October 14, 2013 Photo of the day: "Hey Boo!"

"Until I feared I'd lose it,

I never really loved to read.

One does not love breathing." ~ Scout Finch

Don't worry, I won't give anything away! If you've read Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, you recognize this post's title and you know why this remarkable novel is featured in most high school American Literature courses, including mine. If not, my title is simply appropriately spooky for an October blog post! My students are working their way through the first book of this American classic and have already formulated a number of theories about Boo Radley, Scout, Jem, Dill, Atticus, and the rest of the Maycomb County residents of the novel (and no, it is not a how-to book!). If you haven't read this 20th Century masterpiece, do yourself a favor and add it to your reading list. While you're at it, treat yourself to the 1962 film featuring Gregory Peck's brilliant performance as Atticus Finch. If you enjoy the novel and the film, there is also an excellent Harper Lee documentary on Netflix called Hey Boo!

"If you can learn simple trick, Scout, you'll get along better will all kinds of folks. 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