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| Unabridged Audio Version |
However, after Go Set A Watchman was released last year, it was received with mixed reviews... So, I postponed reading Go Set A Watchman as I was having doubts as to whether I still wanted to read it or not.
Long story short, I decided to finally download and listen to the unabridged audio version of Go Set A Watchman by Harper Lee and narrated by Reese Witherspoon from Audible.
I listened to Go Set A Watchman off and on over the course of a 48 hour period. And all I can say is, WOW!! I'm still trying to fully digest/absorb the message contained within Go Set A Watchman. All that I can relay for sure is that I am glad that I listened to this novel. I enjoyed Go Set A Watchman for the most part.
As a side note, I must add that I enjoyed reading To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee so much more than Go Set A Watchman though. Additionally, I'd love to reread To Kill A Mockingbird as it's been a number of years since I've read it.
Go Set A Watchman is definitely a stand alone novel. I kind of feel like it is just a different version/retelling of To Kill A Mockingbird from the point of view of Louise Finch/Scout as an adult along with other differences as well.
I'd also like to add that Reese Witherspoon does a phenomenal job narrating Go Set A Watchman.
The following is a plot summary for Go Set A Watchman by Harper Lee from Audible:
An historic literary event: the publication of a newly discovered novel, the earliest known work from Harper Lee, the beloved, best-selling author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning classic To Kill a Mockingbird.
Originally written in the mid-1950s, Go Set a Watchman was the novel Harper Lee first submitted to her publishers before To Kill a Mockingbird. Assumed to have been lost, the manuscript was discovered in late 2014.
Go Set a Watchman features many of the characters from To Kill a Mockingbird some 20 years later. Returning home to Maycomb to visit her father, Jean Louise Finch - Scout - struggles with issues both personal and political, involving Atticus, society, and the small Alabama town that shaped her.
Exploring how the characters from To Kill a Mockingbird are adjusting to the turbulent events transforming mid-1950s America, Go Set a Watchman casts a fascinating new light on Harper Lee's enduring classic. Moving, funny, and compelling, it stands as a magnificent novel in its own right.I am giving Go Set A Watchman by Harper Lee a rating of 4 stars out of 5 stars.
If you've read both Go Set A Watchman and To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper, how did you feel about each novel?
Until my next post, happy reading!!
I reread To Kill a Mockingbird before I started Go Set a Watchman. I must say I did enjoy TKAM more. There is something appealing about the young Scout and her brother that drew me in, and it was spellbinding to see the events of the trial through children's eyes, and also the reclusion (is that at word?) of their neighbor Boo.
ReplyDeleteGSAW seemed to me a sequel (even though written earlier), as it deals with events some twenty years later. Scout (Jean Louise) is a young adult; Atticus is an old man. She sees him through the eyes of reality and less ideality, and it comes as a shock to her (and to us, the readers).
I agree with you that Go Set A Watchman seemed like it could be more of a sequel to To Kill Mockingbird than a prequel! I still think it is a stand alone book though that could be read without having read To Kill A Mockingbird.
DeleteYes, there are aspects of To Kill A Mockingbird that are much more appealing than Go Set A Watchman.
I still have to read this! I've been hearing mixed reviews as well so I'm glad to hear you liked it! I really loved TKAM and it's one of those times where you don't want to read the next book because it might ruin your impression of the overall story in that world. So I don't know! Maybe I'll read it sometime this year. Lovely review!
ReplyDeleteLaura @BlueEyeBooks
Thank you for the comment!! If you decided to read this novel, I recommend listening to the unabridged audio version as Reese Witherspoon does an awesome job narrating it.
DeleteNice review!!!
ReplyDeleteI tried listening to this audio back in May but I couldn't get past one hour into it. It might have been because I was in the middle of finals so my mind was not ready for heavy reading. I'll need to go back to it because I still really want to read this book, either physical or audio.
It's worth the read or listen to at some point. I only wish I had reread To Kill A Mockingbird before listening to Go Set A Watchman to compare and contrast the two novels.
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