To Kill a Mockingbird
discussion
Is this book good? Or is it boring?
This book is not just good, it is amazing! To Kill A Mockingbird, while a required reading for many high school students, is the doorway into another time period. It is important that people of all ages grasp an understanding of American history, and this book is one way to get an idea of this time and place.
one of the best books ever written-definitely a classic.
Personally, this is one of my favorite books of all time. I love the movie too. But maybe they go hand in hand. lol.
Terri wrote: "Delaney wrote: "Ok, so is this book good? I heard it is, but I've also head it's the most boring book on the planet...Can someone shed some light on this book for me please?"It's a classic, it's ..."
Really, boring.....not so says I!!! I guess you'll have to decided for yourself! Give it a read!
I agree with Brian. Let's agree to disagree. I had to read it in school - it wasn't my favourite book. I didn't enjoy the movie that much either. I can't understand the arguments. The beauty of having your own opinion is that it's your own, and you shouldn't try and force it on someone else.
I love it. Even though I've only read it once, in the sixth grade, I think I understand it pretty well. It is one of my favorite books.
One of the best books ever written. I am constantly surprised how many people avoid reading it, simply because it is labelled a "classic." The only negative thing I can say is that it's a darn shame that Harper Lee wrote only this book.She was a good friend of Truman Capote, and even helped with research on his book, "In Cold Blood."
I've just re-read this work to see how it stands the test of time. The most impressive feature of the novel is the narrative style. The narrator is an adult remembering or reflecting on the story in a child's voice, a neat juggling act that mixes satire and naivete. The satire is reminiscent of Jane Austen, especially when Lee, through Scout's voice, tackles education, class, bigotry, and the missionary society. The indictment of race in the novel is well documented, especially the casual use of the word "nigger," even by the children. While some may find the portrait of Atticus as hero to be overblown, it is a loving and touching characterization on the author's part. The scene where the children join Atticus to confront the potential lynch mob at the jail still makes me cry. It seems to me that Lee has been pitch-perfect in capturing time and place. My conclusion: To Kill a Mockingbird remains a classic of 20th century literature.(less)
This is the BEST book ever. It's only boring if you didn't understand the characters.
I love this book. My friend also recommended the movie with Gregory Peck too.
Amen, sister friend
The only drawback to this book, and I mean only, is that it can make burgeoning fiction writers jealous, suffering from writer's envy. I put myself in that category. I wish I had written this book, and I despair I may never reach the perfection of this novel
I saw the movie before I read the book, and I love both! The book is not to be skimmed over--you have to take your time to really enjoy it. I hope you decide to read it--it's worth it.
I can't believe that this is the only book Harper Lee wrote. I was about to read others books by Harper Lee...
It's charming, emotional, poignant, funny, and tragic, not boring.
I loved this book! I read this book in 10th grade and it was one of my favs of the year. Every teenageshould r read this book and teachers should def teach it more.
Amanda wrote: "Actually, Picasso is a great example of what I'm talking about. Someone can look at his work and say "eek, that's bad- my five year old could do that." That would be a PREFERENCE. However, someone ..."I read this book a few weeks ago and I loved it, very inspiring and such a strong message!!!
I read this book is highschool and I appreciated it once I finished it. I find these type of book seem boring before you read it but after your done you will probably agree with everyone that it is a great book!
Delaney wrote: "Ok, so is this book good? I heard it is, but I've also head it's the most boring book on the planet...Can someone shed some light on this book for me please?"This book is wonderful. I read it in 10th grade and couldn't put it down. I think it's one of the first book's I read staight through. It gave me a love for book's that I haven't been able to get over since. Just give it a chance.
Have you read the book yet?
My son had to read To Kill a Mockingbird in ninth grade and hated it. Having loved the film and never heard any bad criticism about it I decided it was time to read the book. I absolutely loved everything about it... the writing, characters... It turns out my son only likes high fantasy and scifi such as Lord of the Rings, Earthsea trilogy, Enders Game, etc. Being a great book never made a person like to read it.
Delaney wrote: "Ok, so is this book good? I heard it is, but I've also head it's the most boring book on the planet...Can someone shed some light on this book for me please?"Yes. This book is in the top three books I have ever read. It is sad funny and every time I read it i am always highlighting new things. It is a captivating story line and definitely worth reading.
One of the best books I ever read!!!
It is a momentous book. I suppose boring is subjective, but I would say no, it isn't boring. I think it suffers from being a piece of assigned reading, and people are less likely to appreciate what they don't choose.It's a book that will make you care about the main characters. It's a book that has important things to say about the world, but those things are a part of the story, not something hidden like medicine in candy, trying to hide out so you don't know it's good for you. Instead, it's a powerful story because it's bolstered by those truths.
At least try it. If you don't like it, you can always stop.
It all depends on taste I guess. To me it was an utter bore to read, and I had to force myself to actually pick it up. To me the characters were all one dimensional, and had a lack of depth. And Scout was just a boring lead, and it just did nothing for me. Classic or not, to me it just sucked.
I just re-read it, after seeing threads about it on here, and this time, I cried over the ending. It was probably the 4th or 5th time I'd read the book, and THIS time I cried! There's not a lot of action in it, which may be why some people think it's boring. However, there is a lot of growing done by Scout and Jem; there are a lot of lessons learned and realizations made.
In my opinion, it's one of the most beautiful books about childhood, and loss of innocence, and realizing that adults aren't perfect, ever written.
I won't highly recommend it, because I'm always disappointed by books that are "highly recommended", but it is a book that I deeply love.
I don t know why some people are really hatin' on this book it really is a good book and everyone who i know that's read this book loves it including MEE! It has a valuable meaning, it shows us the human dignity that ties and surrounds us. It shows the meaning f growing up and personally it showed me how cruel we can be. ''Innocence'' is a big part of the book's moral.
BEST BOOK EVAAA !!! nd R.I.P Tom Robinson ad G.T.H Robert Ewell. I m deeply moved by this book and i hope evryone else is too. One of the BEST Classics of all time never gets old... :)
Will wrote: "It baffles me how anyone could consider this book "boring" by any measure. Try reading Jane Austen and get back to me on boring."ditto Charles Dickens
I am not going to get into a discussion on the literary merit or otherwise of the book. That said, it is on 'my' list of great books because it drew me in from the first page. I had never met any young Southern US girls at that stage (still haven't actually) and so to me Scout was totally believable. Her view of Atticus is believable because, hello!, he is her Dad! There are undoubtedly things about Atticus that are less than admirable but we never get to see these.Personally I found the racist themes and the trial more of a sub-plot and very secondary to Scout's relationships with those people around her. I am not sure what those of us that found it boring were looking for but on my 'Dickens' scale of boredom (10 being the highest - Bleak House gets this one) it only rates a 2.
Edward wrote: "Not boring at all!Having lived in the deep South for 10+ years, I can say the portayal of Southern manners and customs are spot on.
The story itself, is engaging and well written. One of the f..."
That's fascinating - either way. Is there any historical evidence, or are you just using hyperbole to draw the comparison?
I read this in high school, almost 30 years ago. It is still my favorite book, and I reread it every few years. Boring is the last word I would use to describe it.
Anne wrote: "I'm about thirty years late reading this book (never read it in high school!)...I just finished the book this past week...FAN-TAS-TIC!!! I have the movie on DVD and will be watching it soon! Defi..."The movie is fabulous, too, but them I am a huge Gregory Peck fan. It's also worth it for Robert Duvall's first movie role.
i liked this book. i thought it was good. i had to read it in my english class. none of my friends liked it except for me. :(
It's on my top ten list of favorite books ever. The characters of To Kill a Mockingbird stay with you for a very long time.
As a substitute teacher, I end up leading a class through part of TKAM at least once a year. And every time I find a fresh bit of subtext, foreshadowing, or symbolism I hadn't seen before. Just sayin'
As with most questions, the answer is "it depends". In this case, it depends on what you like. If you're mostly interested in action and thrillers, this is probably not the book for you. But if you like a good story, with good, unusual characters, an interesting cultural and historical setting, and excellent writing, I'd say you'll probably like it.Personally, I loved it. It was one of the better books I've read in the last couple of years.
I loved this book when I "had" to read it in school, and I love it even more now. A lot of books that are on reading lists in school seem boring and difficult to read. Some reasons for that are: someone is making you read it, they always seem to have a high moral plotline, or they are about really "old" people in a time long, long, ago (like the 30's, 40's etc). I have reread many of the books I hated in school and they finally made sense and I understood what the fuss was about. Don't give up on Mockingbird even though it is about a moral plotline, really old people in a time long, long ago. It's worth the few dry spells in the story.
This book changed my life, made me a better person, and gave me a new outlook on life and what it means and why we are here... very inspiring... very sad, cried at least 4 times..... yeah, it was amazing...
This is a quiet read, but I wouldn't label it as "boring".
First Half of this book, I felt very much boring. I was going to left this book unfinished but then the actual plot started and after reading 8 to 10 pages, this book became my favorite one.
This is my absolute favorite book. I have read it half a dozen times and love it more each time.
If you like To Kill A Mockingbird, consider LIE -- my debut novel -- also about a racially-charged crime, this a murder, inspired by real events, set on present day Long Island. LIE is told from 10 different points of view, five teen and five adult, and has been called, "Suspenseful and thought-provoking" in a starred Booklist review. But read LIE and judge for yourself -- just out this fall from St. Martin's Press.
You'll appreciate it more if you read it more than once. I remember only liking it when I was younger, but now as an adult and father, I love this book. Atticus is the kind of man I strive to be. Scout reminds me of my daughter. I appreciate it more now than I did then.
Brian wrote: "Amanda wrote: "And I have to disagree with an above poster- if a book is a "classic," that DOES actually mean that it is good, objectively speaking, in the ways a literary critic would qualify a book to be good. As in, fluid characters, well-written dialogue, proper pacing, properly structured sentences, timeless thematics, etc. You not LIKING it is not the same thing."I disagree. Creative writing is an art form, and art is subjective. Therefore, there is no objective way to say which books are the "best" and which ones aren't."
In answer to this and all the following conversation between them:
I think that what Amanda meant by "good" was "well-written" and that doesn't mean that they are the "best," just that they are written better that others. You can still like books that are poorly-written and hate books that are well-written. That is where the "subjective art" comes in.
The story gets better and better as it goes on.
Delaney wrote: "Ok, so is this book good? I heard it is, but I've also head it's the most boring book on the planet...Can someone shed some light on this book for me please?"I really enjoyed this book! You have to let yourself forget that we live in a different time and just allow the characters to come to life. I thought it would be dry and I wouldn't be able to relate, but it wasn't like that at all. Very good read!
all discussions on this book
|
post a new topic
The Grapes of Wrath (other topics)
To Kill a Mockingbird (other topics)
Books mentioned in this topic
The Grapes of Wrath (other topics)The Grapes of Wrath (other topics)
To Kill a Mockingbird (other topics)
- very good, quick, information loaded writing style
- an excellent portrait of small town living in the rural south during a unique period in history
- the very fresh perspective of a very precocious young narrator
- a portrait of a good and moral man who holds to his principles despite the condemnation of many within his community
- a well-developed plot
- a sad commentary on a tragic period in American history
There's lots more but there is no way to deny that -- even if it is not your taste -- it is an exceptional book.