One and done

What would you say is the great American novel?

A fun question --- Perhaps, John Steinbeck's GRAPES OF WRATH? Nathaniel Hawthorne's THE SCARLET LETTER? According to Oprah Winfrey (and we do listen to Oprah) the quintessential American novel is TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD.

I ask the question because today is the 88nd birthday of the author of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, Harper Lee. She wrote the novel in 1960 and it received grand acclaim, was made into a fantastic film and the book has sold millions and remains oft read and popular.

I guess that many of us first read TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD as a high school English assignment. If that's the first and last time you've read the book, I strongly encourage you to get a copy and read it again. The book is a classic. Personally, I've used the book as a selection in two previous book clubs and have always found the discussion deep and insightful. A couple of years ago with some members of the cross-disabilities group with whom I work, we read TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD and their relationship to the character of Boo Radley proved the timelessness of great literature.

In music they refer to groups with one hit records as "one hit wonders." I don't know if they have a term for that in literature. Yet, TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, a classic, was the only novel that Harper Lee ever wrote. She also has remained for the most part out of the public eye, rarely doing interviews and allowing her great book to carry the message.

Along with admiring the work of our artists, I think it as fascinating to study and learn from the process of our artists. Harper Lee wrote a classic, basing many of the characters and setting on her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama. I wish she would have written another novel, yet, TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD is made of that wonderful artistic quality of having staying power and lasting impact. Maybe, it's not the quantity of one's work as much as it is the quality.

sj;