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To Kill a Mockingbird - the twentieth century's most widely read American novel - has sold thirty million copies and still sells a million yearly. But despite the book's popularity, its author Harper Lee has always been a mysterious figure. In this in-depth biography, first published in 2006, Charles J. Shields finally brings to life the woman who gave us two of American literature's most unforgettable characters, Atticus Finch and his daughter Scout.

Years after its initial publication, with updates throughout the book and a new Afterword, Shields brings us up to date on all the major Harper Lee events since 2006. There's the scandal with allegations that Lee's agent has been trying to steal the copyright for To Kill a Mockingbird, the death of Lee's dear sister Alice, scandalous accusations of elder abuse, and - most vitally - the release of Lee's long buried first novel, never before published, and the ensuing public devouring of what has truly become the book of the year, if not the decade - Lee's Go Set a Watchman.

Charles J. Shields is the author of And So It Goes: Kurt Vonnegut: A Life, Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee, the highly acclaimed, bestselling biography of Harper Lee, and I Am Scout: The Biography of Harper Lee (Henry Holt Books for Young Readers). He grew up in the Midwest and taught in a rural school in central Illinois for several years. He has been a reporter for public radio, a journalist, and the author of nonfiction books for young people. He and his wife live near Charlottesville, Virginia.