'To Kill a Mockingbird' Sequel Book - 'Go Set a Watchman': Author Harper Lee to Publish 2nd Novel 55 Years Later

By Liezl Dunuan, Christian Post Contributor Saturday, February 14, 2015

Harper Lee, author of one of the most popular novels in literary history, "To Kill a Mockingbird," recently announced that she will publish a sequel to her first novel entitled "Go Set a Watchman," set to be released in July 2015. The novel will only be her second one, after a 55-year hiatus.

According to a news report in The Guardian, the author called her work "a pretty decent effort," perhaps as a way of allaying fears about the quality of the book.

Lee wrote and finished "Watchman" ahead of her first novel in the 1950s but she had thought she had lost the manuscript, according to a statement she made to her publisher, HarperCollins.

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Lee stated that being a novice writer during that time, her editor persuaded her to dive into the young life of the main protagonist, Scout, which eventually became "To Kill a Mockingbird."

In her statement to Harper, she also relates how it was discovered: "I hadn't realized it had survived, so was surprised and delighted when my dear friend and lawyer Tonja Carter discovered it. After much thought and hesitation I shared it with a handful of people I trust and was pleased to hear that they considered it worthy of publication. I am humbled and amazed that this will now be published after all these years."

The manuscript was discovered in the fall of 2014 by Carter, and was said to have been attached to "an original typescript of 'To Kill a Mockingbird'," the HarperCollins statement further said.

The novel is set 20 years after "Mockingbird" and still revolves around the story of Scout, this time an adult and her relationship with her lawyer father and her life in a small town called Maycomb.

Announcements of the new book is causing a furor among Lee's fans and critics alike. Fans are eagerly anticipating its release: by the afternoon after the announcement, Barnes and Noble placed the book among the top 10 because of the sheer number of pre-orders placed.

Critics on the other hand expressed their concern about the book's quality. In the Guardian, Dr. Ian Patterson of Cambridge University said, "I can't but imagine it must be of historical interest rather than anything else, at this point."