Harper Lee, one of Alabama’s finest, has passed away this morning at 89.
Born and raised in Monroeville, Alabama, Lee was known around the world as the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, ‘To Kill A Mockingbird.’
An incredibly private individual, Lee gave very few interviews during her life, but she always loved Alabama. In a rare interview in 1964, Lee highlighted her education in the state: “I was born in a little town called Monroeville, Alabama, on April 28, 1926. I went to school in the local grammar school, went to high school there, and then went to the University of Alabama. That’s about it, as far as education goes.” She was also close friends with fellow author Truman Capote.
She moved to New York in 1949 to begin her writing career. ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ was published by J.B. Lippincott & Co. on July 11, 1960 and was an instant success. The book won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction, a film version of the novel was released in 1962, and a theatrical adaptation is still performed in Monroeville every year.
Just last year, Lee surprised the world when she published a second novel, ‘Go Set A Watchman.’ The book, based on a lost manuscript originally completed in 1957, was another instant success. The New York Times called ‘Watchman’ “perhaps the most important novel on race to come out of the white South in decades.”
Lee spent much of her life in her hometown of Monroeville. She suffered a stroke in 2007 and remained in the state to help take care of her ailing sister Alice.
Lee’s writing had an undeniable impact on the literary world as well as the hearts and minds of anyone who read ‘Mockingbird.’
The world will do well to remember the words of wisdom Harper Lee gave us. “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.”
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