I Am Scout by Charles J. Shields

Subtitled The Biography of Harper Lee.
Published in 2008.
246 pages (including Notes, Bibliography, and Index).


I Am Scout is Charles J. Shields' adaptation for young adult readers of his New York Times bestseller Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee. I read it in conjunction with a re-read of To Kill a Mockingbird for the 50th anniversary of the classic American novel. I also watched the 1962 film.

The goodreads description of the book concludes, "Anyone who has enjoyed To Kill a Mockingbird will appreciate this glimpse into the life of its fascinating author." I certainly did! Particularly interesting to me was information about Lee's role in researching Truman Capote's In Cold Blood and why Lee never wrote a second novel.

I am the host for my book club's September meeting, and earlier this summer I chose To Kill a Mockingbird as our book for the month. I suggested that club members also read I Am Scout (as well as Scout, Atticus, and Boo: A Celebration of Fifty Years of To Kill a Mockingbird, which I haven't been able to get my hands on yet) to add to our discussion. I'm looking forward to it!

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