not heard, or not allowed to be heard. As adults, we recognize that trying to understand others’ perspectives is a lofty and socially useful goal. Much of Lee’s genius lies in her ability to depict these serious and intricate components of American life in ways that seem simple.Ītticus repeatedly tells his children to walk in others’ shoes, to try to view the world from inside others’ skins. Most of us read it for the first time in junior high or high school, likely at too young an age to understand fully its brilliant handling of the complex issues of racism, sexual violence, abuse, drug addiction and murder.

With more than 40 million copies in print, “Mockingbird” is an international sensation. “Watchman” is the voice of a clear-eyed adult. “Mockingbird” was written through the eyes of a child.

Should have never been published, other critics say.īut to me, Atticus’ complexity makes “Go Set a Watchman” worth reading. “Boycott the book!” some commentators cry. Strange to think that “Go Set a Watchman,” the original draft of the book that became the classic “To Kill a Mockingbird,” exists at all.Īnd most of all, it’s strange to read that Atticus Finch, the moral compass and hero of “Mockingbird,” is a racist. It’s strange to think of Scout, eternally a 10-year-old desperado, as an adult.

To kill a watchman