Booksellers, Readers Bring High Expectations to Harper Lee's 'Go Set a Watchman'

By Marc Torrence/CT Patch

“Since Atlanta, she had looked out the dining-car window with a delight almost physical.”

So begins the most-anticipated novel perhaps in the history of publishing in the United States. Harper Lee’s ”Go Set a Watchman” goes on sale July 14, and the first chapter was released Friday morning, adding yet another layer of excitement to the frenzy of media coverage that has accompanied the publication of Lee’s first book in 55 years.

The release is not without its fair share of controversy. Still, booksellers across the country are excited for the novel.

Michael Herrmann, the owner of Gibson’s Bookstore in Concord, said he was delighted that Lee was publishing more of the story.

“A lot of us here at Gibson’s have read the original novel many times,” he said.

To honor Harper Lee, the store is hosting a celebrity read-a-thon of “To Kill a Mockingbird” on Monday, July 13, starting at noon.

“We hope to be finished at midnight, when the new novel will go on sale to any fans eager enough to be here for it,” he added. “It’ll be just like a Harry Potter party, just with mint juleps instead of butterbeer.”

The store will be open at 9 a.m. on July 14, for everyone who reserved copies or plan to come in looking for it.

“Go Set A Watchman” takes place about 20 years after the events of “To Kill A Mockingbird,” Lee’s only other novel, which won a Pulitzer Prize and is regarded as one of the greatest works in the history of American literature.

The new novel, like the old, is told from the point of view of Scout Finch. Chapter One follows Scout as she journeys home to Maycomb, Alabama, from New York City.

Without giving away plot points or spoilers, a few updates to some characters and events already have some readers surprised and upset.

Lee, now 89, still lives in Monroeville, Alabama, the town for which fictional Maycomb is modeled. With her health declining, many have questioned whether she was competent enough to approve the release of the manuscript, which was found by her lawyer in 2014.

The state of Alabama opened an elder-abuse investigation against Lee’s lawyer, Tonja B. Carter, but found Lee was capable of giving consent to the publication of the novel.

“You can’t take away what she’s created here,” Fazio said. “She was ahead of her time when she wrote ‘To Kill A Mockingbird,’ and when we look at what’s going on in the world, she really hits on some things that are even relevant today. I’m really, really excited for it.”

R.J. Julia is taking pre-orders. On Tuesday; it will open an hour early, at 9 a.m., and will serve free coffee for anyone who orders or buys a book. The audiobook will be playing as background in the store.

The bookstore is also partnering with Madison Arts Cinema across the street, which will be showing “To Kill A Mockingbird” for $5.

For more information, contact R.J. Julia.

Read the first chapter of Go Set A Watchman here.

Image courtesy Harper Collins