July 14, 2015 is set to be a big day in the publishing world. Harper Lee, the esteemed and somewhat mysterious author of the classic novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" will be releasing a companion novel -written more than sixty years ago and only recently rediscovered- that features the characters from the classic story as adults returning to their hometown of Maycomb, Alabama. Many of her fans are deeply excited about the discovery, which was, as both the author and her editors admit, a complete surprise, and look forward to the subsequent release as an opportunity to see a new side of the work of a masterful writer.
In the midst of what is arguably the largest publishing phenomenon in recent history, some do not find reason to celebrate. Ever since the manuscript for "Go Set a Watchman" was discovered by Lee's lawyer, Tonja Carter, in August 2014, there has been a great deal of speculation as to how it remained lost for so long. As well, in the days leading up to the release, further evidence has surfaced suggesting that the manuscript may have been found nearly three years earlier, when Carter and Lee's then-agent, Samuel Pinkus, went to a rare book dealer to have it appraised. Considering the copyright lawsuit Lee filed against Pinkus for the rights to her first book in 2013, and the various legal battles of a similar kind she has been involved in, this discovery takes on a new and somewhat sinister light, raising concerns that Lee might not have as much power to determine the terms of this release as she should. The questions remain: why exactly has Lee decided to publish after so many years spent avoiding public attention? was the decision entirely hers?
Comparisons to other reclusive authors who have disappeared from the publishing scene for long periods of time seem both apt and inevitable. J.D. Salinger, a classic American writer who published only four books in his lifetime, had a notoriously thorny relationship with the other inhabitants of his small town in New Hampshire. However, during his legal troubles in later life and ensuing attempts to escape from the public eye, they offered their support and in many cases stopped the press from coming to see him. Similarly, the residents of Lee's hometown have often been the target of lawsuits and insults directed at them by the writer, but many continue to cultivate supportive and private relationships with her. Quite a few have become worried about the ramifications of this new publication, especially since, as they confirm, she often expressed that she had no desire to publish again after her first success.
Some, like those residents, are concerned about exploitation and control over intellectual property that is being given- or not given- to the elderly author. Others, however, are worried about something much more basic. Although it will be published more than half a century after "To Kill a Mockingbird," and although it features the characters from that novel as adults returning to visit their father some 20 years later, "Go Set a Watchman" was actually written before its famous counterpart, and is regarded by Lee as its "parent" book. When she approached editors with the original manuscript back in the 1950s, it was rejected, and she went on to use many parts of it as fodder for "To Kill a Mockingbird," including its characters, its setting, and its deep-set themes of normalized prejudice and racial violence. Many fear that, because Publisher HarperCollins is choosing not to alter the book beyond a few choice edits, it will have material that seems to be recycled from her beloved classic, even though it was in fact written earlier. Worse, since "Go Set a Watchman" was technically Lee's debut novel, there are worries that it is an amateur effort, that there is no way it will measure up to her previous effort in either force or style.
Much of this worry, however, seems to be coming from the upper echelons of literary society; the reaction of the general public to the release has been overwhelmingly positive. In a statement given to her lawyer after the book was announced, Lee said that she was "happy as hell" with its reception, and that she had overcome her earlier reservations about the release. Working in a bookstore, I am fortunate enough to get to see the reactions of casual and serious readers alike as they come in and examine the advertisements for the new novel taped up alongside its award-winning counterpart. Most comments are fairly typical, from "I read her in high school" to "I loved the movie" to the surprised, if pleased, "Isn't she dead already?" Some express worry, or disdain, or condemn Lee for doing what they see as "selling out." Many more are excited, and nervous, about getting to re-introduce themselves to the writing of a beloved author after so many years.
As the judge points out during Tom Robinson's trial near the close of "To Kill a Mockingbird", "People generally see what they look for, and hear what they listen for." On July 14, millions of people will open their copy of "Go Set a Watchman" for the first time, and they will get to decide what it is they see. In the face of the Charleston shooting and other racially motivated attacks that have occurred in the past months, and of the many complaints over the recent removal of the Confederate flag from the South Carolina state capital, it seems as though Lee's unearthed novel comes at the perfect time. Whether or not it succeeds as a work of fiction, whether the message it imparts is as impactful as that of its predecessor, are both things that have to be determined by the audience of today, looking back on a novel that despite its sixty year delay promises to remain timely and important. The only way we can find that out, though, is if we choose to look.
Harper Lee's "Go Set a Watchman" will be published by HarperCollins on July 14, 2015.
