Harper Lee

Bush Awards Presidential Medal of Freedom

A new collection of Harper Lee's writing is coming later this year

4:51pm March 04, 2025

The beloved author of To Kill a Mockingbird famously only released two novels in her lifetime. Now, the world will get to read more of Lee's work with an upcoming release of short stories and essays.

Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee, by Casey Cep

'Furious Hours' Tells The Tale Of Harper Lee And Her Unfinished Work

3:33pm May 08, 2019

by Ilana Masad

Writer Casey Cep's book delivers a gripping, incredibly well-written portrait not only of Harper Lee, but also of mid-20th century Alabama — and a still-unanswered set of crimes.

Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch, a small-town lawyer who defends a black man accused of rape, in a scene from the 1962 film To Kill a Mockingbird, based on the novel by Harper Lee.

Harper Lee Estate Sues Over 'To Kill A Mockingbird' Broadway Script By Aaron Sorkin

8:22pm March 15, 2018

by Laurel Wamsley

The author's lawyer says a contract bars the producers of a high-profile stage adaptation from departing "in any manner" from the spirit of the classic novel.

Pulitzer Prize winner and To Kill a Mockingbird author Harper Lee smiles before receiving the 2007 Presidential Medal of Freedom at the White House.

Harper Lee, Author Of 'To Kill A Mockingbird,' Dies At Age 89

6:47pm February 19, 2016

by Bill Chappell

The Pulitzer Prize-winning writer died in her hometown of Monroeville, Ala. Published in 1960, To Kill a Mockingbird has sold tens of millions of copies and been translated into dozens of languages.

Lee (center) attends a Los Angeles Public Library Awards Dinner in her honor at The Richard J. Riordan Central Library Maguire Gardens in 2005.

Books
Arts

The Measure Of Harper Lee: A Life Shaped By A Towering Text

6:05pm February 19, 2016

The author, who died Friday at 89, lived for decades in the shadow of her iconic novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. Yet there was more to Lee than her characters, however beloved they may remain.

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Arts

The Meaning Of A Hero Cast In Shadow, In Harper Lee's 'Go Set A Watchman'

2:31pm July 21, 2015

The release of Harper Lee's long-lost novel — and its portrait of once-crusading attorney Atticus Finch — has shaken devotees of "To Kill a Mockingbird." One poet argues that nuance should be welcome.

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A Lane cake is a layered sponge cake filled with a rich mixture of egg yolks, butter, sugar, raisins and whiskey and topped with boiled icing.

What Ever Happened To The Boozy Cake In 'To Kill A Mockingbird'?

8:45am July 19, 2015

by Meredith Bethune

In Harper Lee's classic first novel, Scout Finch's neighbor is known for her Lane cakes. But it's now hard to find this Southern layered sponge cake filled with raisins and whiskey anywhere.

Books
Arts

In Harper Lee's Return, First Chapter Swings From Homecoming To Heartbreak

3:19pm July 10, 2015

by Colin Dwyer

The opening chapter of Go Set A Watchman, Lee's first novel in 55 years, is out. Reactions ran from joy to shock — as readers coped with a plot twist and lingering doubts on the timing of its release.

Every spring, local residents have staged a play based on To Kill a Mockingbird in this courthouse in Monroeville, Ala.

A Town Divided Over The Next Chapter Of An Iconic Harper Lee Book

12:13pm May 04, 2015

by Debbie Elliott

There's plenty of speculation about whether the octogenarian author really intended to release the manuscript, discovered by her lawyer last year.

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Harper Lee, seen here receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2007, actually wrote Go Set a Watchman first. But she set it aside when her editor suggested focusing on Scout's flashbacks instead — and she did, in what became To Kill a Mockingbird.

Books
Arts

Harper Lee Plans To Publish A New Novel Featuring 'Mockingbird' Hero

5:47pm February 03, 2015

by Colin Dwyer

More than 50 years after the release of her classic — and only — novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Lee plans to publish a second. The newly unearthed book, Go Set a Watchman, will be published in July.