To Kill a Mockingbird

Content Warning: This section of the guide contains discussion of racism and graphic violence.

Gather initial thoughts and broad opinions about the book.

1. The novel is both a bildungsroman about the formative experiences of a young girl and a historical novel examining injustice. Which of the story’s elements interested you most? How does the young Scout’s narration affect your engagement with the text?

2. Compare and contrast the novel to other coming-of-age stories, such as Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give or Betty Smith’s A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. What similarities and differences do you notice about the protagonists’ journeys toward maturity, and how do the authors use the main characters’ experiences to explore social issues such as racism and poverty? 

3. Literary critics sometimes discuss the concept of the Great American Novel. Do you consider To Kill a Mockingbird a contender for this title? Why or why not? Do you see any striking similarities or differences between Harper Lee’s novel and other books regarded by some as Great American Novels, such as Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God and John Steinbeck’s