is go set a watchman a good book

Full Answer

Is ‘Go Set a watchman’ a sequel to ‘to kill a Mockingbird?

Go Set a Watchman is either the sequel to To Kill a Mockingbird, a rough draft of it, or something in between — it depends on whom you ask. Until July 2015, Harper Lee had published only one novel: To Kill a Mockingbird.

What is Go Set a watchman by Harper Lee?

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Go Set a Watchman is a novel by Harper Lee written before the Pulitzer Prize –winning To Kill a Mockingbird, her first and only other published novel (1960).

What do parents need to know about Go Set a watchman?

Parents need to know that Go Set a Watchman is the much-discussed, latently discovered manuscript from Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird.

What is the first draft of Go Set a watchman?

For the first time, she sees him as just a man. Although promoted by its publisher and initially described in media reports as a sequel to Lee's best-selling novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, which was published in 1960, Go Set a Watchman is actually that novel's first draft. The novel was finished in 1957 and purchased by the J.B. Lippincott Company.

Is Go Set a Watchman worth reading?

Go Set A Watchman tells a vastly different story, although it uses the same characters and setting, and this does not sit well with with lovers of To Kill a Mockingbird. However, it is a stunning novel that is worth reading. The story both contrasts and compares the types of change one can make in a community.

What did critics say about Go Set a Watchman?

Some critics argue that Go Set a Watchman introduces a useful complication to our understanding of To Kill a Mockingbird, because it points out that good people can believe bad things, and that people can do good things for bad reasons.

How long does it take to read Go Set a Watchman?

The average reader, reading at a speed of 300 WPM, would take 3 hours and 38 minutes to read Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee.

What is the lesson of Go Set a Watchman?

Hypocrisy and perceived bigotry form the central emotional crux of Go Set a Watchman. The main hypocrisy that is at the center of the novel is the one that Jean Louise perceives from Atticus. Jean Louise enters the novel with the firm belief that Atticus can do no wrong, ethically and morally speaking.

Why is Go Set a Watchman controversial?

A significant controversy around the decision to publish Go Set a Watchman centered around the allegations that 89-year-old Lee was taken advantage of and was pressured into allowing publication against her previously stated intentions.

Who married Scout?

The children concoct many plans to lure Boo Radley out of his house for a few summers until Atticus tells them to stop. In chapter 5 of the novel, Dill promises to marry Scout and they become "engaged." One night Dill runs away from his home, arriving in Maycomb County where he hides under Scout's bed.

What point of view is Go Set a Watchman?

narrator The narrator is anonymous, but the story is from the perspective of Jean Louise the whole time. point of view The narrator speaks in the third person, focusing almost exclusively on what Jean Louise sees and hears.

How is Atticus portrayed in Go Set a Watchman?

Atticus is a man of his times. He treats people fairly and equally under the law, but he does not try to change people who do not do so. Atticus is more concerned, at the end of the day, about the law and justice than about equality for all people.

What year is Go Set a Watchman set in?

July 14, 2015Go Set a Watchman / Originally published

Is Go Set a Watchman canon?

With no indication that Lee approves of Go Set a Watchman as canon, you can simply pretend that the events in the book never happened.

What is a meaningful quote from Harper Lee?

“Real courage is when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what.” “People generally see what they look for, and hear what they listen for.” “I think there's just one kind of folks. Folks.”

How is Atticus portrayed in Go Set a Watchman?

Atticus is a man of his times. He treats people fairly and equally under the law, but he does not try to change people who do not do so. Atticus is more concerned, at the end of the day, about the law and justice than about equality for all people.

What happens to JEM in Go Set a Watchman?

Jem died of a sudden heart attack at age 28. According to Jean Louise's narration, he inherited a weak heart from their mother, who died the same way when the children were young (setting up the unique family situation that defines Mockingbird, with maid Calpurnia serving as Scout's primary maternal figure).

Is Harper Lee still alive?

February 19, 2016Harper Lee / Date of death

What is the setting of Go Set a Watchman?

Set in the mid-1950s in the aftermath of the 1954 Supreme Court ruling that declared segregation unconstitutional, GO SET A WATCHMAN tells the story of Jean Louise "Scout" Finch, returning home for her annual visit to Maycomb, Alabama, from New York City. Much of what Jean Louise loves about her hometown is starting to disappear: The old Finch family riverfront homestead has been sold off piece by piece, the house she was born and raised in is now an ice cream shop, and new postwar family housing is cropping up in town. The distrust between the white and African-American populations is another change that upsets her. She wonders whether she was blind to it as a child or is seeing what was always there -- but which now is simmering in the civil rights era -- with fresh eyes. Throughout the book, Jean Louise visits with family and friends and drifts into recollections of her personal history and that of Maycomb County. She's a modern, independent woman in a place that doesn't value those qualities, and she considers herself "colorblind" in a place where the white citizens don't want integration forced on them. The biggest challenges she confronts are reconciling her love and respect for her father, her uncle, her aunt, and her beau with her revulsion at their social and political views. As much as she loves the Maycomb of old, she knows that social change is for the best, even if it means she must question her feelings for those people she believes formed her as a person and have long held in the highest esteem.

What brands are used in era appropriate scene setting?

Most brands used for era-appropriate scene-setting, including General Motors, Buick, Seagram's Seven whiskey, Coca-Cola, Alka-Seltzer, Ford, Chevrolet, Willys cars, Vitalis, Good Housekeeping , the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, the New York Times.

Why is Lee's handling of Atticus' and Jean Louise's boyfriend uncomfortable to read?

Lee's handling of Atticus' and Jean Louise's boyfriend Henry Clinton's views on race and desegregation are uncomfortable to read. Lee paints them as reasonable for thinking integration should happen slowly because African-American people of that era weren't ready or able to handle all the rights white people had.

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Who wrote the book "Go Set a Watchman"?

ISBN. 978-0-06-240985-0. Go Set a Watchman is a novel by Harper Lee written before the Pulitzer Prize –winning To Kill a Mockingbird, her first and only other published novel (1960). Although initially promoted as a sequel by its publisher, it is now accepted as being a first draft of To Kill a Mockingbird with many passages being used again.

When was Go Set a Watchman published?

HarperCollins, United States, and William Heinemann, United Kingdom, published Go Set a Watchman on July 14, 2015. The book's unexpected discovery, decades after it was written, and the status of the author's only other book as an American classic, caused its publication to be highly anticipated.

Why does Jean Louise want to know why Atticus was at the meeting?

While at lunch, Jean Louise wants to know why Atticus was at the meeting. Uncle Jack tells her that Atticus has not suddenly become a racist but he is trying to slow down federal government intervention into state politics. Her uncle lectures her on the complexity of history, race, and politics in the South, in an attempt to get Jean Louise to come to a conclusion, which she struggles to grasp. She then has a flashback to when she was a teenager and recalls an incident where Atticus planted the seed for an idea in Henry's brain, then let him come to the right conclusion on his own. Jean Louise tells Henry that she does not love him and will never marry him. She expresses her disgust at seeing him with her father at the council meeting. Henry explains that sometimes people have to do things they don't want to do. Henry then defends his own case by saying that the reason that he is still part of the Citizens' Council is because he wants to use his intelligence to make an impact on his hometown of Maycomb and to make money to raise a family. She screams that she could never live with a hypocrite, only to notice that Atticus is standing behind them, smiling.

What is the theme of Go Set a Watchman?

Go Set a Watchman tackles the racial tensions brewing in the South in the 1950s and delves into the complex relationship between father and daughter. It includes treatments of many of the characters who appear in To Kill a Mockingbird.

When did Harper Lee write Go Set a Watchman?

Harper Lee was writing Go Set a Watchman in January 1957, and sold the manuscript to the publisher J. B. Lippincott in October 1957. She then continued to work on the manuscript for the next two years, submitting revised manuscripts to her literary agents.

Is "Go Set a Watchman" a sequel to "To Kill a Mockingbird"?

Although promoted by its publisher and initially described in media reports as a sequel to Lee's best-selling novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, which was published in 1960, Go Set a Watchman is actually that novel's first draft. The novel was finished in 1957 and purchased by the J.B. Lippincott Company. Lee's editor, Tay Hohoff, although impressed with elements of the story, saying that "the spark of the true writer flashed in every line", thought it was by no means ready for publication. It was, as she described it, "more a series of anecdotes than a fully conceived novel". In his Times article on Hohoff, Jonathan Mahler recounts that Hohoff thought the strongest aspect of Lee's novel was the flashback sequences featuring a young Scout, and thus requested that Lee use those flashbacks as a basis for a new novel. Lee agreed, and "during the next couple of years, Hohoff led Lee from one draft to the next until the book finally achieved its finished form and was retitled To Kill a Mockingbird ."

Where was the manuscript of Go Set a Watchman found?

According to The New York Times, the typed manuscript of Go Set a Watchman was first found during an appraisal of Lee's assets in 2011 in a safe deposit box in Lee's hometown of Monroeville. Lee's lawyer, Tonja Carter, later revealed that she had first assumed the manuscript to be an early draft of To Kill a Mockingbird.

Who is the author of Go Set a Watchman?

It's also the only novel that its author, Harper Lee, had ever published — until a sudden announcement in February 2015 heralded the publication of Go Set a Watchman, a new Lee work featuring the same characters as To Kill a Mockingbird. A lot of people are suspicious about the discovery of the new manuscript.

What is Go Set a Watchman, and why is it coming out now?

Go Set a Watchman is either the sequel to To Kill a Mockingbird, a rough draft of it, or something in between — it depends on whom you ask.

What did Hohoff and Lee want from their book?

We don't know for sure what Hohoff and Lee wanted from their book. But a New York Times article about Hohoff strongly implies that she wanted Mockingbird to be inspirational — and that she had an affinity for white liberal heroism. At the same time that Hohoff was editing Lee, she was writing a biography of a turn-of-the-century liberal crusader in New York, one whose ancestor was an abolitionist killed by a pro-slavery mob.

What is the book To Kill a Mockingbird about?

It's an inspiring story about standing up to injustice even if doing so is difficult and unpopular; an accessible coming-of-age tale; and a convenient way to teach high school English students about the Jim Crow South. It's also the only novel that its author, Harper Lee, had ever published — until a sudden announcement in February 2015 heralded the publication of Go Set a Watchman, a new Lee work featuring the same characters as To Kill a Mockingbird.

Is Go Set a Watchman a draft of To Kill a Mockingbird?

Some critics suspect that the timing of a new novel from Lee was just too perfect — that Go Set a Watchman isn't actually a draft of To Kill a Mockingbird at all, but an attempted sequel pieced together by others. Adam Gopnik, writing at the New Yorker, makes the best argument in support of this:

Who is the editor of Watchman in Mockingbird?

If the publisher is telling the truth now, at some point, as Lee worked with her editor, Hohoff, to turn Watchman into Mockingbird, the city of Maycomb was made to look worse — so that Atticus Finch could look better.

Is Go Set a Watchman a boon?

It seems all too plausible that lawyers could take advantage of Lee — especially for the sake of generating more profit for her estate. After all, the news of Go Set a Watchman 's release was a boon to the publishing industry: The novel would have a ready-made audience in the millions of Americans who read Mockingbird in school (it's routinely among the most-assigned books in high school English classrooms) or at least managed to crib together an understanding from SparkNotes and the Peck movie.

When will the book "Go Set A Watchman" be released?

This book cover released by Harper shows "Go Set A Watchman," a follow-up to Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird." The book will be released on July 14. (AP Photo/Harper)

What is Atticus's role in Go Set a Watchman?

In Go Set a Watchman, Atticus is the most egregious and surprising offender -- he attends a Ku Klux Klan meeting and is a member of a Citizen’s Council angling to fight against desegregation. When his former housekeeper’s grandson gets wrapped up in a crime involving a white man, he jumps at the opportunity to “help,” hoping to keep NAACP-appointed lawyers out of the case. He asserts that said lawyers rig juries and that Maycomb residents would respond with violence if such a thing happened in their town. Rather than embracing the turmoil that could come with progress, he stands firm in his old ways, believing equality in the eyes of the law to be sufficient.

Where is Jean Louise Finch in Go Set a Watchman?

These themes, and this truth, is stated more plainly in Go Set a Watchman, which is set in the wake of Brown v. Board of Education. Jean Louise Finch, now an artist living in New York City, returns to Maycomb via train. The conductor overshoots her stop, but rather than irritation, she displays comfort in knowing that some things never change.

Who published Go Set A Watchman?

Go Set A Watchman, the second, and only other novel published by Harper Lee, Pulitzer Prize winning author of To Kill A Mockingbird, and the new novel is already shrouded in controversy: Did Lee REALLY want the book published? Was she competent to make the decision? WHY was the book being published now? Was this a sequel to To Kill A Mockingbird? A prequel? Or was it something entirely different? The literary furor increased just prior to the publication date as reviewers began to make claims about the book's worthiness, and that well known, established characters were being altered in ways which were not acceptable. . .

Is Go Set A Watchman a good book?

Is Go Set A Watchman as good a book as To Kill A Mockingbird? No, but really, could it possibly ever have been? Is Go Set A Watchman a “sequel” to To Kill A Mockingbird? Again, no. The characters and events presented are similar, but they are not an exact match. They share names and traits, but it is clear that this is a very different book with a very different story to tell. Is Go Set A Watchman a good and valuable read in and of itself? Most definitely. And, if we will listen, it has just as much to tell us about ourselves as its predecessor.

Why is Watchman the work of a writer who has not yet learned?

Because there's always a better way. Watchman is the work of a writer who has not yet learned. A writer who has a ways to go. Watchman, perhaps, in the hands of a really good editor, could have become closer to what Mockingbird became. I don't know, of course, what the early drafts of Mockingbird actually looked like.

Is Watchman bad?

No. No. It's not all bad. There were two things about Watchman that I loved.

Is Boo Radley mentioned in the book?

Of further evidence: nowhere in the book is Boo Radley mentioned. Dill Harris is a whisper of a character, an old friend gone to Europe, never to return. Facts are mistaken (in Mockingbird it's made clear that Tom Robinson's case was assigned to Atticus Finch; in Watchman, there's mention of Atticus "taking the case on" of his own accord). The beloved Calpurnia scorns the Finch family.

Overview

Development history

Initially, Go Set a Watchman was promoted by its publisher, and described in media reports, as a sequel to Lee's best-selling novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, which was published in 1960, but it is actually the first draft of that novel. The novel was finished in 1957 and purchased by the J.B. Lippincott Company. Lee's editor, Tay Hohoff was impressed by elements of the story, and stated that "the spark of the true writer flashed in every line", but she thought that it was by no means re…

Plot

Discovery

Controversy

Reception

Bibliography