To Kill a Mockingbird

The world has lost one of its greatest and most important literary talents with the death of Harper Lee this February. To Kill a Mockingbird is the single best piece of literature on values, honesty, tolerance, and character that I know of. The novel is set in depression-era Maycomb, Alabama, a small southern town fashioned after Lee’s own Monroeville. Scout Finch, our captivating young protagonist, tells the story of her father, Atticus, a lawyer who defends a black man accused of raping a white woman. I think this book is truly a gift, and that we will all continue to celebrate Lee’s legacy for decades to come.