What in the name of Jean Louise Finch: according to The Associated Press, Publisher Harper announced this morning that Go Set a Watchman, a novel completed by To Kill a Mockingbird author and Pulitzer Prize-winner Harper Lee in the 1950s and “rediscovered” recently, will be published July 14th.
The AP describes the 304-page book as “essentially a sequel to To Kill a Mockingbird,” despite being completed before Lee’s seminal novel was published on July 11, 1960. Harper publisher Jonathan Burnham explains, “The existence of Go Set a Watchman was unknown until recently, and its discovery is an extraordinary gift.”
The book will be 88-year-old Lee’s second, and her first new work to be published in over 50 years.
It’s hard to overemphasize how huge (and hugely unexpected) this news is, and not just for book nerds or To Kill a Mockingbird fans: if Go Set a Watchman has any of the depth, influence or staying power of its predecessor, it’s likely to be taught in school and used as a cultural reference point for decades to come. That’s a lot of hype to live up to, but considering Lee’s recent struggles with rights issues and reluctance to digitize Mockingbird, calling any new work from her an “extraordinary gift” might be an understatement.
Pass the damn ham, please.
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