Librarians across the country voted it the Best Novel of the Century in a 1999 poll conducted by Library Journal. Mary Badham as Scout, Phillip Alford as Jem, and John Megna as Dill in the classic 1962 film directed by Robert Mulligan with a screenplay adaptation by Horton Foote. A staple of high school and college reading lists, it ranked fourth in a Fall 1991 survey on ' Books that Made A Difference in Reader's Lives,' conducted by the Book-of-the-Month Club and the Library of Congress. Since its publication, the book has sold nearly 40 million copies worldwide becoming one of the most successful novels in publishing history and has now been translated into more than 40 languages. The actor wore to the ceremony a gift from Harper Lee herself a pocket watch that had belonged to her own father which she'd given Peck for good luck. It ultimately won three awards: for its art and set direction, for Horton Foote's screenplay, and for Peck' s portrayal of Atticus Finch. The film was soon nominated for eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Badham (at that time the youngest nominee ever for that category) and Best Actor. As it unfolds on the screen, To Kill A Mockingbird bears with it, oddly enough, alternating overtones of Faulkner, Twain, Steinbeck, Hitchcock and an Our Gang comedy.'

'Obviously loving care went into the process by which it was converted from the comprehensive prose of the printed page to the visual and dramatic storytelling essence of the screen. All hands involved are to be congratulated for a job well done, wrote Variety. In early 1963, the film opened to enthusiastic audiences, with huge crowds marking both the New York and the Alabama premieres. Directed by Robert Mulligan from a screenplay by Horton Foote (Lee herself said that the script should be studied as a classic ), To Kill A Mockingbird the film boasted an excellent cast, with Gregory Peck in the lead role as Atticus Finch, Mary Badham (a young girl with no acting experience) as Scout, Brock Peters as Tom Robinson, and a young Robert Duvall in his big screen debut as Boo Radley. Such a prediction was understated at best. Moviegoing readers will be able to cast most of the roles very quickly, but it is no disparagement of Miss Lee's winning book to say that it could be the basis of an excellent film. In fact, the closing words of the New York Times review predicted not only a film treatment but also the as-yet-unmade movie's ultimate success: some of the scenes suggest that Miss Lee is cocking at least one eye toward Hollywood. Though many reviews were mixed, the novel was crowned with a place in the critical pantheon within a year: In May 1961, To Kill A Mockingbird was awarded the Pulitzer Prize.īy this time, efforts were already underway to adapt the book into a motion picture. The New York Times review on the eve of the book's publication praised Lee for her gentle affection, rich humor and deep understanding of small-town family life in Alabama, and a Chicago Tribune article was titled Engrossing First Novel of Rare Excellence. To Kill a Mockingbird's popularity was matched by critical acclaim. Within its first year of publication, the book had sold a half-million copies and been translated into 10 languages. It was soon at the top of both the Chicago Tribune and the New York Times bestseller lists, ultimately spending nearly two years on that latter. The book was chosen by both the Literary Guild and the Book-of-the-Month Club and by the Reader's Digest for their condensed book series. To Kill A Mockingbird found almost immediate popularity after its publication in July 1960.

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