Atticus Finch
The Biography

Quotes

"Lucid, accomplished, eminently readable... Atticus Finch a blend of Southern history, literary criticism and group biography, is probably the best book about Harper Lee to come out since her death in 2016."—USA Today

"Although dismaying to some Lee fans, the belated publication of "Watchman," an apprentice work containing the germ plasm of "Mockingbird," cast light on the virtues and limitations of the author and her canonical novel. It also opened the door to serious scholarship like "Atticus Finch: The Biography," Joseph Crespino's crisp, illuminating examination of Harper Lee's dueling doppelgangers and their real-life model, Lee's politician father."—New York Times Book Review

"Readers interested in understanding the three different portrayals of Atticus Finch - the one found in "To Kill a Mockingbird," Gregory Peck's Atticus of the cinema, and the "warts and all" version found in Harper Lee's 2015 book, "Go Set a Watchman," will delight in this well researched backstory."—Bitter Southerner

"Insightful... [a] supple and incisive portrait of A.C. Lee."—Forward

"Mr. Crespino shows a gift for copious research and nuanced interpretation. He deftly parses the region's racial attitudes into a spectrum of views that reflected varying degrees of tolerance."—Wall Street Journal

"An in-depth look into the inspiration of Harper Lee's father, A.C. Lee, for the part of Atticus Finch... This will be of interest to anyone who studies Lee's work."—Library Journal

"Illuminating... Crespino combines the authority and command of the scholar with the grace of a storyteller, making Atticus a great read. He's crafted an earnest, lucid and concise history of the time in which the two voices of Atticus were created, and shown why they are so paradoxical."—Arts ATL

"A fascinating, thoroughly researched new book... In nimbly navigating Harper Lee's divergent portrayals of Atticus Finch - and the complex contradictions of A.C. Lee - Crespino will send many readers back to her novels in search of further understanding."—Columbus Dispatch

"Crespino's scholarly and well-written history leaps to the top of the books you should read if you are a To Kill A Mockingbird devotee."—Bookreporter

"Mr. Crespino has written a nuanced biography, one that tells the twin stories of Harper Lee's development of the character Atticus Finch and her relationship and ideological struggles with her father Amasa Coleman (A.C.) Lee, the Alabama lawyer and newspaperman, on whom Harper Lee based the fictional Atticus."—Christian Science Monitor