I've started my copy of Go Set a Watchman a few minutes ago. I've been avoiding all the reviews, etc. so as not to spoil it for me.
John
John
Harper Lee's Go Set a Watchman
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Let us know what you think.
Do you think maybe she is being manipulated into publishing a book she had no intention of publishing?
I do worry about it. I'm sure she is smiling and saying she wants to do it, but I honestly don't believe she fully understands. That's just my impression. Supposedly people talked to her though because of concerns and they must have come away feeling confident she could give consent.
All I have to say, though, is just because someone APPEARS to understand and APPEARS to answer appropriately and be engaged with their questioners, doesn't mean they are.
What i base that on is my own mom. Long story short, she was in the hospital, we thought she had a month to live. She was on morphine and other drugs. She had no Will. Our attorney came in and questioned her to make a Will. I was in the room. My mother answered questions coherently and engaged in back and forth conversation.
Luckily, my mom came out of this and we had her 2 more years. But, months down the road, she was asking me about this. She had no memory whatsoever of any of this. The Will, the attorney, the conversation. She asked me why certain things were in place and I told her because she is the one who said she wanted it that way. She was not happy about some things. And I told her she could call the attorney and change anything she wanted.
Because of my experience, this makes me very skeptical that Harper really was engaged in the process.
Moderator -- Is Steve reading this? I would very much like to hear his thoughts on this whole thing.
Does he believe she could give consent to the book and did?
What does he think about the story and writing?
Does he believe she could give consent to the book and did?
What does he think about the story and writing?
Haven't discussed it with him but he did post this on his Twitter account:
Watch the critics clobber GO SET A WATCHMAN. "Thou shalt not monkey with our scared literary cows." For the rest of us: you go, girl!
I also haven't asked him what "scared" literary cows are.
Haven't discussed it with him but he did post this on his Twitter account:
Watch the critics clobber GO SET A WATCHMAN. "Thou shalt not monkey with our scared literary cows." For the rest of us: you go, girl!
I also haven't asked him what "scared" literary cows are.
THank you! I don't twitter so I forget to look there.
I would love to hear more of what he has to say if he shares it with you and you are able to share it with us.
And with all that, I am off to go buy the book.
Let's see how long it sits in my house before I read it.
Let's see how long it sits in my house before I read it.
I went to Barnes & Noble to get my copy. There were about six or seven of us in line to check out and each one of us had at least one copy of Lee's book. I read somewhere that 2 million copies of the first printing were done.
John
John
Neesy
#1 fan (Annie Wilkes cousin) 1st cousin Mom's side
Haven't discussed it with him but he did post this on his Twitter account:
Watch the critics clobber GO SET A WATCHMAN. "Thou shalt not monkey with our scared literary cows." For the rest of us: you go, girl!
I also haven't asked him what "scared" literary cows are.
You ran out of hay!?!
I'm really torn. I'm huge To Kill A Mocking Bird Fan. Heck, my daughter's middle name is Scout. I refuse to read any articles about it, and have been avoiding my FB due to potential spoilers. I feel like my expectations for this book might not be met (boo hoo, no pun intended- Ha!), that I'm almost petrified to start it. I guess I'm weird for that.
I'm almost 150 pages in. Really loving it so far. This is a book that is very fitting of our troubled and confused times.
What I've read about the content of the book doesn't trouble me. Boo-hoo, hero worship of a literary character got knocked down a peg--whatever. People discount that TKAM is from the POV of a little girl who adores her father. It's Lee's character and she can do whatever she wants to do with him (it, them, etc. etc). This is not to say that I don't like the original story--I do, very much--but a morally conflicted character is more fitting for an adult, anyway.
I do find myself concerned for the same reason as Dana Jean, though. It seems passing strange that a woman who gave up her chosen profession and would love the room if TKAM was mentioned in her presence would suddenly be okay with a follow up novel being published. The announcement being made mere months after the passing of her sister, lawyer, and guardian seems hinky as hell to me. Like DJ, my mom has had more than one episode when she made decisions, seemingly in full control of her faculties, that she later can't remember. And she's no where near as old as Lee.
I do find myself concerned for the same reason as Dana Jean, though. It seems passing strange that a woman who gave up her chosen profession and would love the room if TKAM was mentioned in her presence would suddenly be okay with a follow up novel being published. The announcement being made mere months after the passing of her sister, lawyer, and guardian seems hinky as hell to me. Like DJ, my mom has had more than one episode when she made decisions, seemingly in full control of her faculties, that she later can't remember. And she's no where near as old as Lee.
Honestly, I feel the same way. I was very excited when I first heard about the book but then as the story about how it was found and came to be published, I just felt weirded out by it all. I'm still very torn on weather or not I'm going to read it.
That is a good way to put it - weirded out. I can't shake the feeling that an old lady has been pressured into it. I could be wrong. I am still holding my nerve and not buying it.
Just over 200 pages in. Still loving it. Highly recommended
I plan on reading it. It seems to me that the novel will fit with Mockingbird. She's an adult now. We all experience changes on how we view parents, hometowns and old friends as we mature. It's inevitable. Watchman is about this change. In other words you can't go home again. However I'll have a better idea after I read it.
Yeah, all the stories, etc around it could be a bit off putting. I wonder how much of it is real and how much is publicity. I would like to read it, but at the moment it's too expensive. I'll be happyenough to wait for paperback.
With millions of editions having been printed in just the United States alone I figure it will start popping up in church rummage sales, yardsales, used bookstores and thrift stores literally in a just a couple of months.