Go Set a Watchman

Reese Witherspoon draws you into the world of Scout in a convincing and moving way. The humanity of this book has a gritty realism which brings a new dimension to Atticus Finch.

No

Historical or Political

It couldn't,

No

After to Kill a Mockingbird it had to be anti climactic.Im sure Americans would have enjoyed this but for a Brit I found it(with great respect) too Southern Staes for my untrained ear.

Amidst the plethora of discussion (mostly negative) about this title over recent weeks it would be easy to lose sight of the value of this book and the skill of Ms Lee. I've read suggestions that she didn't write it (rubbish, in my opinion), that it's a big Murdoch publicity stunt (possible, but so what) and that it is literary dross. Addressing the last of these, I strongly disagree!
One reviewer said it was not published earlier because it was no good; it had too many semi-colons - the last refuge of the literary insolvent. I'm not sure if that reviewer has re-visited TKAM recently, but if they had, they would see dashes galore and a reasonable dosage of semi-colons. Apparently that did not affect the literary merit of the earlier title.
Someone else said that this is a blunt instrument to convey Ms Lee's smooth message about race. I'm not sure if the reviewer considered that this title is intended to be more confronting that TKAM. If it was, then on that scale, no doubt it was a successful attempt.
A reviewer on this site suggests that its cross-references to TKAM are inaccurate. Some of them are. However, given the elapse of time between the events in each book, these inconsistencies might be seen as merely a doting daughter's rose coloured memories and not the truth, thereby re-enforcing the underlying message of the book that when you set out to sanctify the truth might be lost.
I could go on, but it is not necessary.
In my view you can put aside the critics (me included) and just listen to the book. Like me, you might love it for what it is.
It is a story about a little girl becoming an adult; of seeing things in greys and not just black or white. It is about the realisation that our heroes are mostly human; that there comes a time to accept that no matter where North lies on your moral compass, it is still your responsibility to walk in the correct direction. Mostly for me, this is a story about a very real love and respect between father and daughter. It is an important book for that as well as the racial issues that it identifies (and which still bedevil society today, 50 years plus after this text was written).
I felt that the book was the better for being read by someone as accomplished as Reese Witherspoon. It was a perfect read to my ear.
I will be listening to this again, and often.

I would recommend it IF they'd liked To Kill A Mockingbird. There is something comforting about revisit familiar characters like Atticus and Scout. I also think Reese Witherspoon's narration was excellent. I really felt like I was in the South.

That old comforting feeling, for one thing. The ending surprised me a little too because I did not see it coming.

Undoubtedly, Scout. If they ever make a movie, she'd be the perfect choice for Scout. :) Her Aunt Alexandra was quite believable too.

I don't know... The Ballad of Jean Louise, maybe?

I find it hard to believe that Harper Lee really gave the OK to publish this book. It should have stayed in that safety deposit box where they found it. The book refers to things that happened in, To Kill a Mockingbird, but it misreferences the events. Other parts seem copy and pasted from the book.
If this book was not from Harper Lee, and was not riding on the coattails of such an iconic book, then I'd say it was OK, but slow. However, it is a book DOES have big shoes to fill, and because of that, it's a let down. Not only that, I feel it dishonors the book that came before it. This book should have remained unpublished. I feel this book is clearly a money grab by the publisher and should've been reedited to at least referenced its predecessor correctly.