Nelle Harper Lee was born on April 28, 1926. Since Lee's mother was mentally ill, she was raised by her father. She became very close to her father.
The naughty Lee loved reading, and would make up stories with Truman Capote, her neighbour who was two years older than her. Seeing his daughter's imagination, Lee's father gave her a typewriter.
In high school, Lee developed an interest in English literature. After graduating in 1944, she went to the all-female Huntingdon College in Montgomery. Lee stood apart from the other students. She could have cared more about fashion, make-up, or dating. Instead, she focused on studies and writing. Transferring (转学) to the University of Alabama, Lee was known for being a loner and an individualist. Before her final year in the University of Alabama, Lee dropped out to become a writer. She moved to New York City where her childhood friend Truman was already a famous writer. While there, she worked on her first book — To Kill a Mockingbird. It won her the Pulitzer Prize in 1961 and was made into an Academy Award winning movie the following year.
To Kill a Mockingbird tells the story of six-year- old Scout and her brother who live in the town of Maycomb, Alabama with their single father Atticus. Atticus is a lawyer who defends blacks. At a young age, Scout lives in the surroundings of the terrors of segregation (隔离政策).
Then, in 2014, the first draft (草稿) of a new book — Go Set a Watchman was discovered among Lee's papers. It is the story of 26-year-old Scout who returns to Maycomb to visit her father. She is shocked to find her father a changed man. He has turned into a segregationist!
The story shows the mixed feelings Scout has about the changes that have taken place in her homeland and her father. A loner for most of her life, Lee stayed unmarried, preferring to lead a small town life. On February 19, 2016, Lee passed away at the age of 89.
