This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-35616011
The article has changed 9 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 1 | Version 2 |
---|---|
Harper Lee: US author of To Kill a Mockingbird dies aged 89 | Harper Lee: US author of To Kill a Mockingbird dies aged 89 |
(35 minutes later) | |
Harper Lee, the reclusive author of To Kill a Mockingbird, has died at the age of 89. | Harper Lee, the reclusive author of To Kill a Mockingbird, has died at the age of 89. |
The news was confirmed by the mayor's office in her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama. | The news was confirmed by the mayor's office in her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama. |
The novelist was born Nelle Harper Lee on 28 April 1926. | The novelist was born Nelle Harper Lee on 28 April 1926. |
In 1960, she published To Kill a Mockingbird, a huge critical and commercial success which won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. A sequel Go Set a Watchman, was published in 2015. | |
To Kill a Mockingbird sold more than 40 million copies worldwide. | |
Obituary: Harper Lee | Obituary: Harper Lee |
Live: Tributes paid to Harper Lee | Live: Tributes paid to Harper Lee |
Why is To Kill a Mockingbird so popular? | Why is To Kill a Mockingbird so popular? |
Lee was born 1926 in Monroeville, Alabama. She was the youngest of four children of lawyer Amasa Coleman Lee and Frances Cunningham Finch Lee. | Lee was born 1926 in Monroeville, Alabama. She was the youngest of four children of lawyer Amasa Coleman Lee and Frances Cunningham Finch Lee. |
She was a guardedly private person, respected and protected by residents of her town, rarely giving interviews. | She was a guardedly private person, respected and protected by residents of her town, rarely giving interviews. |
"The world has lost a brilliant mind and a great writer," said Spencer Madrie, owner of Ol' Curiosities and Book Shoppe, a small, independent book store in Lee's hometown that focuses largely on Lee's works. | "The world has lost a brilliant mind and a great writer," said Spencer Madrie, owner of Ol' Curiosities and Book Shoppe, a small, independent book store in Lee's hometown that focuses largely on Lee's works. |
"We will remember Harper Lee for her candour, her talent, and the truths she gave the world, perhaps before the world was ready. We are grateful to have had a connection to an author who offered so much. | "We will remember Harper Lee for her candour, her talent, and the truths she gave the world, perhaps before the world was ready. We are grateful to have had a connection to an author who offered so much. |
"There will always be something missing from Monroeville and the world at large in the absence of Harper Lee." | "There will always be something missing from Monroeville and the world at large in the absence of Harper Lee." |
Michael Morrison, the head of HarperCollins US said in a statement: "The world knows Harper Lee was a brilliant writer, but what many don't know is that she was an extraordinary woman of great joyfulness, humility and kindness. | |
"She lived her life the way she wanted to - in private - surrounded by books and the people who loved her. I will always cherish the time I spent with her." | |
The author Malorie Blackman posted "Harper Lee R.I.P." on her Twitter account. | The author Malorie Blackman posted "Harper Lee R.I.P." on her Twitter account. |
Apple CEO Tim Cook tweeted: "Rest in peace, Harper Lee. The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience." | Apple CEO Tim Cook tweeted: "Rest in peace, Harper Lee. The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience." |
The manuscript for the sequel to To Kill a Mockingbird, Go Set A Watchman was discovered and published in 2015. | |
Many bookshops remained open all night to cope with demand. | Many bookshops remained open all night to cope with demand. |
The book is set 20 years after the events of To Kill a Mockingbird - although Lee actually wrote Go Set a Watchman first. | |
Watchman contains some of the same characters as Mockingbird, including Scout and her father Atticus Finch. | |
The publication proved controversial as early reviewers noted that Atticus expresses racist views in the story. | |
To Kill a Mockingbird - at a glance | To Kill a Mockingbird - at a glance |
In the small fictional town of Maycomb in the depression-ravaged American South, a black man named Tom Robinson is falsely accused of raping a white woman. | In the small fictional town of Maycomb in the depression-ravaged American South, a black man named Tom Robinson is falsely accused of raping a white woman. |
A lawyer named Atticus Finch defends Robinson in court. The frenzy stirred up by the case and her father's quest for justice are seen through the eyes of Finch's six-year-old daughter Scout. | A lawyer named Atticus Finch defends Robinson in court. The frenzy stirred up by the case and her father's quest for justice are seen through the eyes of Finch's six-year-old daughter Scout. |
The book explores issues of race, class and the loss of innocence. | The book explores issues of race, class and the loss of innocence. |
"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… until you climb into his skin and walk around in it." - Atticus Finch to Scout. | "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… until you climb into his skin and walk around in it." - Atticus Finch to Scout. |
"It was times like these when I thought my father, who hated guns and had never been to any wars, was the bravest man who ever lived." - Scout Finch. | "It was times like these when I thought my father, who hated guns and had never been to any wars, was the bravest man who ever lived." - Scout Finch. |
The novel is currently being adapted for the stage. | |
What are your memories of Harper Lee? Did you meet her? What impact did her books have on you? Email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with your stories. | What are your memories of Harper Lee? Did you meet her? What impact did her books have on you? Email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with your stories. |
Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also contact us in the following ways: | Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also contact us in the following ways: |
Or use the form below | Or use the form below |