To Kill a Mockingbird

Starting out the novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee was a little difficult for me. Honestly, the first few pages of the novel were not interesting at all. It was hard to stay focused and understand what is going on. I actually got interested when Dill comes in and the situation of the Radley Place is brought up.

From what I have read so far, the Radley Place is a big event going on in the town of Maycomb. Every now and then, Scout has some sort of reference to the place. This issue in the town is what got my full attention for the novel. The way that Harper keeps the reader in suspense with this place forces me to continue reading. With little incidents occurring and different stories going on in the town, I want to go on reading and find out the truth about the place. There has been a part that really spooked me. When Jem pushes the tire with Scout in it, the tire stops in front of the Radley's. Later on, when Jem, Scout, and Dill play the game of "Boo Radley" and Atticus catches them, Scout wants to quit the game. She mentions that the reason for it is because when she rolled into the front yard of the Radley, "someone inside the house was laughing." This incident really is really horriffic from my point of view because of all the stories that have been told in the town. In addition to this incident, Scout finds chewing gum in the tree and then Jem and Scout find pennies in the same place. These weird incidents add to the suspense that Harper uses in the novel to keep the reader focused.

Something that I am having a difficult time with is how Harper Lee switches back and forth in the story. When a situation is going on, all of a sudden, Scout mentions something that happens in the past. One time this flashback was helpful. When Scout is at school and tries to explain Miss Caroline about Walter Cunningham, the flashback was helpful for me to understand what was so different about Walter. However, other times, when Scout brings in stories of the past, I get confused with what is going on.

Atticus, Jem, and Scout's relation is something that I want to understand better. I don't understand how Scout always calls her father by his name and everytime Jem and Scout talk to him, they say something like "Nothing, sir." It doesn't seem like they have a close family relationship. The only time that I have understood Scout and her father being close is when he explains her about going to school. Other than that, it seems like their relationship is not really deep and close.

The novel is really interesting so far and I am looking forward to continuing and finding out more about the Radley Place. I just finished reading about when Scout, Jem, and Dill try to write a note to Boo Radley. I am excited to read further and see how these children take risks in trying to get someone come out of the house. The story is getting really interesting.