Nelle Harper Lee, A Tribute
“Well, it’s better to be silent than be a fool.”
Iconic author, Harper Lee, passed away silently on the 19th of February 2016, leaving a void in the hearts of many-a-reader who have adored her over generations. Yet, ironically, she had only one novel to her credit until last year!
Her maiden novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird”, immortalized her name as an author and earned her the coveted Pulitzer Prize. The novel was adapted to a movie in 1962, which earned its lead actor, Gregory Peck, an Oscar.
The story behind how “To Kill a Mockingbird” happened is an interesting one. In an essay in McCall’s magazine published in December 1961, Harper Lee recalled that one Christmas, her closest friends gave her an extraordinary gift — enough money to take off an entire year to write! Freed from having to earn a living, Lee was able to devote her time to writing and selling her first novel. “They wanted to give me a full, fair chance to learn my craft, free from the harassments of a regular job,” Harper Lee wrote.
Her second — and last — novel, “Go Set a Watchman” was, infact, her first piece of writing. However, it was turned down by the publisher in 1957, and was later published, nearly 60 years later, in 2015. Despite the fact that this book garnered mixed reviews, it turned out to be amongst the top sellers of the year.
Lee always maintained a low profile. She believed in letting her work speak for her. On one of the many occasions when she turned down an offer to address an audience, she said, “Well, it’s better to be silent than be a fool.”
She was once quoted, in an interview with critic Roy Newquist, as saying,
“I never expected any sort of success with ‘Mockingbird’. I didn’t expect the book to sell in the first place. I was hoping for a quick and merciful death at the hands of reviewers, but at the same time I sort of hoped that maybe someone would like it enough to give me encouragement — public encouragement. I hoped for a little, as I said, but I got rather a whole lot, and in some ways this was just about as frightening as the quick, merciful death I’d expected.”
Those were humble words from an author whose book had surpassed all records of best-sellers. From the time the book was first published till date, more than 40 million copies of “To Kill a Mockingbird” have been sold.
Right after finishing her maiden book, Lee had assisted her childhood friend Truman Capote, a well-established author who had written “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, while he researched his novel “In Cold Blood”. However, he reveled in the praise and fortune that came with its success, giving little credit to Lee for her contribution.
Harper Lee’s last public appearance was in November 2007 (see picture), when she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from George W. Bush.
It would be apt to conclude with this quote by Michael Morrison, the President of her publisher, HarperCollins,
“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.”
