The Mockingbird Next Door: Life with Harper Lee

Author: Mills, Marja

Color: White

Edition: Reprint

Number Of Pages: 304

Details:

New York Times Bestseller   “A winning, nuanced portrait. . . . It seems unlikely we’ll ever have a better record of a remarkable American life.” —USA Today   "There are many reasons to be grateful for The Mockingbird Next Door….A zesty account of two women living on their own terms yet always guided by the strong moral compass instilled in them by their father…. It is also an atmospheric tale of changing small-town America; of an unlikely, intergenerational friendship between the young author and her elderly subjects; of journalistic integrity; and of grace and fortitude…. The world [Mills] depicts is sadly gone, but—lucky for us—she caught it just in time."—Washington Post To Kill a Mockingbird is one of the best loved novels of the twentieth century. Yet for the last fifty years, the novel’s celebrated author, Harper Lee, known to her friends as Nelle, has said almost nothing on the record. But in 2001, Nelle and her sister, Alice Finch Lee, opened their door to  Chicago Tribune journalist Marja Mills. It was the beginning of a long conversation—and a wonderful friendship. Mills was given a rare opportunity to know Nelle, to be a part of the Lees’ life in Alabama, and to hear them reflect on their upbringing, their corner of the Deep South, and how  To Kill a Mockingbird affected their lives.

Reviews:

Washington Post:

"There are many reasons to be grateful for  The Mockingbird Next Door, Marja Mills’s wonderful memoir of Harper Lee and her sister….Sympathetic and respectful it may be, but  The Mockingbird Next Door is no sycophantic puff piece. It is a zesty account of two women living on their own terms yet always guided by the strong moral compass instilled in them by their father…. It is also an atmospheric tale of changing small-town America; of an unlikely, intergenerational friendship between the young author and her elderly subjects; of journalistic integrity; and of grace and fortitude…. Mills doesn’t avoid prickly issues, but she approaches them obliquely and accepts partial answers. Despite her enervating illness, Mills’s writing is energetic.  The Mockingbird Next Door is warm yet wistful, a lament for the books Harper Lee never wrote. It ends on an elegiac note, since by the time Mills was able to complete it, the Lees were fading fast, in separate assisted-living facilities. The world she depicts is sadly gone, but—lucky for us—she caught it just in time." USA Today:

“A lot of people have a lot of ideas about what it means to be American, but here’s one more:  To Kill a Mockingbird . . .That fact alone makes  The Mockingbird Next Door, a memoir by  Chicago Tribune reporter Marja Mills about her friendship with the book’s author, Harper Lee, a valuable artifact. It’s also a thoughtful, sweet-tempered, witty piece of work . . .   The Mockingbird Next Door offers a winning, nuanced portrait. Indeed, given Lee’s deep privacy and advanced age, it seems unlikely we’ll ever have a better record of a remarkable American life.“ People:“[Marja Mills] has written an intimate, moving book about a rare talent.” NPR Fresh Air, Maureen Corrigan:“Charming . . . The Mockingbird Next Door offers a rich sense of the daily texture of the Lee sisters’ lives . . . The world that Mills was invited into over a decade ago has disappeared: both Alice (now 102) and Harper Lee (now 88) are in nursing homes, memories faded. Fortunately, in Mills, the sisters found a genteel family chronicler knocking at their door at the eleventh hour.” O, The Oprah Magazine:"Mills has done what no writer before her could: She got Harper Lee to open up about her life, her work, and why she never wrote another book.”Boston Globe:“A rare, surprising, and respectful look at the Lees and their milieu.” Vanity Fair:“Hot Type: The Mockingbird Sings: More important than these answers, however, is the voice of Lee herself—and her message, which we still need to hear.”Elle:

“In telling their story in The Mockingbird Next ...

EAN: 9780143127666

Release Date: 05-05-2015

Languages: english

Item Note: Great shape- pages are unmarked and sharp.Has a remainder mark. Paperback Used - Like New Ships fast! 2015Reprint

Item Condition: UsedLikeNew

Binding: Paperback