Heroic Characters, Mysterious Events

Some books contain characters that make me want to be more like they are. To Kill A Mockingbird is one of those books. Maudie and Atticus do that for me. First of all, could you believe the way Maudie reacted to the house fire? After all she went through that evening of the fire, she ends up talking about her Lane cake recipe and sending Scout and Jem home to clean up the Morphodite. Scout hears her laughing that morning after the fire and wonders what's the matter with her. What do you think? How could she laugh after all that?

Then there's Atticus. This character has been voted by many to be America's number one hero. Is he a good dad? I have to laugh when Scout approaches him (last night's reading) with all her reasons to get to stay home from school...stomach, dizziness, attempted ringworm, and the best of all, cussing. I thought it was hysterical when she asked her Uncle Jack to pass the damn ham, please. (cussing while asking please...) It made me think of those feeble attempts I made when I was young to try to act old. It also reminds me of my attempts to stay home from school. Why does Atticus ignore her? Is that effective parenting? What does this teach Uncle Jack?

How about you? Comments about the characters, their prejudices, their kindnesses, their parenting skills? How about Boo? How did Scout not notice him? What about Jem? Why was he out on the porch after the tree hole incident with tear stains on his face? Why didn't Scout hear him...or better yet, understand him?

Gosh, there's so much to say about the reading so far. Have at it. What do you think?