The story is narrated by a young girl named Jean Louise Finch, that is usually called by her label, Scout. It is allegorical to the storyline.To Kill a Mockingbird Audiobook – Harper Lee To Kill a Mockingbird Audiobook text There are some superb quotes in the book especially 'To kill a mockingbird is a sin' because it sings its heart out for us and never does us any harm like killing etc. One up for women! I didn't read this until I was 65, but wish I had when I was about 17.

On several occasions she is the catalyst for taking the heat out of a difficult situation by what she says, often with words of truth and kindness. It is the way Atticus Finch has brought her up after her mother died. Although it deals with an alleged rape by a black man on a white trash woman, a subject hardly appropriate for her age, the 8 year old girl deals with the reality of how it affects all those around her in Makum County Alabama in a sensible way, beyond her years. It is about good and bad, morals, religion, prejudice and hypocrisy. It is told through the eyes is Scout Finch, the 8 year old daughter of lawyer, Atticus Finch. This is a story about race in the American Deep South in 1935 and set in the Depression.

This is a genuine treasure, spend it wisely.Īn excellent riveting story well read by Sissey Spasek. In all, a challenging book now over half a century old brought to life for our listening pleasure and consideration. A bad narrator would have been a crime but fortunately she passes with flying colours. In summary she does a genuinely fine job as a narrator bringing the book to life for our ears. She seems to empathise with the innocence and at times exuberance of the key, younger characters. Not knowing too much about her I wouldn’t have had Sissy Spacek on my shortlist but she captures the atmosphere of the American deep South and its languid nature perfectly. Of course such a book requires a skilled and appropriate narrator. It tackles all manner of prejudice and the kind of underlying hypocrisy that still flows through much of human society today. I’ve often seen the book described primarily as anti-racist and while that is undoubtedly a strong theme it’s about more than that. It’s no pleasantry and it challenges the reader on the fundamental levels of humanity. Told through the eyes of innocence, and with no little gentle humour this is actually still not an easy book. What struck me as I listened to this audio version 35 years later is that those messages are as relevant and important today as they were in my youth and as they were in the time the book was set. Yes, Mockingbird, was *my* book and spoke to me like few others have before or since. I am certainly not going to preach about what they are but they have been enshrined in my psyche ever since and some key phrases have often anchored me in times of difficulty. Read during my school years growing up in a multicultural town the central messages behind Harper Lee’s story are not revolutionary, they aren’t massively clever but they go to the core of my struggles while growing up.

There are, I’m afraid, no prizes for guessing that in my case it was To Kill a Mockingbird. Either way they never leave us and I doubt it’s unusual that they are often books read during our formative years. Whether it is through sheer exuberance for the story or because the book carried a message that resonated with us. I’m talking about the books which don’t simply excite or entertain but they leave you changed in some way. I think every avid reader has one particular book, or maybe even a few if they are lucky which leave an indelible mark on them.

To kill a mockingbird audio book